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Vince Young reacts to Arch Manning's big game, Texas win vs. Michigan

Danby: Daniel Hager12/31/25DanielHagerOn3

Texas legend and former National Champion quarterback Vince Young was fired up following Arch Manning‘s performance in the Longhorns’ 41-27 win over No. 18 Michigan in Wednesday night’s Cheez-It Citrus Bowl.

Manning enjoyed one of his strongest games of the season. In the victory, the preseason Heisman Trophy favorite completed 21/34 passes for 221 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. He also rushed for 155 yards and two touchdowns, including a 60-yard touchdown run with 5:06 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Young took to Twitter/X to praise Arch’s performance. “#16 is having fun I f*****g love it!!! Hook’Em Texas Football 2026 here we come!!” Young wrote in a Tweet.

Manning entered the 2025 season, his first as a starting quarterback, as one of the favorites to win the Heisman Trophy. He however struggled initially, passing for just four touchdowns with three interceptions in Texas‘ first four games against power-four competition this season (No. 3 Ohio State, Florida, No. 6 Oklahoma, and Kentucky).

He however finished extremely strong, passing for 14 touchdowns with just two interceptions over the Longhorns’ final six games against power-four teams (Mississippi State, No. 9 Vanderbilt, No. 5 Georgia, Arkansas, No. 3 Texas A&M, and No. 18 Michigan).

Texas opened the season with a disappointing 4-2 record after being tabbed as the No. 1 ranked team in the Preseason AP Poll, but won seven of its final eight games of the season to record a 10-3 record (four ranked victories).

ESPN’s Roddy Jones tabs Arch Manning as preseason Heisman favorite

Following his 60-yard touchdown run to cement the Cheez-It Bowl victory, ESPN’s Roddy Jones made a bold proclamation about Manning’s 2026 season.

“I’m going to say it, Mark (Jones),” Jones said on the ABC broadcast. “That’s your Heisman Trophy favorite going in to 2026.”

As expected, Manning is preparing to run it back at Texas in 2026. He confirmed that decision ahead of the Citrus Bowl and said his focus is on continuing his development. That’s why he’s coming back for another year in Austin.

“I felt like I developed a lot this year, especially towards the back half, and I want to keep it going,” Manning said. “There’s no reason to leave. I feel like I got a lot more football left to play, and excited to still be a part of this team.”

Manning woke up feeling the cheesiest, and that certainly has Vince Young ready to run through a brick wall heading into the 2026 campaign.