'His Choice': Why Arch Manning Chose Texas Over Alabama and Georgia

Longhorns freshman quarterback Arch Manning chose Texas over Nick Saban and Kirby Smart for one reason - Steve Sarkisian.

AUSTIN - When five-star and No. 1 overall quarterback recruit Arch Manning committed to the Texas Longhorns, it sent shockwaves through the college football world. 

Not only did Manning spurn the two most dominant recruiters in the sport to come to Austin in Nick Saban and Kirby Smart, but he said no to the two schools that have won five out of the last eight national titles.

But while many would expect a recruit of that level to have no shortage of hands in the decision-making process, according to a recent ESPN interview with his grandfather, Archie Manning, Arch's decision was 100 percent his own.

And above all else, Manning wanted one thing - to play for Steve Sarkisian.

“I think he did his due diligence, I think he took a great look at a lot of schools," Manning said. "I know he made four visits to Texas, four visits to Georgia, four visits to Alabama, I know he had a hard time telling coach Saban and coach Smart no, but he made his choice and he wanted to play for coach Sark.”

Obviously, Manning had plenty of experience to lean on during his recruiting process. 

From his grandfather Archie to his uncles Peyton and Eli, to his father Cooper, each of his predecessors was a highly touted and highly recruited prospect.

Peyton and Eli in particular were two of the most high-profile recruiting processes in the sport at the time. 

And while it is a completely different day and age in the recruiting world, thanks in large part to NIL and the social media boom,  Manning stayed grounded and focused on what he wanted from Day 1 - a wish his family respected. 

“I totally stayed out of the way,” the elder Manning said. “I was very proud of his dad, the way he handled the recruiting. You know recruiting’s changed so much since my boys went through it and I’m not sure all of it’s good. Cooper kind of took an old-fashioned approach and the whole family made their visits to various schools and just let Arch make his own decision where he wanted to go.”

Now that he has arrived in Austin, the youngest Manning is flourishing, and taking things at his own pace, away from the pressure and the spotlight. 

Currently, Manning (quite clearly from what we can tell through our glimpses of practice) sits behind starting quarterback Quinn Ewers and backup Maalik Murphy at the No. 3 spot.

And while many other freshman quarterbacks of that caliber might be averse to that kind of situation, Manning is quite different.

Instead, he is happy knowing that one day, if he takes care of business, he will run out of the tunnel onto the field at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium as the starting quarterback of the Longhorns - something he has wanted his entire life. 

“He looks like he belongs and he’s really happy," Manning said of his grandson. "He’s still just a high school senior, but I think every young man should enjoy the college experience and I hope he can enjoy his."

---

You can follow Matt Galatzan on Twitter @MattGalatzan

Want the latest in breaking news and insider information on the Longhorns? Click Here to Subscribe to the Longhorns Country Newsletter

Want even more Texas Longhorns? Check out the SI.com team page here

Follow Longhorns Country on Twitter and Facebook.

Make sure to subscribe to the Longhorns Country Podcast today! Click here To Listen.