\u201cI want to go to Texas.\u201d<\/p>\n
[Join Inside Texas TODAY and get FOUR MONTHS for just ONE DOLLAR!]<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n At some point in his youth with a green cast on his left hand<\/a>, Arch Manning<\/a><\/strong> said these words to someone filming a home movie. Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian<\/a><\/strong> will tell you it wasn\u2019t as simple as calling Manning and his family and asking if that was still on the table, especially after a 5-7 2021 season that coincided with Manning\u2019s junior year at Isidore Newman.<\/p>\n The well-told tale did end with Manning going to Texas. But in what\u2019s considered a surprise when looking at the current shape of college football, Manning stayed in Austin despite spending two years behind Quinn Ewers<\/a><\/strong>. Manning claimed he had a good idea he was going to stay at Texas in spite of his position on the depth chart for 2023 and 2024. <\/p>\n \u201cGreat idea,\u201d he said correcting himself on Thursday.<\/p>\n Now, as the Longhorns\u2019 QB1, he\u2019s ready for everything the position brings with it. <\/p>\n \u201cFeels good,\u201d Manning said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got a good team. A bunch of good guys. I\u2019m excited to start taking some more of the one reps.\u201d<\/p>\n Everything includes the good. A starter in two games last year and often used in critical situations on offense in 10 games total, Manning has a sense of what it\u2019s like to be in the position that now fully belongs to him. Sarkisian said last year Manning prepared like a starter even if he wasn\u2019t guaranteed snaps. Now that those snaps are guaranteed, the opportunities he had on the Longhorns\u2019 2024 squad are seen as a blessing by No. 16. <\/p>\n \u201cAnytime you get game reps, that\u2019s just such a help,\u201d Manning said. \u201cI\u2019m really glad I got to play in those games.\u201d<\/p>\n Manning was efficient in his 12-ish minutes with local media on Thursday. He offered no long, winding answers but responded to everything earnestly and honestly. He\u2019s excited to compete against his defense this spring, a competitive nature Sarkisian singled out on Tuesday. Manning mentioned it\u2019s \u201cfun in practice\u201d to talk a little trash to players like Colin Simmons<\/a><\/strong>, Anthony Hill<\/a><\/strong>, and Michael Taaffe<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n He mentioned how young receivers like Daylan McCutcheon<\/a><\/strong>, Aaron Butler<\/a><\/strong>, and roommate Parker Livingstone<\/a><\/strong> have made the most of their chances with Ryan Wingo<\/a><\/strong> and DeAndre Moore<\/a><\/strong> limited during spring sessions.<\/p>\n He even mentioned he understands how difficult the media attention he garnered last year as the backup was not just him but also for Ewers, who hopes to hear his name called early in the upcoming draft. Manning offered nothing but effusive praise for Ewers.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s probably pretty annoying have me as a backup,\u201d Manning said.<\/p>\n Maybe most importantly, Manning knows all the reviews of his game aren\u2019t going to remain glowing. <\/p>\n Everything that the quarterback position at Texas entails also includes the bad. He knows the criticism will come. He knows there are going to be moments like his first start, which featured two interceptions. Or moments like when Georgia made his and Ewers\u2019 life difficult in Austin. Or times like when he got hit hard by Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl. <\/p>\n It\u2019s something that was drilled into him by his head coach.<\/p>\n \u201cThe boos?\u201d Sarkisian said Tuesday in response to a question about fan adulations. \u201cBecause the boos are going to come pretty soon too.\u201d<\/p>\n He\u2019d add \u201cThey love the backup quarterback but they hate interceptions. The boos are coming.\u201d<\/p>\n Whatever may come, Manning is ready. <\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve got to be prepared for everything,\u201d Manning said.<\/p>\n That\u2019s not just on the field, that\u2019s off the field too. Manning might be the most celebrity of celebrity quarterbacks to play college football since Tim Tebow<\/a><\/strong>, and Tebow at least had won a national championship as a significant contributor alongside Chris Leak<\/a><\/strong> when Tebow-mania took off. Even in a metropolitan area of several million, Manning is easily recognizable. <\/p>\n But he\u2019s accustomed to it and has a group he knows will help him through those situations, family and friends alike.<\/p>\n \u201cI think he\u2019s been exposed to a lot and handling himself in a way I think is important to him,\u201d Sarkisian said.<\/p>\n In trying times, members of the Longhorns team will look to Manning for leadership. Inside Texas has written often that the leadership at Texas hinges on the two players wearing No. 16 in Manning and Taaffe. <\/p>\n Not only is that something that Manning is ready for, it\u2019s something his coach believes he\u2019ll be able to handle as the Longhorns traverse their second season in the Southeastern Conference. <\/p>\n \u201cI think Arch is a naturally competitive guy,\u201d Sarkisian said. \u201cI\u2019ve said this before, he\u2019s got a very infectious personality. I think people gravitate to him. One of the things I see right now is naturally, he\u2019s leading a group of maybe some younger players, especially at the skill spots at that wideout spot. His confidence I think helps them, his understanding, his ability to connect to those guys in between series and talk to hem has been helpful.\u201d<\/p>\n Competitiveness is hard to fake. Ability is hard to fake. Leadership is hard to fake. Manning seems to get that as he steps into the driver\u2019s seat in a time Texas believes its national championship window remains wide open<\/p>\n \u201cI think you have to walk the walk,\u201d Manning said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to work hard. It\u2019s a game, after all. You\u2019ve got to have fun, smile, laugh, know that you\u2019re going to back these guys up and play for them. I\u2019m imperfect. I\u2019m going to make some leadership mistakes, but it\u2019s just continuing to grow and get better everyday.\u201d<\/p>\n Sarkisian calls quarterback the most important position in sports, and for good reason. The demands of the position are many. There are athletic demands. There are schematic demands. There are personal demands.<\/p>\n At Texas, those demands are higher than those carried by most other programs. A unique skill set is required to handle it all. <\/p>\n It\u2019s a responsibility Manning has wanted for some time, waiting two years as a backup in order to claim it. Now that it\u2019s his, he\u2019s excited to carry it entering 2025.<\/p>\n [Order THE LONGHORN ALPHABET today and teach your little ones the A to Z\u2019s of Texas Football!]<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt was tough,\u201d Manning said of waiting. \u201cIt\u2019s tough in this age. I hope it pays off. There was nowhere else I wanted to be. I want to be at Texas. I\u2019ve got friends here. Love this place. I want to be the quarterback at the University of Texas. Sometimes, it\u2019s worth the wait.\u201d<\/p>\n The post Arch Manning is ready for the spotlight and everything it entails<\/a> appeared first on On3<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cI want to go to Texas.\u201d [Join Inside Texas TODAY and get FOUR MONTHS for…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-87725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87725","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=87725"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87725\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=87725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=87725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=87725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}