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Cooper Manning Reveals One of His Brothers Has Never Watched Arch Manning Play in Person

Originally posted on Athlon Sports
By Kevin Matthew Borba | Last updated Jun 25, 2025 4:28 PM ET

Much of the hype around Texas' third-year quarterback, Arch Manning, has stemmed from the fact that he is the nephew of two of the best NFL quarterbacks of all time.

In the eyes and possible wishful thinking minds of fans, first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Peyton Manning, and his two-time Super Bowl Champion brother Eli Manning came together to help turn their nephew into the sport's next big superstar.

However, in a recent interview with Bruce Feldman of The Athletic, Cooper Manning, who is the father of Texas' starting quarterback, revealed that his two brothers haven't been involved nearly as much as people.

The oldest brother of the Manning clan, who saw his career at Ole Miss cut short due to spinal stenosis, went as far as to say that Eli has actually never seen Arch play in person.

“As much as they are great influences, they weren’t around a ton,” Cooper told Feldman. “I don’t think Eli ever saw Arch play a high school or college football game. He is coming in this year. Peyton would come in for a game or two occasionally. Arch would see them at the Manning Passing Academy and may see ’em at Mardi Gras, but that’s like five nights in a year, so it’s hard to say whether he’s ‘like them or like someone else.’"

Eli picked a great time to fly in to watch his nephew, who was once ranked as the No. 1 recruit in college football, as he is widely expected to lead the Longhorns to their third-straight College Football Playoff appearance.

After sitting and learning behind now-Miami Dolphins quarterback Quinn Ewers for two years, Manning has been named the starter by Steve Sarkisian.

In limited action last season, Manning threw for 939 yards with nine touchdowns and two interceptions, while rushing for four more.

With all of the buzz that has been building around him, everyone in college football will be watching to see if he can live up to the hype.

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

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