Expectations for Arch Manning were through the roof ahead of the 2025 college football season, as many analysts projected him to win the Heisman Trophy in his first year as the Texas starter.
Manning had a slow start to the 2025 season, after which many doubted his skills; however, the Texas star found his rhythm in the middle of the season.
College football analyst Aaron Murray spoke to J.D PicKell on Sunday about him being high on Manning despite the disappointing start to last year’s season.
“The offensive line has to be better for Texas this year. If they are, you’re going to see a massive jump for Arch Manning, They made sure they got some better receiver play.” Murray said. So, I think the guys around Arch are going to make him even more comfortable. But, you know, the way you saw him play down the stretch, especially in that you know, you see that bowl game, you see the confidence really starting to come out. And I always tell young quarterbacks, it’s you know, there’s a difference between being cockyand being confident. And you got to tow that line a little bit of thinking that you’re the best player on the field while not going out there and just, you know, as I said, being overly cocky. And I think he does a good job of oozing confidence in a really positive way. I thought the arm looked better down the stretch of the season. I loved his ability to run the football.”
Analyst Expresses Skepticism About Arch Manning for the 2026 Season
During a recent conversation with J.D. PicKell, analyst Connor O’Gara shared that while he has high hopes for Steve Sarkisian’s Texas, he has some skepticism about Manning.
O’Gara highlighted that, even though he believes this year’s offense would be much better, Manning has issues with his footwork and executing short throws like Quinn Ewers.
“He needs to be healthy this year. You need to be able to execute the short throws that Quinn Ewers made, I think, that look really effortless at times.” O’Gara said. “And you need to be able to lean more on this ground game. The experience on the offensive line is really going to benefit them.”
Manning ended the 2025 college football season with 26 passing touchdowns, 7 interceptions, while throwing 3,163 passing yards, helping the Longhorns finish the season with an overall record of 10-4.
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