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Blessed with a rocket arm and tremendous foot speed, Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning appears poised to usher in a new era of winning at one of the country's most esteemed college football programs. However, persistent nagging doubts are dogging Manning in the months before he takes the field for the first time as Texas' unquestioned starting quarterback.
Not everyone believes Manning is ticketed for stardom. Some believe his lineage as a member of the Manning family has given him a leg up on other deserving signal-callers who are more proven in college football. And as a 19-year-old kid -- he doesn't turn 20 until April -- Manning is prone to the pitfalls of youth, and at a powerhouse program like Texas, every mistake is magnified.
Johnny Football gives Arch some sensible advice
Still, Manning is a preseason Heisman Trophy favorite, and former Heisman winner Johnny Manziel -- who played for Texas' fierce rivals Texas A&M -- told the Houston Chronicle that Manning should ignore the hype and focus on the grind of getting better each day.
"Just enjoy it, you get a chance to grind with your brothers at the college level," Manziel said. "Just continue to get better because it's a game you can never really truly master, you've got to continue to work at your craft and continue to work on it."
Manziel, a former first-round NFL Draft pick, won the Heisman Trophy as college football's top individual player during the 2012 season, when he was a record-breaking freshman at Texas A&M. Manning's tool kit is not dissimilar from Manziel's during his college days, though Manning is bigger, stronger, and arguably more athletic than Manziel ever was.
Still, all the physical tools and promising cameos won't mean much if Manning can't back them up with consistent, high-quality performances. As Texas opens the 2025 season against the defending national champion Ohio State Buckeyes, the pressure will be on Manning immediately to produce in a rematch of this past season's College Football Playoff semifinal.