While Arch Manning made his college football debut last season, there’s nothing quite like being QB1. The Texas Longhorns wasted no time scheduling one of, if not their toughest games of the season. Ultimately, things didn’t go their way. Ohio State got the win, allowing just one touchdown in a low-scoring affair. Moving forward, key analysts like Paul Finebaum know they have to bite their tongue and move on.
Paul Finebaum Reflects on His Position as an Analyst
No matter how much experience someone has in sports, with a certain team, or on the field, they can never predict what will happen. Only Lee Corso saw Florida State upsetting Alabama, but who knows if he even believed that when it came out of his mouth? So many analysts are paid the big bucks to sit back and make predictions that ultimately wind up incorrect.
Finebaum is the perfect example of that. The longtime college football guru had no issue admitting when he was wrong, as many were so quick to point out. At the end of the day, he still has a job to do, no matter what anyone outside looking in has to say.
“When we’re sitting around come January 21 reflecting on the season, this late August conversation probably won’t matter a whole lot,” Finebaum said. I think in Texas’s case, we were prisoners of the Manning name. And that’s okay. We’ve only been hearing about Arch Manning since like the 7th grade. It was one of the biggest commitments of all time, the biggest debut of all time, and it transcended sports.”
He added, “That’s what I jumped on, with some of my now ridiculous takes. My own wife was criticizing me on Saturday night… I got a lot of emails, ‘Hey, by the way, I knew that was going to happen.’ This is the world that I live in. Everyone knows what I said, have at it. This is not that serious.”
Manning completed just 56.7% (17-of-30) of his passes in his first season as the team’s starter. Many people have speculated that he will be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft, but he has to get to that point first. With how Week 1 played out, Manning could stay in Texas another year.
As Finebaum pointed out, it’s way too early to judge. One game is not going to make or break Manning’s career. This loss likely isn’t going to cost them a College Football Playoff berth, but that depends on how both teams look the rest of the season. Moving forward, analysts may be more cautious before hyping up a QB who threw for just 170 yards with one touchdown and an interception.
