Paul Finebaum ‘staying with Arch Manning’ as legitimate Heisman Trophy contender
By Mark Kern
Published:
Paul Finebaum spent much of the summer hyping up Texas and specifically Arch Manning. He said numerous times that Manning and the Longhorns were going to win against Ohio State in Columbus, and that the hype train would officially take off.
Things hit a snag when Manning struggled in the 14-7 loss to the Buckeyes in Week 1, with Finebaum even admitting he was more to blame than anybody for all the hype.
On Saturday, the Longhorns got things on the right track with a 38-7 win against San Jose State behind Manning’s 295 yards and 4 passing touchdowns. Despite the loss to Ohio State, Finebaum said on SportsCenter he isn’t changing his mind anytime soon:
“I’m still in and I know the critics are going to ridicule me, but I don’t care anymore, guys. I am staying with Arch Manning,” Finebaum said. “He has not been perfect, but the Heisman doesn’t get voted on until December, so let’s put all this ‘He’s out of the Heisman race after that loss’ (aside). He can come back. I think yesterday was exactly what he needed. Keep your eye on him.
“Remember that name — Arch Manning,” Finebaum added with a dry sense of humor.
The expectations heading into Week 1 were not only high for Manning, but also the team. The game against Ohio State was being billed as arguably the biggest season-opening game in the history of the sport. To expect any quarterback to be great in that type of environment in their first road start was a little much.
Manning had just the type of bounce-back performance Steve Sarkisian wanted, and he will look to build off that next week in a home game against UTEP.
