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Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel wishes “nothing but the best” for Arch Manning as Manning embarks on his first season as a full-time starter with the Texas Longhorns.
But Manziel’s own college football allegiance has him hoping Manning has his worst game of the year during Rivalry Week in college football.
Manziel’s Texas A&M Aggies take priority over any Longhorns player.
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Johnny Manziel speaks onstage at Fanatics Fest NYC 2024 at the Jacob Javits Center Aug. 16, 2024, in New York City. (Rob Kim/Getty Images for Fanatics)
“Whenever [Texas] plays Texas A&M, I hope he throws five picks and no touchdowns and gives us an opportunity to win that ballgame we need to win,” Manziel told Fox News Digital while discussing his partnership with Sling TV.
“The Lone Star Showdown” is the moniker for Texas-Texas A&M week, which is commonly played during Rivalry Week. This year, the game will be played Nov. 28, the latest regular-season game for the Aggies and Longhorns.
So, Manziel will have other weeks before that matchup to watch what the Longhorns and Manning are doing while rooting on his Aggies.
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Manning’s expectations as the Longhorns’ starter are through the roof with Quinn Ewers moving on to the NFL. Texas is atop The Associated Press’ Top 25 preseason poll, and many are picking them to win this year’s College Football Playoff.
Manziel isn’t going to go that far, but he is excited to see what Manning can do with the spotlight on him in Austin.
“Texas is starting out very highly ranked,” Manziel said. “A lot of hype around them, and there’s a lot of pressure in that situation. But, from what he’s shown so far, you’d think he’d be able to handle it, and he’s going to play well. The SEC, week in and week out, we’ll find out exactly what he’s made of.
“For me, from my perspective, I’m wishing him nothing but the best. Seems like an amazing kid, has an amazing family. I want him to do amazing things outside of that one day.”
Manziel got to know the Manning family well, having won the coveted “Manning Award” for the best college football quarterback during his Heisman-winning 2012 campaign at A&M.
Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning warms up before the Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Jan. 1, 2025, in Atlanta. (Dale Zanine/Imagn Images)
Arch has a strong support system with his uncles, Peyton and Eli Manning; his father, Cooper Manning; and his grandfather, New Orleans Saints legend Archie Manning. But Manziel is curious, like the rest of the country, to see how Arch does when he’s between the lines facing the reigning national champion Ohio State Buckeyes to kick off his 2025 campaign.
“When you’re ranked that high going into the season, and you have the hype and the name and everything that comes along with it, you’re going to get everybody’s best shot week in and week out,” Manziel said. “Right out of the gate for them in their schedule, they get a real test playing a real team out of the gate.
“So, you’re getting everybody’s best shot. People are coming for you, and there’s gonna be defenses you haven’t seen before, looks you haven’t seen before. They’re really going to be gunning for you.”
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Manziel knows the expectations of leading a highly-touted SEC school.
“The main thing that he has to do is just continue to be a good leader, continue to run the offense the way he’s taught, the way he needs to, and just keep things in a good perspective that not everything is going to go smooth every single drive, every single week,” Manziel said of Manning.
“You’re going to deal with some adversity. You’re going to have some ballgames that are three-point games where you have to try to hold people out, and hopefully they go your way.
“The best thing that he can do is show up, be the guy, be the leader, and go out and play his best football week in and week out.”
Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel wants to see Texas Longhorns QB Arch Manning succeed but not when he’s playing his Texas A&M Aggies. (Getty)
A DIFFERENT WAY TO WATCH FOOTBALL
Manziel partnered with Sling TV, a subsidiary of DISH Network Corporation, to promote a different way of watching football this season, one that takes the consumer into consideration.
Sling TV is offering three new streaming subscription packages: Day Pass, Weekend Pass and Week Pass, which all give 24-hour access to the platform.
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When it comes to football, especially at the college level, not all fans want to pay a premium for games they won’t watch. Manziel loves that he can pick and choose the right streaming subscription with Sling TV.
“I get these notifications on my phone that say, ‘You get charged X amount for this or that.’ I’m like, ‘Man, I’m just trying to watch ball.’ To have something start at $4.99, and you pick which one you want — you want a day, a week, a weekend. Being an SEC guy through and through, I think, for me, it makes it easy for me to watch whatever I want whenever I want, and it’s really easy. You don’t have to sit there with overhead or anything else going on. For me, I don’t think it can be any better.”
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