Paul Finebaum explains why Arch Manning's last name matters entering first year as starting QB

After two years of playing second fiddle, Arch Manning is finally the leading man at Texas. During an appearance on Get Up on Thursday, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum weighed in on the importance of Manning’s name in relation to fans’ excitement for him this season.

“The name does matter, but the name has a lot more to do with his patience in staying at Texas, perhaps, than his talent,” Finebaum said. “He has proven, in very limited situations, what he’s capable of.

“But I think everyone on that first Saturday of the season, when he goes up to Ohio State and wins that game, they’ll start saying, ‘You know what? Maybe that bald guy on Get Up knew what he was talking about.”

With his uncles Peyton and Eli paving the way before him, Arch Manning is football royalty. However, his skills certainly carry their own weight.

Manning showed off these skills last season when he started two games while Quinn Ewers was out with an injury. In the two starts, Manning completed 41-of-his-60 pass attempts for 583 yards and four touchdowns while only throwing two interceptions. He also recorded 29 rushing yards and a touchdown.

Of course, it’s worth noting Manning’s two starts were against UL-Monroe and Mississippi State. The former five-star prospect never had a full game to show what he’s capable of against top competition.

With a Week 1 showdown against Ohio State this year, Arch Manning will immediately be put to the test. ESPN’s Greg McElroy is excited to see how Manning responds to the challenge.

“Well, he’s tremendously talented,” McElroy said. “While I’m not going to go full Finebaum and prepare that little section in Canton and give him a gold jacket, not going there just yet. But what he did last year was amazing in limited time, but it was against subpar competition.

“…Some of the throws he made in those games were off the charts. And then you saw a little bit against Georgia, maybe a little youth and immaturity there. You saw against A&M, start to grow and improve. You saw him a little on the SEC Championship game, grow and improve.

“I feel like he got more confidence as the season goes along, which has me feeling like this year could be incredibly, incredibly promising. But I’m going to just hold on a little bit before I go all in. But I do think the likelihood of him being a high-pick contender is extremely high.”