Arch Manning Named Texas QB1 for 2025 Season by Sarkisian; Team Won't Have Spring Game

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian named Arch Manning as the team's starting quarterback for the 2025 season, but Longhorns fans won't get a chance to see him participate in a spring game.

"I think he's ready for it, and I think he's ready for the moment," Sarkisian said during an appearance on Up & Adams.

"We're in a good spot to have a pretty good football team, and it's gonna be even better knowing he's gonna be the guy for us," he added.

The Longhorns coach confirmed that his team is the latest to cancel a spring game, though.

“No, we’re not going to have a spring game," Sarkisian said.

He also detailed the new format that Texas will use to replace the spring game.

"Our approach is going to be a little bit more NFL-driven, kind of more of an OTA style early on, and as we grow into more of the scrimmage formats in the second half of spring ball," Sarkisian explained. "I just don’t know if rolling the ball out and playing the game when we only get 15 practices is the best for us to maximize the opportunities that we get." 

The Longhorns are the latest team to cancel their spring game. Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule revealed on Feb. 1 that his team's spring game would also likely come to an end due to transfer portal tampering.

While Manning wasn't officially named the Longhorns' starter prior to Thursday, he appeared to be in line for the role once 2024 starting quarterback Quinn Ewers declared for the 2025 NFL draft.

Manning made nine appearances as a replacement for Ewers in 2024. He completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 939 yards and nine touchdowns while getting picked off twice.

Expectations are high for the 19-year-old, as he was considered the No. 1 player in the country as part of the 2023 recruiting class (via 247Sports' composite rankings).

Manning won't have the opportunity to compete in a traditional spring game entering the 2025 season, but he'll still be preparing to start the regular season atop Texas' depth chart.