“Not anywhere near enough”: CFB analyst advices NFL teams to stop the “madness” with Arch Manning

Arch Manning is one of the most hyped up players ahead of the 2025 college football season. If being at the top of the Heisman Trophy odds wasn't enough, the conversation around him potentially being a first-round pick has already started.

Manning waited for his turn to be the QB1 for two years behind Quinn Ewers, and is ready to take the reins and lead Texas.

He started two games last year, which the Longhorns both won, leaving fans even more excited about his first year as a starter.

Talking about the hype around Manning, SI's Albert Breer wrote that he has a lot to prove next season.

"I get it," Breer wrote on Monday. "Everyone’s excited. You should be. It’s a great story. But, for now, for NFL teams, that’s really all it is. There’s not anywhere near enough to go on to know whether he’ll be a top-five pick or a fifth-rounder down the line. Lots of folks thought Quinn Ewers, who Manning is succeeding at Texas, was destined to be a first-round pick when he became Texas’s starter in 2022. He went in the seventh round.

"Which is to say, with all due respect, a recruiting ranking and a fun early highlight reel will need to be a precursor to a whole lot more if Manning’s going to be drafted as high as the other quarterbacks in his family once were."

Steve Sarkisian weighs in on expectations from Arch Manning in 2025

Arch Manning will be eligible to declare for the 2026 NFL draft at the end of next season, which will be his first as the Texas Longhorns' starting quarterback.

There is a lot of intrigue behind what he will do after the 2025 season, whether he will come back for another year or move on to the pros.

On Monday, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian discussed what lies ahead for the quarterback.

"Here's what I hope," Sarkisian said on Monday. "I hope he's got a really hard decision to make around Jan. 21. That means we played a long time. That means he played a really good season. And that means he's trying to figure out do I want one more year in the burnt orange or is it time to go to the NFL. I hope it's a really hard decision. I hope it's not a no-brainer to come back to school."

The Longhorns will kick off the 2025 season in Columbus against Ohio State on Aug. 30.