It’s getting wild out here for Arch Manning. Another day, another round of folks throwing that ‘Nepo QB’ label on his back. And just when you thought it was dying down, BOOM—college football legend hops on his podcast and basically says, “Yeah, he ain’t THAT guy.” Now, this ain’t some Twitter troll or a random guy on a podcast—this is a former first-round pick who knows the game. And yeah, his words hit different.

On February 18th, the CFB legend Dave Pollack hopped on to his The Dave Pollack College Football Podcast, and CFB insider Brent Rollins threw the question his way. Is Arch ready to take over the Texas QB1 spot from Quinn Ewers and make it big? Pollack didn’t sugarcoat it: “I don’t think he’s a top five quarterback in college football. Like, I mean, and there’s not a lot of great guys… but I wrote down a bunch of names.” Then he starts rattling them off—Klubnik, Allar, Nussmeier, Nico, DJ Lagway, and even some lowkey guys like Sam Leavitt and SMU’s Kevin Jennings.

But what about Arch? “I think he’s gonna be in the conversation for being a top 10 quarterback. He’s gonna be one of the better quarterbacks in the SEC. I just don’t see him being the best. I don’t see him jumping in there, and all of a sudden you go, ‘Holy cow, like he’s a can’t-miss guy. He’s the Heisman Trophy winner.’ I don’t see that.” Ouch.

Now, let’s keep it real—Arch ain’t been sitting on the sidelines twiddling his thumbs. Arch got some action last season. With Quinn Ewers dealing with his annual injury spell, Arch played around 10 games, even started 2, and won both. The numbers? 61 completions out of 90 attempts, 939 yards, nine touchdowns, and two picks. Solid. He even had 108 rushing yards and 4 scores on the ground. In fact, he’s holding the BEST Heisman odds at +700 over guys like Garrett Nussmeier (+85o), Cade Klubnik (+1100), Nico Iamaleava (+1400), and every other guy that Dave Pollack put them over Manning. But somehow, despite these numbers, he seems not good enough.

Look, some fans just ain’t buying it. They see all these other young QBs in the SEC cooking and feel like Arch is just living off the Manning name. When CFB posted Arch Mannings’ Heisman odds on their IG, the fans went ruckus in comments section with ‘Nepo this, Nepo that.’ People are looking down at him like, would he even be playing at Texas if his last name wasn’t Manning? Some say D3. Some say bench. Either way, the Nepo talk ain’t slowing down.

But let’s not act brand new. This ain’t just about talent. This is about the name—Manning. When your granddad is Archie Manning and your uncles are Peyton and Eli, expectations ain’t abnormal. You gotta play like Auburn’s Cam Newton from Day 1. Look, Peyton ran the Colts like a five-star general, got five MVPs, and is sitting pretty in Canton. Eli? Took down Tom Brady twice in the Super Bowl. And now here comes Arch, carrying that legacy like a 50-pound dumbbell on his back.

Johnny Football and Paul Finebaum riding with Arch Manning Heisman run

And it ain’t just the fans. The CFB world is split. While Pollack is questioning if Arch is in the top five, Johnny Manziel came in clutch, throwing flower bombs at Arch Manning. “That’s my guy… he’s been playing really, really well, especially throughout this year, I think he grew a lot,” Manziel said. “If he keeps stringing it together, that guy’s going to be a really good player for sure. Just his ability to use his legs, and he’s getting more polished as a passer as well — he has a lot of good qualities you want to see in a quarterback.” Manziel’s all in on Arch Manning hype train.

Paul Finebaum ain’t hearing none of Arch Manning banter. While others are throwing shade, Finebaum is doubling down on Arch’s future. “I think he’ll be a candidate, but I think it’s awfully hard to predict the Heisman winner before the season,” Finebaum said on The Paul Finebaum Show. But back in September? He was ALL IN. “Book it. Arch Manning is going to win the Heisman. I am in on that,” Finebaum said it live on SportsCenter. That’s a crazy level of confidence. Look, Paul Finebaum rarely gets it wrong.

The Arch Manning hype train and all that nepo talk ’bout to hit full speed when Texas rolls into Columbus to take on Ohio State in their season opener on August 30, 2025. That game gonna be the real test—either Arch proves he’s Him or the Heisman talk is all cap.