Rece Davis Makes Major Arch Manning Prediction

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Spencer Ostrow | Last updated Feb 13, 2025 10:18 AM ET

The college football offseason is in full swing after the Ohio State Buckeyes defeated the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Jan. 20. Since then, the focus has flipped to next season, which is still months away.

Programs are finalizing their rosters and coaching staffs, while analysts are beginning to preview the landscape of the 2025 season—picking which teams could emerge as contenders and which quarterbacks might stand out.

On ESPN's "College GameDay Podcast" with Rece Davis and Pete Thamel, they made their predictions for which quarterback will be first-team All-SEC next season.

Thamel went first and named Garrett Nussmeier of the LSU Tigers. Davis then responded and predicted Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning.

"I might lean Arch [Manning] though...," Davis said. "With the Sark (Texas head coach) numbers. Nussmeier, I think, is as good as anybody in the country. His arm talent is ridiculous. The throws are great. I guess what I'm saying is, I think Texas might be better than LSU next year, and that will help. That will help Arch, even if Nussmeier maybe puts up slightly better numbers if Texas wins more games. That might help."

Who will be the first-team All-SEC QB in 2025? ⁦@ReceDavis⁩ likes Arch Manning. I’m taking Garrett Nussmeier. Fun debate on ⁦@CollegeGameDay⁩ pod. We also dive in on No. 1 vs No. 2 in SEC hoops this weekend. https://t.co/fkFIc4T1vC pic.twitter.com/xOoK85FWu6
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) February 13, 2025

Manning is set to take over as Texas' full-time starter in 2025 after redshirting his freshman year and backing up Quinn Ewers in Year 2. He did, in fact, make two starts this past season when Ewers was sidelined with an injury, but now the keys to the Longhorns' offense are Mannings.

In his career, he's thrown for 969 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions. He also has 28 carries for 115 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.

Nussmeier, who Davis chose over, is set to be a fifth-year senior. He threw for 4,052 yards, 29 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 2024 alone.

Both players have a great opportunity to be the top quarterback in the SEC, but as Davis said, if Texas is the better team as they have been over the last couple of seasons, that will favor Manning.

During that span, the Longhorns have a combined record of 25-5 with two College Football Playoff appearances. The Tigers, on the other hand, are 19-7.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: