Tennessee AD Danny White responds to Peyton Manning’s decision to root for Arch Manning in Vols’ game against Texas
Tennessee Vols legend Peyton Manning will be rooting for his nephew, Arch Manning, when the Texas Longhorns visit Neyland Stadium on Saturday.
Tennessee football legend Peyton Manning has caught some flack from fans this week due to his decision to cheer for his nephew, Texas quarterback Arch Manning, during the Vols’ game against the Longhorns this weekend.
Peyton addressed the game this past summer at the Manning Passing Academy.
“One of the kids was asking me earlier who I was going to go for,” said Peyton. “And I said, ‘Well, who do you think?’ And he said that he would go for his school over his relative. And I went, ‘Well, you and I are different. You and I are wired differently.’ Nothing’s more important than your family.
“But obviously, it’s going to be a huge SEC game. My dad dealt with it when I was in college — when Tennessee played Ole Miss. Look, I love my university, my alma mater, and I pull for them unconditionally. But nothing’s more important to me than my family. And when you have a nephew playing — I pull very hard for him every single Saturday. So that’s pretty much a no-brainer that you’re pulling for your nephew to play well. But, like I said, everybody knows pretty strongly where my loyalties lie on all other Saturdays — with the University of Tennessee.”
I think the pushback from fans is silly — it’s Peyton’s family! — and I wrote about why here. But that hasn’t stopped some fans from being jerks about the situation.
Tennessee athletic director Danny White weighed in on Peyton’s decision this week during an appearance on WNML’s SportsTalk.
“I think Peyton was on record saying family is first,” said White. “And I tend to agree with him. But we all know his loyalty and his love for Tennessee. So I’m sure it’ll be kind of a cool moment for their family with Peyton having played here and Arch playing in our stadium in this first-time matchup with such big national implications. So, a
“But I know in my family, we’re not star quarterbacks — we’re ADs and coaches. But anytime you cross family lines with competition, there’s a little bit of awkwardness that you kind of just kind of have to get through.”
I think White is spot on. It’s always a little awkward when you cross family lines with competition. But family always comes first. And it’s not like Peyton is going to be rooting for Tennessee to fail, he’s just going to be rooting for Arch to do well.
Only one person will be in those shoes on Saturday, and that’s Peyton. Vols fans need to show a little grace on this one.
