It was halftime of the College Football Playoff semifinals, and Texas trailed eventual national champion Ohio State by only a touchdown. Quinn Ewers wasn’t necessarily playing poorly, but Longhorns fans wanted to see No. 16 under center.
They had only gotten a glimpse of Arch Manning — two starts against overwhelmed opponents early in the season — but Texas fans were certain he could lead them to the promised land.
“I was walking around at halftime at the Cotton Bowl and I was stopped by 15 or 20 Texas fans, most of them fairly young, who were yelling at me, saying, ‘How come Quinn Ewers is still in the game?’ ” ESPN analyst and college football historian Paul Finebaum recalled in a phone interview.
He later added: “There was a sense, and quite frankly I believe it myself, that if Arch Manning had been inserted into the game against Ohio State, the result very likely might’ve been different.”
He wasn’t given that chance. On Saturday afternoon, however, the 6-foot-4 Manning will be under center in one of the most hyped college football openers in recent memory.
Preseason No. 1 Texas and the 21-year-old Manning against reigning champion and No. 3 Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio (12 p.m., Fox).
This feels like the true start for Manning, the grandson of Hall of Famer Archie and nephew of Super Bowl champions Peyton and Eli. Manning was a huge star in high school at Isidore Newman School in New Orleans, the first freshman in at least 40 years to start at the school.
He set records for career passing yards (8,599) and career touchdowns (115) that were previously held by Eli and Peyton. He waited his turn at Texas, spending two years watching, unheard of for a top recruit in the transfer era.
There is incredible hype for a player with so little experience.
Manning is the betting favorite to win the Heisman Trophy, an award his famous uncles never won.
There already is talk of him being the No. 1 pick in next April’s draft.
He has the extra burden of leading a Texas team that is ranked first in the preseason for the first time in program history.
Greatness and championships are expected.
“I’m not really sure how they get these opinions. I’ve only played, what, two games?” Manning said this week. “I guess that’s nice to say. But you know, that doesn’t mean anything. Talk is cheap, I’ve gotta go prove it.”
His first opportunity will come on quite the stage.
Here’s a look at the other games of note on a loaded opening weekend:
No. 8 Alabama at Florida State: 3:30 p.m.
This could be tricky for the Crimson Tide and coach Kalen DeBoer, a true road game against a power conference foe coming off a poor season.
Alabama has a new starting quarterback in inexperienced junior Ty Simpson and will be without star defensive tackle Tim Keenan III due to an ankle injury.
Don’t be surprised if Florida State and new dual-threat quarterback Tommy Castellanos, a Boston College transfer, are within one score late.
No. 9 LSU at No. 4 Clemson: 7:30 p.m.
Two recent national champions looking to return to the sport’s top tier, featuring experienced Heisman Trophy-contending quarterbacks (Cade Klubnik for Clemson and Garrett Nussmeier for LSU) and strong supporting casts around them.
It’s a slightly bigger game for Clemson, since LSU will have several more opportunities for major wins in the loaded SEC, and it is home.
New Mexico at No. 14 Michigan: 7:30 p.m.
A soft landing spot for Bryce Underwood, the Wolverines’ electric quarterback who was the nation’s top-ranked recruit, according to 247Sports.com.
Underwood is the program’s first true freshman to start under center since Tate Forcier in 2009, and at 18 years of age, he is the school’s youngest starting quarterback.
Sunday
No. 6 Notre Dame at No. 10 Miami: 7:30 p.m.
Modern-day college football: Two preseason Top 10 teams with new starting quarterbacks. After a summer competition, Notre Dame is going with freshman CJ Carr, while Miami added Georgia transfer Carson Beck. Both programs are coming off strong seasons, particularly the Irish, who advanced all the way to the national championship game. They will be counting on the elite running back tandem of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price.
Monday
TCU at North Carolina: 8 p.m.
As heavily anticipated as the three Top 10 games are in Week 1, there may not be a more intriguing matchup than this one, simply because it is the start of the Bill Belichick era in Chapel Hill. After spending his life as an NFL coach, winning eight Super Bowls (six as a head coach and two as a coordinator), Belichick made the move to college at the age of 73. North Carolina’s home slate was sold out in July.
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