Steve Spurrier questions Arch Manning as Heisman Trophy favorite, Texas as SEC frontrunner
Fresh off its second straight College Football Playoff semifinal appearance, Texas football enters the 2025 college football season as one of the most looked-forward-to and hyped around teams in the country.
The leading contributing factor to that is Arch Manning, the presumed favorite to win the Heisman Trophy and a preseason frontrunner for No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, officially running the Longhorns offense.
But as the hype surrounding Manning and Texas continues to build up, former Florida and South Carolina football coach Steve Spurrier isn't so sure about those expectations. He appeared to have said that much during a recent appearance on the "Another Dooley Noted Podcast."
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"Most people (are) picking Texas to win the SEC (this year). They've got Arch Manning already winning the Heisman too. My question is: If he was this good, how come they let Quinn Ewers play all the time last year? And he was a 7th-round pick," Spurrier said on the "Another Dooley Noted Podcast" on June 23.
"You only have to ask Coach Sark how come you played that one instead of this one. Hopefully, he will say, because he was better than that one."
Arch, a New Orleans native, is currently listed as the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy according to oddsmakers on BetMGM at +600 odds. Texas has not had a Heisman Trophy winner since Ricky Williams won it in 1998.
Manning, the nephew of former NFL quarterbacks Eli and Peyton Manning, has waited out his opportunity to take over the Longhorns offense on a full-time basis each of the last two seasons as he served as the backup to Quinn Ewers, who was taken in the seventh round of the NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins.
The 6-foot-4 quarterback, however, hasn't had to sit in the passenger seat that whole time, especially this past season. Manning showed flashes of his dual-threat skill set and passing acumen in 2024 for the Longhorns, as he started two games for Texas when Ewers was out with an injury and came on in short-yardage situations late in the season.
In 10 games this past season for Texas, Manning completed 67.8% of his passes for 939 yards and nine touchdowns while rushing for 108 yards and four touchdowns on 25 carries — an unusual sight for a member of the Manning family. In his first career start vs. UTSA on Sept. 14, Manning became the only FBS or NFL quarterback in the last 25 years to record a 75+ yard touchdown pass, a 65-yard rushing touchdown and another 50+ yard touchdown pass in the same game according to OptaStats.
Manning is set to start his first game as Texas' full-time quarterback on the road at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio against defending national champion Ohio State, on Aug. 30 at noon ET.
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