Arch Manning, the most famous backup quarterback in football, will make his first collegiate appearance for No. 1 Texas against Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday night, replacing the injured Quinn Ewers.

Arch, Cooper Manning’s 19-year-old son, represents the next generation of football royalty in the Manning family. His grandfather Archie was a star at Ole Miss in the 1960s and played in the NFL for the New Orleans Saints. His uncles Peyton and Eli each won two Super Bowls in the NFL after brilliant college careers at Tennessee and Ole Miss, respectively.

How did Arch get here and what’s next? Here’s a guide to what you should know before the Longhorns’ game against the Warhawks, which Streaming on ESPN+ on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. ET.

What has Manning accomplished so far in Texas?

Manning’s time at Texas is a bit of a return to the way quarterbacks develop before the transfer portal. Manning enrolled at Texas in 2023, received a redshirt and saw limited time as the third quarterback behind Ewers and backup Maalik Murphy. He made his career debut in the fourth quarter of the Longhorns’ final regular-season game, a 57-7 win over Texas Tech, leading two drives.

Manning made just 27 appearances in two games last year (he came on the following week to kneel and run down time in the Longhorns’ Big 12 championship game against Oklahoma State), but Murphy transferred to Duke after the season. Ewers opted to stay at Texas for one more season rather than declare for the draft, securing the Longhorns’ starting spot for the third consecutive year.

Manning was Ewers’ primary backup and will already see more playing time in 2024, totaling 55 snaps in wins over Colorado State and UTSA. In the 12 drives Manning has led this season, the Longhorns have scored seven touchdowns. This season, Manning has completed 14 of 18 passes for 318 yards and five touchdowns, and has two touchdown runs.

He completed his first five passes in Week 1’s 52-0 win over Colorado State, scoring his first career touchdowns. Against UTSA, Manning came on in the second quarter for the injured Ewers, threw four touchdowns and ran for 67 yards. He completed 9 of 12 passes for 223 yards in the 56-7 win over the Roadrunners. — Sam Khan Jr.

CAN’T TOUCH HIM 😮‍💨@ArchManning pic.twitter.com/65nR57qIR5

— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) 15 September 2024

Why is Manning starting for the first time now?

Ewers left the UTSA game early in the second quarter with an oblique abdominal muscle strain and did not return. Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said Monday that Ewers’ participation in Saturday’s game against ULM was “questionable” and that the Longhorns would monitor his progress throughout the week. On Thursday, Sarkisian said Ewers has made “great progress” in his recovery, but in the interest of his long-term health and career, as well as his recovery for SEC play, the decision was made to have Manning start.

“I’m excited about his future as a player, but also our season going forward and the longevity,” Sarkisian said. “I think it’s good for us long-term if he stays healthy maybe another week as we prepare for SEC play.”

Sarkisian added that Ewers’ goals — to lead Texas to a national championship, be in the running for the Heisman Trophy and be a top-five NFL draft pick — won’t be disrupted by missing Saturday’s game. And Sarkisian wants to see Manning run the offense and operate as a starter.

“(He) had a really good week of work, understands the plan,” Sarkisian said of Manning. “But it’s different when you’re the starting quarterback than when you’re coming off the bench. So it’s a different challenge for him. But I know he’s going to be more than ready to go out there and play football for us at a high level.” — Khan

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Will there be a quarterback controversy in Texas when Ewers returns?

No. Ewers is the starter. If he is healthy enough to return, he will be QB1.

Manning is a great talent and looks like he’ll be a star when his time comes. He’s good enough to start for most other programs today. But Ewers has consistently stepped up to the challenge in big moments for Texas and also happens to be an elite talent. Like Manning in 2023, Ewers was the No. 1 recruit in the class of 2021. He’s a potential first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. He beat Alabama in Tuscaloosa and led the Longhorns to the playoffs last year and beat Michigan in Ann Arbor this year. He has 25 starts under his belt and three years of experience in this offense. There’s no quarterback controversy at Texas. — Khan

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Will Louisiana-Monroe pose a challenge on Saturday?

