Sean Miller describes hilarious first interaction with Arch Manning after hire at Texas

Sean Miller is still settling in at Texas, taking over as the head coach. Gaining fan support will be crucial over the next few months before the season gets started in early November. Miller will have at least one big-time supporter moving forward after a recent interaction.

Walking around campus, Miller told a story of running into Arch Manning. A former basketball player himself, Manning welcomes Miller to the 40 Acres after being hired from Xavier. He was also looking for access to the Moody Center, hoping to run a few pickup games with his buddies.

“I was walking across the street last week and somebody yelled my name,” Miller said. “I turned around and it was Arch Manning. He’s a huge basketball fan and we came together. He said ‘Welcome to Texas, I’m a big basketball fan.’ He was with a couple of his friends. And he had one question for me. He said ‘Hey, do you mind if, once in a while, we sneak in and play pickup?’ And I said ‘Yeah, anytime. Just whatever you do, don’t get hurt.'”

Steve Sarkisian will certainly agree with the last line from Miller. Summer workouts are set to commence for Texas and Manning has quickly grown into a leader for the program. Nobody needs the starting quarterback to suffer some kind of injury in a hoops game.

Manning certainly has showcased his basketball ability in the past, though. When not on the football field at New Orleans (LA) Isidore Newman, Manning was on the basketball court. He went viral back in 2022 for throwing down a dunk off two feet after a steal on the defensive end.

Not wanting to quite give up his basketball playing days yet, the Moody Center might have some extra use coming its way. And Miller appears more than happy to let Manning in there.

Texas will begin its football season on Aug. 30 in Columbus in what’s setting up to be a huge matchup against Ohio State. As the Longhorns make the stretch run of their regular season, Miller will get things underway on the hardwood.

Manning is hoping football’s run extends well into January with the College Football Playoff. But when breaks are needed, he might make his way over to catch a few basketball games. Not a bad person for Miller to have showing up to support in his first season in charge.