Arch Manning was supposed to be the next great quarterback at Texas. After two straight 27-24 losses, analyst Shannon Sharpe says the Longhorns star is not that, and that people need to stop assuming a famous last name guarantees it.
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“He [Arch] has an okay arm. It’s not generational, it’s not historically great, it’s not transcendental,” Sharpe said on his latest Nightcap podcast. “He doesn’t see the field well at all. His awareness is not very good at all.”
That take lands in the middle of a debate Texas coach Steve Sarkisian started himself. After the loss to Oklahoma, Sarkisian argued that Manning gets judged by his family tree and added that the expectations on Manning applied to the whole Texas team. Manning is the grandson of Archie Manning and the nephew of Super Bowl winners Peyton and Eli.
“I think if you took the name off the back of his jersey and you said, ‘Here’s Joe Smith playing quarterback at the University of Texas and here’s a guy who’s beaten four top-10 ranked teams in his last 13 starts,’ we’d be praising the guy,” Sarkisian said.
Sharpe sees it the other way around. In his view, the name is exactly why the bar is so high.
“Because of who his uncles are, we’re expecting that level of play,” Sharpe said. “They’re so much better than he was in college at this point in time. Eli was much better than Arch Manning at this point in time of his career.”
“Peyton was leap years, I mean, galaxies better than Arch,” Sharpe continued. “And it’s okay, and he might not ever be that, and we’ve got to stop thinking because his last name is Manning, he’s going to be that.”
Sharpe also pointed to what he sees on the field. He said Manning is missing wide-open receivers and that the ball kept coming out whenever defenders got their hands on him.
“He fumbled several times, and they got it back,” Sharpe said.
The Oklahoma game gave critics plenty to work with. Manning completed 19 of 31 passes for 260 yards and three touchdowns, but he threw two interceptions, both in the fourth quarter. The first one was returned for 42 yards for a touchdown to put Oklahoma up 24-17. Manning threw the second with 19 seconds left, and Tate Sandell kicked a 47-yard field goal on the final play to win it. Texas came in ranked No. 1 and dropped to No. 7.
Texas looked in control at 17-3, but Florida had other plans. Manning finished 14 of 20 for 173 yards and a touchdown, yet his late-game struggles proved costly. With Texas trailing by three and roughly two minutes left, Florida’s Graham beat an overload blitz to sack Manning and force a fumble. It was the Gators’ fifth sack of the game, sealing another frustrating loss as Texas dropped to 4-2.
Sarkisian’s tone changed after that one and said in the postgame presser that Texas is not playing good offensive football and that everything would be evaluated. When reporters asked if that included Manning’s job, he answered, “Everything means everything.”
Sarkisian took much of the blame himself, but he also said Manning and the rest of the team have to play better. It is a sharp turn from where this season began.
Manning came in as a potential No. 1 pick in the 2027 NFL Draft and a Heisman contender. Before the recent game, he had completed 63% of his passes for 1,122 yards, 10 touchdowns, and five interceptions. It’s because of these moments that the debate is not that simple.
Sarkisian points to the wins over top teams, and Sharpe points to the mistakes and the comparison with Peyton and Eli. Right now, the results back neither side completely, and the next game against Ole Miss on October 24 might clear these recently surfaced doubts.