Stephen A. Smith says ‘I don’t see how anybody’ puts Arch Manning over Trinidad Chambliss
By David Wasson
Published:
Texas quarterback Arch Manning was easily the most hyped preseason Heisman Trophy candidate before the 2025 season – eventually turning in a 3,163-yard passing season with 36 total touchdowns.
This season, the preseason hype machine seems to have settled on Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, who delivered 3,937 passing yards and 30 total touchdowns for the Rebels en route to a College Football Playoff berth.
Both Manning and Chambliss return for their respective teams in 2026 – but ESPN pundit Stephen A. Smith was adamant Monday as to who he thinks is the best quarterback in the SEC.
“I will say this: The Arch Manning we saw over the last eight games last season was entirely different than the dude we saw in the first five,” Smith said Monday on ESPN’s First Take prior to Day 1 of the SEC Media Days in Tampa.
“But to see the transfer that was Trinidad Chambliss perform the way he did throughout the season – while Lane Kiffin was there and after he departed – and balling the way he did on the big stage of the College Football Playoffs, I don’t see how anybody can just put Arch Manning ahead of him. I’m sorry. I’m not doing it.”
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An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
