Texas Takes The Lead In Race For Arch Manning, Georgia & Alabama Remain Involved
As the college football world awaits the commitment of class of 2023 No. 1 prospect Arch Manning, a new program has emerged atop the leaderboard.
The latest report from recruiting service On3Sports says that the fourth Manning quarterback prodigy is focusing his recruitment on three schools: Alabama, Georgia and Texas. As of now, the Longhorns are in the lead to land Manning, with a 38.1% chance. Georgia (32.5%) and Alabama (27.2%) are still in the race, with Ole Miss (<1%) essentially eliminated.
The change is significant, as head coach Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide had been the favorite after Manning visited Tuscaloosa 19 days ago.
But that's not to say that Alabama and Georgia are out of the race or have no shot of regaining the lead for Manning's commitment. As On3Sports' Director of Recruiting Chad Simmons writes, ask anybody and you'll get a different answer as to who is on top.
“Depending on who you talk to, you hear it is a different two schools at the top,” Simmons wrote. “The school I have heard the most about consistently is Alabama with Bill O’Brien being the leader in Manning’s recruitment. Not far behind though is his connection with Steve Sarkisian of Texas and Buster Faulkner at Georgia.
“Schools like Florida, LSU and Ole Miss have tried to stay in this race. But it is a three-team race. The question now is, when will Manning make his decision?”
All eyes are indeed on the the 6-foot-4, 215-pound junior out of Isidore Newman School in New Orleans, Louisiana, who has thrown for 5,731 yards, 72 touchdowns and 18 interceptions on 64.8% passing over his three years as starter.
Name, image and likeness (NIL) is likely involved in Manning's recruitment, who is expected to set a new record with his valuation. Manning's NIL valuation rose to nearly $2 million this past month and is expected to be around $2.5-$3 million once football season rolls around.
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