Steve Sarkisian hoping Arch Manning faces ‘really hard decision’ after 2025 season
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Steve Sarkisian and Arch Manning have been tied together since the 5-star quarterback with elite NFL bloodlines joined Texas in the 2023 recruiting class. Now, after spending most of his first 2 seasons as a backup, Manning’s time to be the starter and the leader for the Longhorns has arrived.
Expectations have always been high for Manning, and they’re at a near fever pitch as we embark on the 2025 season. He leads the preseason Heisman Trophy odds produced by BetMGM, and all expectations point to Manning at least being in New York as a Heisman finalist if the Longhorns achieve the team success they are expected to produce this fall.
So, what happens if Manning lives up to that kind of hype in his first year as a starter? There’s certainly the possibility that Manning parlays a breakout campaign into a trip to the 2026 NFL Draft, but Sarkisian says he’s not worried about that right now.
“I just want the guy to have a really good season this year, and we’ll cross that bridge when he comes to it,” Steve Sarkisian said about the duration of Manning’s stay in Austin. “I hope he has a really hard decision to make, because that means he played really good.”
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Manning certainly has all the potential in the world, and he was impressive last season. In 10 games, he threw for over 900 yards with 9 touchdowns and scored 4 more touchdowns on the ground with just 2 interceptions, but that is still below the amount of playing time and pressure that will be placed on his shoulders this fall.
Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.
