“He's going to fumble”: Former Texas QB offers bold prediction for Arch Manning amid massive hype in 2025

Arch Manning is one of the most hyped-up players in recent college football history. However, it's not just because of his ties with legends like Eli and Peyton Manning, but also because he was a 5-star recruit and has been showing off impressive skills whenever he gets the chance.

While the hype is exciting, many fans and analysts are concerned about the pressure it builds and the potential criticism if Manning doesn't exceed the current expectations around him.

Talking about the situation, former Texas legend Colt McCoy said:

"I come in a little bit different situation, right? Nobody knew who I was. I didn't have the expectations that these guys have, right? I red-shirted. And, you know, you get to your junior, senior year, and it's kind of like, okay, like, now the expectations are for real, but for Quinn, top recruit, Arch, top recruit, right? They walk in sort of, kind of crowned as, like, the next guy, so that's a hard place to be, a hard place to operate, right?."

"Arch is going to throw a pick next year; he's going to fumble. It's like there's going to be stuff, but we can't as a fan base, and that's like Texas. Oh, he's not as good as we thought. Like, no, like, give him a give him a chance to go out there and lead and play."

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CFB analyst weighs in on Steve Sarkisian's strategy with Arch Manning

Due to Arch Manning's high profile, Steve Sarkisian could have easily given him special treatment and bought into the hype. However, Sarkisian has taken a very fair approach with Manning. While the Texas QB1 was supposed to wait for one year on the bench behind Quinn Ewers and then have the spotlight, he had to wait for two years, which Sarkisian called a normal process and didn't give into the pressure of transfer portal rumors.

Talking about how Sarkisian is handling the Arch Manning hype train, analyst J.D. PicKell said:

"Because with as high-profile as he is and as how high-profile as he was a recruit, I think it's very easy to want to tippy-toe with a person like that. You don't want to put him too far out into the spotlight, you don't wanna have him be this larger-than-life story, but Texas really hasn't fought that."

The Texas Longhorns will face the Ohio State Buckeyes in an exciting season opener at Columbus in 2025.