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Arch Mania is here: The buildup to the Manning era at Texas has no equal

by:RT Young•about 9 hours
Texas QB Arch Manning signs NIL deal with Red Bull
Photo courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool

Arch-Mania is here, and it’s sweeping more than just Texas fans away. I could feel it as I watched Arch Manning’s interview with Marty Smith of ESPN and saw the reaction to his NIL deal with Red Bull. A metaphorical red carpet is already being rolled out before the 2025 season—in February, no less.

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It’s refreshing to see how grounded Manning remains despite this level of fame. I don’t know what to compare it to—a child actor making their blockbuster debut? In sports, only one other situation comes to mind.

I still remember the first time I heard about LeBron James. It was before the Sports Illustrated cover, before the televised games. My buddy had a fresh ESPN The Magazine issue in the school cafeteria. “NEXT” it read, with “The Chosen One” above it. My friend held it like an ancient artifact and he wouldn’t let anyone touch it. He just kept showing us the cover, repeating, “LeBron James—he’s going to be legit.”

Our buddy was convinced he’d struck gold, that one day the magazine would be worth a fortune. (It’s $45 on eBay right now, by the way.) Ironically, he became one of those scorned fans who didn’t follow LBJ’s talents to South Beach—he even burned his Cavaliers jerseys after The Decision. The way that phenomenon built, the rising hype, the boiling anticipation—it was uniquely LeBron.

Until Manning.

Manning’s arrival in college football feels like James entering the NBA. It’s a level of hype and anticipation that surpasses anything I can remember in college sports. The only other pro sports examples that compare are Victor Wembanyama and, from what I’ve heard, Lew Alcindor. I listen to Baby Boomers talk about The Beatles coming to America—how they remember where they were when they saw Ed Sullivan, bought their first record, and more. If Manning lives up to the hype next season in Columbus against Ohio State, Longhorn fans won’t forget where they were either.

Maybe the Beatles’ effect on rock ’n’ roll is the more fitting comparison.

On the collegiate level, there’s a lesser version of this prelude-to-greatness mania, but it’s usually more localized, more unique to specific fanbases—almost like folk heroes. College athletics has produced massive figures, no doubt: Tim Tebow, Johnny Manziel, Caitlin Clark last year. But their waves grew after the performances began.

Manning is generating this level of frenzy before he’s even played a full season.

The bite-sized samples we’ve seen of his talent have only made the public’s collective mouth water even more. In Austin, you could compare it to Vince Young’s debut, or even Chris Simms or Quinn Ewers. Kevin Durant is the closest Texas has seen to this kind of anticipation. But those players didn’t generate the coast-to-coast buzz that Manning is causing. It was more isolated.

You wouldn’t have seen First Take debating whether Young should start over Chance Mock. But you know the pundits will have things to say about Arch. Just look at the reaction to his first tweet announcing his commitment to Texas

206,000 likes.

By comparison, Ewers’ much-hyped flip to Ohio State? 17,000.

It makes sense. I had to explain to casual fans who Ewers was when he originally committed to Tom Herman in 2020. And Ewers was a big deal. But when Manning committed to Steve Sarkisian in 2022? I had former coworkers from the Midwest wanting to talk about it. “You guys got a Manning?”

It’s incredible to think that James was able to generate that level of hype pre-social media and without coming from a basketball family. Some say the Manning name will be Arch’s downfall. I argue the opposite—his pedigree increases his likelihood of success. Genes matter for a reason. They’re indicators of future greatness.

He has an uncle on quarterback Mount Rushmore, another who slayed the GOAT twice, a folk hero grandfather, and a father who represents a What If? story which resonates. It’s obvious: Arch is from football royalty. And when you combine that last name with the Texas Longhorn logo, you get this result.

But football crowns its kings based on merit, not bloodline.

Next season will be a constant vacillation between coronation and crucifixion—not just from Longhorn fans. Manning will draw viewers who normally don’t care about college football, and you can bet they’ll have opinions. The quarterback position always absorbs too much credit and too much blame. Longhorn fans saw this firsthand with Ewers last year.

But with Arch, it won’t just be Texas fans or NFL Draft obsessives weighing in. Every run will become an Instagram highlight. Every incompletion will be used to validate the skeptics who claim he’s only this hyped because of his last name. And every perfect deep ball dropped into the hands of Ryan Wingo or DeAndre Moore will only amplify the frenzy.

Strip away your post-Decision opinions of LeBron for a moment and admit—it’s remarkable what he’s done over the last quarter-century. He’s been in the public eye for a generation. He carried the weight of the world’s expectations on his shoulders and still became the second-best player in NBA history. The hype surrounding him was deserved, not overblown.

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I bring up those early memories of LeBron James because it’s the only thing that reminds me of Arch Manning.

And I think there’s a reason for that.

Want to get your Little Longhorns excited about Arch Manning before Football season? Buy them The Longhorn Alphabet: Texas Football A to Z today!

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