With the Texas Longhorns preparing for another football season after two straight College Football Playoff semifinal appearances, quarterback Arch Manning has been named to the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award watch list. Manning, in his first year as a starting quarterback, has also appeared on 13 other award watch lists, including the Davey O’Brien Award announced Aug. 7.
The winner of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award will be recognized at an event in Baltimore at the Four Seasons Hotel later this year. If selected, Manning would become the first Texas quarterback to win this award since Colt McCoy received it in 2009, which was also the last time Texas reached the national championship game. Manning is additionally on watch lists for the Walter Camp National Player of the Year Award and the Maxwell Award.
Manning enters his redshirt-sophomore year following two starts last season when he filled in for Quinn Ewers, who now plays for the Miami Dolphins. In those games, Manning completed 41 of 60 passes for 583 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions. He also ran for 33 yards and scored one rushing touchdown during one of these starts.
Throughout last season, Manning played in ten additional games for Texas, accumulating 356 passing yards and seven touchdowns without throwing any interceptions. Originally from New Orleans and ranked as the No. 1 player nationally in the class of 2023, Manning finished his senior high school year with almost 2,300 passing yards and 34 touchdowns through the air while adding six more scores on the ground. Over his high school career, he recorded a total of 8,599 passing yards and 115 touchdowns.
Texas is scheduled to open its season in ten days against Ohio State in Columbus. The matchup will feature first-year starting quarterbacks on both teams: Arch Manning for Texas and Julian Sayin for Ohio State. The game is set for Aug. 30 at 11 a.m. CT on FOX, with Ohio State currently favored.
