Peyton Manning reveals why Arch Manning is poised to 'thrive' in Year 3 at Texas

As he gets ready for Year 3 at Texas – and his first as the starting quarterback – Arch Manning now has the keys to Steve Sarkisian’s scheme. He will look to follow in the footsteps of Quinn Ewers, who led the Longhorns to back-to-back College Football Playoff semifinal appearances before declaring for the NFL Draft.

The hype continues to build around Manning, a former top recruit. His uncle, Peyton Manning, also sees a bright future ahead.

Manning said Texas has Arch in position to “thrive” because Sarkisian serves as the play-caller. He pointed to other examples of a head coach calling plays, such as Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay, to show why the former Five Star Plus+ prospect is set to succeed.

“It’s more than just the football program,” Peyton Manning told Sporting News’ Bill Bender. “You like going to school there. You like the head coach who also calls the plays, and that creates great continuity.

“To me, the Kyle Shanahans, the Sean McVays – when the head coach is calling the plays –  the quarterback is going to thrive in the same system every single year.”

Arch Manning arrived in Austin as a Five Star Plus+ prospect, meaning he was one of the only players ranked by all four major recruiting media companies as a five star. He was the No. 1 overall player from the 2023 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Manning spent the last two years behind Ewers, who ultimately headed to the Miami Dolphins late in the draft. He also got his share of opportunities after Ewers suffered injuries, totaling 969 passing yards and nine touchdowns while adding 115 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground over two years.

But now, it’ll be his turn to step under center as Texas’ starting quarterback and running Sarkisian’s scheme. Peyton Manning said Arch knows it inside and out after serving in a backup role, and he’ll be able to showcase his skills in a game setting starting with Week 1 at Ohio State.

“The fact that this will be Arch’s third year in that system, he’ll have great knowledge of the system – still hasn’t had on-the-field game reps as I’m sure he would have liked, but those will come this year,” Peyton Manning said. “There will be things for him to learn, but I’m proud of him for his commitment and I’m looking forward to watching him play.”