There’s been a very noticeable change in Arch Manning that has surprised some people, and it happened right before Texas plays Tennessee
Something has changed in Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning over the last week, and we don’t know if it’s a good or bad thing for the Tennessee Volunteers.
Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning is set to take on the Tennessee Vols this upcoming Saturday in Neyland Stadium.
And Arch is, well, different — at least when talking to the media.
Arch has always seemed comfortable with the media — probably because he was raised in a media-savvy family that has always been in the spotlight. We’ve often seen Arch joke with reporters, give great sound bites, and, in general, give off a jovial vibe.
But not anymore.
Arch took his first real PR hit last week when he told a roomful of reporters that he thought an AI-generated video of Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian slapping ESPN reporter Holly Rowe was hilarious.
The fallout from that ill-advised comment was loud. And it’s led to Arch completely shutting down in front of reporters.
In the week since that viral comment about Rowe, Arch has been very short and direct with reporters. No more laughing, no more genuine answers — just straight Bill Belichick-type responses.
Below are his comments from Monday talking about the matchup against Tennessee.
That’s not the Arch we’ve seen for the last few years at Texas.
I don’t know what this means for Tennessee or how Arch will play on Saturday against Tennessee. Maybe it means nothing at all (though he didn’t play that well against UTSA last Saturday).
It’s unfortunate because I think Arch’s personality is good for college football. The same robotic answers week after week from players gets old after a while. Fans and media want to see the true personality of players shine through. But it may be a while before we see that from Arch again. The fallout from the Rowe comment has clearly affected his approach with the media.
As for that fallout….look, Arch certainly made a mistake. I don’t know what he was thinking by making light of an AI-generated video depicting his head coach slapping Holly Rowe.
But Arch did the right thing afterward. He apologized in private to Holly Rowe. And Holly Rowe graciously accepted his apology and the two are moving forward.
That’s because it’s literally all Arch can do. The mistake was made. He can’t undo it. All he can do is be better today, and then be better again tomorrow, etc.
I guess we’ll see on Saturday if the noise — both outside and from the fans in Neyland — will affect how Arch plays.
