As the 2026 college football season kicks off, ESPN has unveiled its annual top 100 players list—and Texas quarterback Arch Manning finds himself on the outside looking in when it comes to the top five at his own position.
Manning, who enters his second year as the Longhorns' starter, is ranked No. 13 overall and No. 6 among quarterbacks. The list is headlined by a group of signal-callers that includes Ole Miss's Trinidad Chambliss, Notre Dame's CJ Carr, Ohio State's Julian Sayin, USC's Jayden Maiava, and Oregon's Dante Moore.
It's a tough pill to swallow for Manning supporters, especially after he threw for 3,163 yards, rushed for 399 more, and accounted for 36 total touchdowns in 2025. His season was a tale of two halves—slow out of the gate, then explosive down the stretch as he grew more comfortable in Steve Sarkisian's offense.
ESPN's analysis acknowledges the improvement: "Perhaps the most polarizing player in the entire country, Manning goes into his second year as a starter with plenty to improve and a lot to prove," they wrote. "After a shaky start in 2025, Manning got better as the season went on, throwing just two interceptions in the final eight games, while leading the Longhorns to wins over Oklahoma and Texas A&M. Still, improving in the short yardage game is an absolute must—and so is making it back to the CFP—for both Manning and Texas to live up to the outsized hype."
The debate over Manning's ranking is nothing new. Earlier this offseason, USA Today placed him fifth among college quarterbacks, a spot that also raised eyebrows. Now ESPN has him one slot lower, and the conversation has intensified.
So what does Manning need to do to climb the ladder? ESPN analyst Jordan Rodgers points to a specific weakness: short-pass accuracy. "The accuracy, especially on the short throws from zero to 10 yards last year," Rodgers said via On3. "Arch was the most inaccurate quarterback in the SEC and 122nd in the country, completing only 56% of those throws. It really rooted back to his feet, which kind of affected his upper body mechanics."
Rodgers believes Manning's late-season surge was directly tied to improved footwork. "His eyes are going to be all over the place. His feet are going to be fast. You see the slow start that led to the explosion we saw towards the end of the season. That's because his feet started to get better. He started to calm down. His eyes started to go to the right spot, and so his accuracy really started to increase."
If Manning can clean up those short throws and maintain his late-2025 form, he could easily become a first-round pick in next year's NFL Draft. But for now, his focus remains on winning games in Austin—and proving that he belongs in the conversation with the nation's elite.
As the season unfolds, all eyes will be on Manning to see if he can silence the critics and lead Texas back to the College Football Playoff. The talent is there; the consistency just needs to follow.
