Arch Manning says he’s not trying to win multiple Citrus Bowls like Peyton Manning
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Arch Manning ended his topsy-turvy first season as Texas‘s starting quarterback with an MVP performance in a Citrus Bowl victory over Michigan on New Year’s Eve afternoon in Orlando.
It was a wonderful ending to a season with much higher expectations for Manning and the Longhorns, who were preseason No. 1 but stumbled out of the gate against Ohio State and couldn’t recover to make the College Football Playoff. Instead of being in a Playoff quarterfinal on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day, Manning was in the Citrus Bowl, so he made the most of it with a stellar showing in the 41-27 victory over the Wolverines.
Manning threw for 221 yards and 2 touchdowns, which was nice and all, but it’s what he did on the ground that jumped off the page, with Manning galloping for 155 yards and 2 more TDs. It was enough to get Texas its 10th victory of the season and it was enough to earn Manning the game’s MVP award, something his uncle Peyton won in leading Tennessee to a Citrus Bowl win over Northwestern on New Year’s Day 1997.
Uncle Peyton also led the Volunteers to a Citrus Bowl win the year before, and Tennessee’s frequent trips to the bowl game back then produced then-Florida head coach Steve Spurrier’s joke about not being able to spell “Citrus” without “UT.” Maybe Arch Manning didn’t know about this, but in accepting the MVP award on Wednesday he did mention that while the Citrus Bowl MVP was nice, he didn’t want to make it a habit in Austin.
“No disrespect to the Citrus Bowl. I think (Peyton) was here twice, and I don’t want to play in it twice. … I’m not trying to come back again,” Arch Manning said.
Here is the video of Manning’s classic comment, complete with a room full of laughter from reporters:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
