ARCH MANNING will be the “best college football quarterback” since Tim Tebow, says under-fire ESPN analyst.
Sports commentator Paul Finebaum feels Manning is better than EVERY SINGLE other college QB since 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tebow.
Finebaum shared his bold take about Manning on ESPN’s morning show Get Up on Tuesday.
The Texas Longhorns star is set to have his breakout season this coming year as a starter – three years after committing to Texas.
Manning, 21, may have sat some time under Quinn Ewers, but it’s his time to shine after Ewers was selected by the Miami Dolphins in the seventh round of the 2025 NFL draft.
And Finebaum thinks the sky is the limit for Manning, who “should have replaced Ewers during last season’s CFP semi Cotton Bowl defeat to Ohio”.
Dan Graziano asked: “Paul Finebaum, what’re your expectations for Manning?”
And an energetic Finebaum replied: “The absolute roof. I think there’s a reasonably good chance that Arch Manning will be sitting on the front row in New York at the Heisman ceremony.
“That’s assuming that his team does what it’s supposed to do and compete not only for the SEC, but for the national championship, and I really believe they will.
“I think Steve Sarkisian, who is one of the most amazing play callers I’ve ever seen, made a critical mistake late in the year.
“He was way too loyal to Quinn Ewers, who was banged up and was really ineffective.
“Had Arch Manning been instituted in the second half of that playoff game, like Nick Saban did a couple years ago with Tua Tagovailoa, there’s a reasonably good chance that Texas would’ve beaten Ohio State and won the national championship.
“They’re very capable of doing it again this year.
“I also believe that Arch Manning is the best college football quarterback we have seen since Tim Tebow entered the scene in 2006.”
Tebow is a former American football quarterback who is best known for his outstanding college career at the University of Florida, before he spent NFL three years with the Denver Broncos.
He won the Heisman Trophy in 2007 and led the Gators to two BCS National Championships.
Manning is the best college football quarterback we have seen since Tim Tebow
Finebaum
Tebow’s college career was marked by his strong Christian faith, running ability, and late-game heroics, earning him the nickname “The Freak”.
The ESPN panel immediately challenged Finebaum, pointing to Cam Newton, Joe Burrow, Trevor Lawrence, Johnny Manziel, and others who’ve been legitimate legends at quarterback since then.
But Finebaum stood firm, later saying: “I rest my case. I’m not backing down. I feel like the battered New York Democratic candidate for mayor who everybody has attacked.
“I’m just making a point that I have been unfairly attacked, not only by you three, but by the entire country.”
That’s high expectations for a quarterback with only two career starts. Manning is said to have no plans on entering the 2026 NFL Draft after his junior year.
Last year, he threw for 939 yards, nine touchdowns, and two interceptions across nine game appearances.
Of course, Manning’s action largely came in garbage time when the game was out of reach.
The No.1 high school recruit in the 2023 already has a lot of help at home, from his legendary uncles Peyton and Eli.
His grandfather Archie was also a New Orleans Saints icon.
However, he has been taking tips from two other stars of the NFL today in his bid for superstardom.
