The word “nepotism” has been thrown around quite a lot in recent years, but when it comes to gridiron football, it can only get you so far. Unlike the world of business, if you are unable to produce, a coaching staff or NFL scouts will not care who your father or mother is; they will simply show you the door. Unfortunately, for Arch Manning, it is NIL donors, rather than his bosses, who are beginning to turn their backs on him.
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Coming into the 2025 college football season, Manning was the odds-on favorite to win the Heisman trophy and a shoo-in to be the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
By the time the first game of the season was finished, that hype was gone. His total NIL valuations have now dropped from $6.8 million to $5.5 million, and according to On3, he’s lost $813,000 in the last week alone.
Nevertheless, he was finally able to put together a strong performance against the now 0-4 Sam Houston Bearkats. Manning completed 18 of his 21 pass attempts for a total of 309 yards and three touchdowns en route to a 55-point shutout against the worst team in the Conference USA.
Even though it came against a lowly opponent, it’s still an encouraging sight for those who chose to maintain their investments in both Manning and Texas’s football program. Nevertheless, it’s going to take several more of those types of outings before Manning is even remotely close to reinserting himself into the Heisman conversation.
This was the first time that he managed to make it through all four quarters without throwing an interception. Manning was also able to showcase a little bit of rushing upside as well.
Even though his five carries only resulted in 11 total yards, he was still able to collect a pair of rushing touchdowns to go with his passing performance. Suffice to say, he likely did enough to bring some of those lost earnings back, but it’s going to take a lot more before the public is willing to trust him and the rest of his herd later in the season.
Arch Manning after scoring this TD 😤 pic.twitter.com/39fEnfclXi
— ESPN (@espn) September 21, 2025
Manning displayed a level of confidence that was seldom seen throughout the first few weeks of the season. Considering that he’s got an upcoming date with the still-undefeated Oklahoma Sooners on October 11th, only time will tell as to whether or not that confidence will falter once again on the national stage.
The last time we saw Manning play against a top-ranked team, he was being manhandled by the Ohio State Buckeyes. So, for the sake of his own wallet, here’s to hoping that the 21-year-old can show a bit more composure next time around.
