ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky raves about Arch Manning’s improved mechanics in 2026
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Last year, Arch Manning was drawing Uncle Rico comparisons in his season debut. He wasn’t facing Ohio State in Week 1 this go-round, which helped him post better numbers than he did against the Buckeyes in 2025. To Dan Orlovsky, though, the story of Manning’s outing versus Texas State has more to do with fundamentals than production.
During Monday’s episode of Get Up, Orlovsky spoke glowingly about Manning’s improved mechanics. The former NFL passer noticed everything in Manning’s motion is “synchronized” in a way it wasn’t this time last year.
“The story of last year to this year is he’s in sync, upper body and lower body,” Orlovsky said. “He’s so physically talented that last year, he would get away with it.”
After breaking down some of Manning’s film, Orlovsky claimed the Texas Longhorns passer may be ready to meet the hype piled on his shoulders prior to the 2025 campaign.
“You put those clips on that highlight tape, and you’re saying, ‘Trinidad Chambliss is great. Sam Leavitt is great.’ This guy’s the best quarterback in America,” Orlovsky said. “This was a different version of Arch than we had seen last year.”
Orlovsky added that “everything is on the line” this weekend versus Ohio State. Manning’s chance for redemption comes at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Sept. 12 (ABC).
