Arch Manning’s 2025 season started with a pick in Columbus and ended with a 60-yard touchdown run that put away Michigan in Orlando. Now, the Texas quarterback enters 2026 with arguably a better shot at the Heisman Trophy than Oregon’s Dante Moore.
Which quarterback has the better situation entering the 2026 season? PFSN’s “Football Debate Club” tackled this debate, with PFSN’s Oli Hodgkinson landing on Manning and college football analyst Eric Mac Lain arguing for Moore.
The Case For Texas QB Arch Manning
Moore’s 2025 ledger is shinier on paper. He threw for 3,565 yards and 30 touchdowns with a 71.8% completion rate, which ranked fourth-best in Oregon single-season history. He also edged Manning in PFSN’s College QB Impact metric, 85.9 to 83.1.
But the second half of the season told a different story. Manning threw 12 touchdowns against two interceptions in Texas’s final six regular-season games, then produced 376 total yards and four scores against Michigan in the Citrus Bowl. Moore, after an Orange Bowl MVP performance against Texas Tech, threw a pick-six on Oregon’s first snap of the Peach Bowl, fumbled twice more in the first half, and watched Indiana win 56-22.
“Down the stretch of the season, four of his five highest-graded games came in the final five games of the season,” Hodgkinson said. “You look at what Texas added this offseason, the running game helps really weaponize Arch Manning’s athleticism. Cam Coleman is a great weapon. And returning the offensive line, Trevor Goosby is huge for what Arch Manning can do this season.”
Coleman could reshape Texas’s offense, as the former five-star recruit arrives from Auburn as On3’s No. 1 portal wide receiver after posting 56 catches for 708 yards and five touchdowns last season with shaky quarterback play around him. Pair him with returners Ryan Wingo and Emmett Mosley V plus freshman breakout Kaliq Lockett, and Manning has an impressive group of weapons and the true No. 1 he never had last fall.
As for Goosby’s return, the first-team All-SEC left tackle has given up just three sacks in 1,175 career snaps and turned down a likely first or second-round NFL Draft selection to come back. Texas also restocked the backfield with NC State transfer Hollywood Smothers and Arizona State transfer Raleek Brown after losing leading rusher Quintrevion Wisner to the portal.
The Case For Oregon QB Dante Moore
Eric Mac Lain made the case for Moore.
“I think this guy’s going to be a freak. You saw the ability last year, going for [3,600] yards, 30 TDs and just leading his team at a really high pace…” Mac Lain said. “[Oregon will have] a dominant run game that I think is gonna alleviate some pressure and some stress there.”
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Oregon swapped out both coordinators this offseason. Will Stein, the architect of three straight efficient Oregon offenses and the developer behind Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel’s Heisman-finalist seasons, left to become Kentucky’s head coach. Defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi took the California job.
New offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer inherits Moore, but the system is changing in the same offseason that Oregon lost tight end Kenyon Sadiq to the NFL Draft.
Manning has continuity on his side, as Steve Sarkisian remains his play-caller. Goosby remains his blindside protector. Texas’s portal class ranked third nationally, per 247Sports, and was built around Manning’s strengths. Sarkisian did swap defensive coordinators, replacing Pete Kwiatkowski with Will Muschamp, but the offensive infrastructure around Manning is untouched.
Texas opens at home against Texas State on Sept. 5, while Oregon opens against Boise State the same day. All eyes will be on both quarterbacks when the season gets underway.
