Arch Manning Breaks His Silence on Poor Play

Before the 2025 college football season, Texas Longhorns starting quarterback Arch Manning was the most hyped player in the country, but things have not exactly gone all that well to start the season.

Manning entered the season as the preseason Heisman Trophy favorite, the starting quarterback of the top team in the country, and the predicted top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Through three games, however, he has not lived up to the hype and was even booed by his home crowd on Saturday.

Despite the struggles, however, it sounds like Manning is keeping a positive and optimistic mindset.

Arch Manning Preseason Hype

• Nephew of Peyton and Eli Manning
• Top-rated recruit in the 2023 high school recruiting class
• Preseason Heisman Trophy favorite
• Projected as No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft

Manning Fails to Live Up to the Hype

Through the first three games of the season, it's fair to say that Manning has not lived up to the hype.

Though the Longhorns are 2-1 with the only loss coming on the road to the top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes, Manning has completed just 55.3 percent of his passes for 579 yards and 6 touchdowns with 3 interceptions.

In those games, Manning has been widely inaccurate at times, missing open receivers on routine passes and struggling with his throwing mechanics. As a result, even some of Manning's biggest supporters in the media have changed their tune on him.

Manning's most recent game against UTEP was particularly concerning as the preseason Heisman Trophy favorite completed just 11 of 25 passing attempts for 114 yards with one touchdown and an interception. During the game, he had a streak of 10 consecutive incompletions.

Manning Vows to Be Better

During a press conference this week, Manning broke his silence on his poor play as he vowed to play better in the coming weeks.

"I know the type of player that I am," Manning said via ESPN. "I know I'm going to play better and we're going to be better as an offense."

While fans have undoubtedly been frustrated with Manning's poor play, Manning himself has been frustrated, too, because he believes he is better than he has been playing.

"It's frustrating because I know I'm better than that," Manning said of his struggles after the win over UTEP. "But you know, we're going to be better this week and get clicking on offense. I'm excited to get going."

We'll have to see how Manning bounces back this week.