The Warhawks were ranked last in their division and received the fewest votes in the Sun Belt Conference preseason media poll despite getting off to a strong 2-0 start under new coach Bryant Vincent. They dominated UAB 32-6 on Sept. 7. ULM has 73 new players on its roster, led by General Booty, a transfer from Oklahoma who has a connection to Manning, although they have never met.

Despite ULM’s good start, don’t expect the Warhawks to stay in the game well into the second half. They are ranked 100th in The athletes rankings of all 134 Football Bowl Subdivision teams and are 44.5 points behind on Saturday, according to BetMGM, as the talent gap between the programs is significant. ULM hopes to make a bowl game for the first time since 2012, while the Longhorns have their sights set on the playoffs and a run to the national championship. — Khan

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How did Manning get to Texas?

No recruit in modern times garnered more mainstream interest than Manning, who was ranked as the nation’s most promising prospect for the class of 2023. One of the most coveted prospects in recruiting history, Manning could choose any school in the country, but in June 2022 he made official visits to three schools: Georgia, Alabama and Texas.

He committed to the Longhorns just six days after his official visit to Austin and about 11 months after news broke that Texas would leave the Big 12 and join the SEC. Choosing Texas made a lot of sense for Manning, as he could spend his first few days developing the program and learning behind Ewers before taking over the offense himself once Ewers left for the NFL.

Sarkisian has long been considered one of the sport’s most recognizable offensive experts and has spent his career coaching quarterbacks. After Manning announced his commitment, his high school coaches at Isidore Newman School in New Orleans – where his father and uncles played – could sense how comfortable he was.

“He’s just in such a good place mentally,” Manning’s high school coach Nelson Stewart said in October 2022. “He’s having fun … and he plays so freely.” — Grace Raynor

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What was Manning like as a recruit?

Pundits dismissed Manning because of the competition he faced at Newman University, a Class 2A school. But he shed that stigma when Newman faced one of the toughest schedules in program history his senior year, opening the season with a 21-point road win at Class 5A Hahnville. Manning’s most impressive traits included his ability to extend plays when things went wrong and the patience to play through multiple reads in his game – sometimes scoring touchdowns on the fifth read. Manning broke Eli’s school record of 7,268 passing yards and Peyton’s school record of 93 passing touchdowns. He finished his high school career with 8,599 passing yards and 115 touchdowns with 20 interceptions and threw just two interceptions in his final season.

But for all the fame Manning garnered on the field, off it he was one of the most unassuming recruits in recent history. He stayed out of the spotlight as much as possible, announcing his commitment to Texas by sending his first and only tweet to his personal Twitter page. After he committed to the Longhorns, there were never any more rumors of a transfer, and he signed the papers at a ceremony at his high school. — Raynor

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What does Manning’s future look like in the NFL Draft?

Manning, 19, is eligible for the 2026 NFL Draft after his third year of college, but has three years of college football eligibility remaining after this season because he was ineligible to play as a freshman in 2023.

Physically, Manning looks like an ideal quarterback prospect at 6’4″, 220 pounds, with real speed, athletic energy and the talent of a first-round thrower. It’s possible he’ll gain strength, which will only improve his energy and agility in the pocket and his overall resilience in the long run. Frankly, we don’t have enough data to make a proper draft prediction for him right now. Last week’s relief appearance against UTSA was the most we’ve seen from Manning, and while he a lot Despite some great performances – both with his feet and his arm – it also showed an inexperienced passer who misjudged some errors and was not always in rhythm.

However, Manning’s natural quarterback instincts – footwork and processing – are top-notch. He generally plays the game with rhythm and shows an understanding of a complex offense. Most importantly, he’s patient. The fact that he wasn’t afraid to go to a school like Texas and grind without drama – simply because he wants to learn in a stable environment from Sarkisian – shows a type of maturity not often seen in today’s blue-chip quarterback recruits. — Nick Baumgardner

(Photo: Tim Warner/Getty Images)