NEW ORLEANS -- As soon as Arch Manning made his way toward the metal benches lining the sideline inside the Superdome for Texas media day, one cameraman gave an unintentional signal to the gathered media when he said simply, "Let's go!"
Immediately, as soon as Manning took his seat, a group of reporters circled him, lined up three deep to hear what the true freshman had to say about his first year at Texas. The scene had Manning ask lightheartedly, "I don't see y'all giving this attention to the other backups."
The other backups are not named Manning. But neither are the starters, and the truth is, nobody gave that much attention to them, either. Many sat at their own podiums or tables across the football field with a smattering of reporters nearby.
At one point, starting quarterback Quinn Ewers sat alone at his podium, turning behind him to see the scrum of reporters surrounding Manning.
Down the sideline, co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach AJ Milwee turned to the other assistants near him to watch the scene unfold, hardly surprised. Manning arrived at Texas in January as not only one of the highest-rated recruits in the country but certainly the most famous one -- his name synonymous with quarterback greatness.
He had done zero interviews in the year since he had made the decision to come to Texas, as the No. 2 overall prospect in the ESPN 300 in 2022. So naturally, inquiring minds had to know ... well, everything.
At first, Manning looked at the assembled group with surprise, unsure whether he was allowed to answer questions. But media day for the College Football Playoff at the Allstate Sugar Bowl meant every player was available for interviews, including him.
So Manning spoke for about 40 minutes and gave mostly stock answers about being the backup QB against Washington ("I've been preparing like I'm the starter); the role his uncles Peyton and Eli have played ("They don't overstep. Whenever I want advice, I can go to them"); and how great it felt to be back home in New Orleans ("It feels good to be back.")
He was guarded but friendly, following a mantra drilled into him going back to his prep days: "My grandfather always likes to say in interviews less is best." But there was one brief moment when Arch let down his guard, if only for a moment, offering a small window into what this year truly has been like for him.
If the outside world had great expectations for him to come in and wrest the starting job from Ewers right away, Manning knew what reality said. Ewers himself arrived at Texas in 2022 with the fanfare reserved for elite quarterback prospects, and he seemed firmly entrenched as QB1.
There came lesson No. 1 in the days after enrolling in school. For the first time in his football life, Manning would have to be patient.
"There were a lot of tough days, I'm not going to lie," Manning said. "I was never a backup in high school. So there are some days when you graduate early, you're alone in your dorm room, you're like, just another day of fighting for the third-string job. Some days it's tough. There's hard workouts, hard practices, they expect a lot out of you. I'm glad I went through that to help me grow."
Milwee said he and coach Steve Sarkisian were strategic in their approach with Manning, making sure to be as honest as possible about what this season would hold for him and to remind him what he was working toward.
"I told him that this is going to be one of the tougher years that you've ever experienced as a football player because it's going to be drastically different than anything you've really ever experienced," Milwee said. "You're working every day so that when that time comes for you, you're ready."
Manning said he got some advice on staying patient from his uncle Eli, who redshirted his first season at Ole Miss in 1999 and had to wait his turn, too. "Yeah, you need a lot of patience, especially nowadays," Arch Manning said. "There's a bunch of old quarterbacks around college, so yeah, he's stressed that to me."
Lesson No. 2 also came in his first days on campus. Manning would never just be another guy on campus no matter how hard he tried. First came the students who asked for pictures on the way to class. But that realization truly hit when Sarkisian FaceTimed him on the second day of class.
Manning was sitting in his dorm room when he answered. Sarkisian had Manning's student ID card in his hand. Manning had unknowingly left it behind in English class, and the student who found it dropped it off at the football facility -- but not before taking to social media to let the whole world know Manning had already lost his ID card. Manning sheepishly admitted he lost it a second time.
"I think people that know me just know that I'm a regular guy," Manning said. "I'm not some superhero. I'm just a normal 19-year-old guy just trying to work hard and play football. That's really all it is."
Lesson No. 3 came in the preparation it would take to one day start at Texas. His teammates and coaches universally say that Manning has no ego. Offensive lineman Christian Jones recalls the first time he had a conversation with Manning, the two were getting breakfast and Manning patted him on the shoulder and told him, "'I appreciate you coming back. That's a big thing." Jones said that stuck with him. "He's that type of person."
They also say he works just as hard as everyone else on the team.
"Oh, I know he's going to be a great quarterback. For one, He's got that Manning blood in him. And then for two, he comes in and puts the work in every day," said tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders. "He's not one of those big-headed guys who thinks the world revolves around him. He's a real humble guy."
That includes in the quarterback room, where Manning and Ewers room together on road trips. While their relationship could have started off in an awkward spot -- ballyhooed freshman looking to push the entrenched starter -- both knew and understood their roles.
Manning made sure to ask Ewers a lot of questions. Ewers made sure to help Manning as much as possible.
"We're both really good buddies with each other," Ewers said. "We have the same buddies around this team. You know, we hang out. The quarterbacks, during the season, we go to dinner every Tuesday. So I mean, I'm not lying about how close we really are. We're a super close group and it's rare to see that, especially nowadays in college football."
As Manning grew as a player, he started to slowly move up the depth chart. He began the season as the scout team quarterback -- and even played Jalen Milroe in practice a few times to give the defense a good look headed into their September game against Alabama. Eventually, he started sharing second-team reps with Maalik Murphy.
Finally, his time to see the field came in the regular-season finale against Texas Tech. Texas had built a 50-7 lead when Manning entered. The crowd cheered so loudly that Manning waved his arms to get the fans to pipe down. He did not want his first collegiate snap to be a pre-snap penalty. Of the crowd ovation, Manning said, "It surprised me because I hadn't really done anything yet." Manning ended up leading a touchdown drive.
Now comes Lesson No. 4, which is honestly a blend of all his previous learnings. Staying patient, learning how to prepare, understanding the spotlight will always be on him has led him here: back home in New Orleans, with a chance to play for a national championship. Manning enters the game as the backup quarterback behind Ewers and sums up his role this way, "I've been preparing all year to play. I think when my name is called, I'm going to go out there and be ready to roll."
Of course, there will be many more questions to answer when this season comes to an end. The first one has already been asked -- if Ewers decides to come back to Texas for one more season, how would Manning feel about waiting one more year to start?
"It's never fun being a backup and sitting, but each person's journey is different, and I'm going to work hard and not blink an eye and help Quinn be the best quarterback he can be and try to get better along the way," Manning said. "It takes some time, but I think it'll be worth it one day."