Will Oklahoma become a contender for Arch Manning?

Welcome Arch Madness, Oklahoma?

According to multiple reports, including first mentions from Lee Benson of Oklahoma City’s News9 and Josh McCuistion of SoonerScoop, Ole Miss offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby has agreed to leave Oxford in favor of Norman.

It’s a move insiders believe will put Oklahoma “very much” in the hunt for Arch Manning, the Five-Star Plus+ 2023 quarterback and top overall junior recruit in the country.

“Lebby was heavily involved and was the central figure recruiting him for Ole Miss,” On3 National Analyst Gerry Hamilton said. “The Manning family really likes Lebby.”

That sentiment is echoed by On3 Director of Recruiting Chad Simmons and Charles Power, On3’s Director of Scouting and Rankings.

And even if Oklahoma doesn’t become a factor for Arch Manning, Power says the move is a big win for the Sooners in future recruiting battles.

“In my opinion, pairing Brent Venables with an offensive coordinator like Jeff Lebby would be one of the more ideal outcomes from a recruiting standpoint,” Power said. “He runs a dynamic offense that will attract a lot of high-level offensive players to Oklahoma.”

Will Oklahoma visit Manning’s school soon?

Now that December has arrived, we’re in the middle of the evaluation period, which means recruiters are able to visit high schools to check in on underclassmen. And there’s no more popular spot than Isidore Newman in New Orleans – home of Arch Manning.

Ole Miss, LSU, Clemson and Texas have already been by Isidore Newman to check in on Manning. New Georgia Tech offensive coordinator Chip Long was also there last week, too. But that was when Long was still at Tulane.

Lebby was there when he was with Ole Miss. Insiders expect him to quickly end up there wearing an Oklahoma polo once he’s officially on board with the Sooners.

NCAA rules prohibit coaches from having recruiting discussions with underclassmen while they are on campus. So there haven’t been any reports of lengthy discussions with Manning from these visits. But also, don’t be surprised if coaches somehow found a way to bump into him while they’re on campus.

Georgia and Alabama are also very much on Manning’s list, according to intel from Simmons. Clemson looks to be down the list some based on one source close to this, Simmons reported.

Now it’ll be interesting to see where Oklahoma lands on Manning’s list.

Arch Manning is the scion of one of America’s top sporting families. Manning is the son of Cooper Manning, the nephew of Peyton and Eli, and the grandson of Archie. Peyton, Eli and Archie were all-SEC stars who reached the NFL. Eli won two Super Bowl MVPs, while Peyton landed in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Manning is the No. 1 player in the country, the No. 1 quarterback, and the top player in Louisiana according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.