Arch Manning recruiting: Which college lands his commitment

New Orleans (La.) Isidore Newman Five-Star Plus+ quarterback Arch Manning is the top prospect in the 2023 class, according to every major recruiting site in the industry. His recruitment will certainly end up being the most closely followed ever, given the rise of internet sites and social media.

Because of that, and his family name, Manning has the No. 1 On3 NIL Valuation among all high school football prospects. His valuation stands at a whopping $1.6 million, nearly double the next-closest prep player. The On3 NIL Valuation is an index that looks to set the standard market value for both high school and college-level athletes. The NIL valuation does not act as a tracker of the value of NIL deals an athlete has completed to date. It rather signifies an athlete’s value at a certain moment in time.

Manning’s recruitment has largely been focused on a handful of schools: Alabama, Georgia, Texas and Ole Miss, with other schools like LSU and Florida looking to break into the mix. Manning visited all four of the aforementioned major contenders this fall and is expected to do so again this spring.

Arch Manning to visit Texas

The first visit Manning will take is to Texas on March 24-26. On3’s Chad Simmons confirmed that news last week, and it will be his first trip back to Austin since visiting this fall. The Longhorns are currently considered the favorite to land Manning, according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM). Texas holds a 43.7 percent chance, while Alabama is just behind at 36.4 percent. Georgia (10.2%) and Ole Miss (4.8%) trail behind.

Manning, the latest family quarterback prodigy in a long line of them, raved about his visit to Austin over the summer. But ultimately, Sarkisian might be the program’s biggest selling point. The two first met when Sarkisian was the offensive coordinator at Alabama, and their relationship has continued to grow since then.

“(Sark) is a laid back guy, which I really like,” Manning told InsideTexas. “He’s not always pitching me. He just checks in and that’s one thing I like about him. When it is football, he’s a genius.”

Alabama, Nick Saban pushing for Manning

While the Longhorns are currently projected as the leader, Alabama and head coach Nick Saban have made a major impression on both Manning and his family. Saban made a subtle recruiting pitch to Manning on his uncles’ ESPN broadcast earlier this year, saying:

“As the quarterback, it’s really important that you have good players around you.”

Saban also made a trip this winter to see Manning play basketball, along with defensive coordinator Pete Golding.

Georgia, Ole Miss also in the mix

Both the Bulldogs and Rebels look to be fading between Texas and Alabama, but both schools will likely get visits this spring with a chance to improve their standing. Manning has a strong relationship with Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken and liked the city of Athens and Georgia’s campus when he visited this fall.

As for Ole Miss, Manning has major family ties to the school. His dad, Cooper, graduated from there. And both his uncle Eli and grandfather, Archie, played quarterback for the Rebels before long NFL careers. The Rebels honored Manning this fall, which also happened to the week Arch was visiting. Ole Miss re-painted the field and put the Manning last name in both end zones as a tribute to Eli and a pitch to Arch.

His dad said, however, there will be no family pressure to attend Ole Miss.

“I’m trying to raise children that are going to make the best decision for themselves,” Cooper Manning told ESPN’s Chris Fowler. “I don’t know where he’s going, and I don’t really care. I want him to make a decision, and he’ll live with it. It’s not going to be easy. … He’ll figure it out. He’ll do the due diligence. We’re just trying to guide him along in the process and cheer for him. And we’ll pick him up if things don’t go right.”

Arch Manning commitment timeline

The Manning camp has been very quiet about Arch’s recruitment for the most part. Arch himself only does a handful of interviews. The rest is handled through his high school coach. He isn’t public on social media with his offers or interests. And they’ve played it all very close to the vest. Arch is expected to take visits this spring and could potentially take official visits this summer. His decision could come as soon as then or could be taken into the beginning of his high school season next fall.