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Today in college football news, “Daredevil” is back.

The Eyes: This season’s most talked-about team?

Guessing you’ve heard this by now: The University of Texas Longhorns have a quarterback with the last name “Manning,” which indicates he’s related to several of the most famous former American football players.

Last season, Arch Manning was already such a big deal, he was the focal point of Dr. Pepper’s commercials that featured Quinn Ewers, the guy ahead of him on the depth chart. Manning’s promotion of College Football 25 drew more attention than that of the game’s cover athletes (which, again, included his team’s actual starting QB).

At the time, Manning had attempted five college passes. Now that he’s thrown a few more, BetMGM has him as its 2025 Heisman favorite. Obviously, because of expectations (and his well-known relatives), we’re going to be hearing a lot about the redshirt sophomore this season.

There’s an additional reason he’ll be the talk of the town. Reading Dane Brugler’s post-combine mock draft, which notes Miami’s Cam Ward could be next month’s only first-round QB, I noticed lots of quarterback-starved NFL teams shrugging past the 2025 draft class’ limited options.

Fans of those teams will enter this season having already placed their QB hopes on the 2026 class, one that should feature veterans like Clemson’s Cade Klubnik and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier, plus some potential younger names.

And once those NFL fans realize next year’s class could include a freaking Manning, the number of CFB casuals tuning into his games could approach 2023 Deion Sanders levels. New York Giants fans will find themselves asking confused Queens bartenders to put on San Jose State-Texas. (Or Manning could just stay in Austin, where he makes money and doesn’t have to play for the Saints. Yep, there’s your other storyline: His grandfather’s former team is an early favorite to land the No. 1 pick. Yep, we’re way ahead of ourselves all around.)

To check the early-March status of the #ParchedForArch tanking movement, I huddled with Jacob Robinson, author of our free NFL newsletter:

Are some teams more comfortable punting on QBs this year because of the greater promise of next year’s crop? 

Jacob: “Only the front offices that can afford to. Teams like the Raiders, Titans and Jets have hired either new head coaches, general managers or both, allowing them to wait. But that luxury feels unavailable to the regimes leading the Giants, Browns, Colts and Steelers, who enter 2025 on thin ice. We’ll have a better sense after NFL free agency opens next week.”

I also asked Jacob about Shedeur Sanders, who tumbled to the Steelers at No. 21 in Dane’s mock draft. (Elsewhere, some NFL execs are scared of picking Sanders, “not because of the kid, but because of the dad.” 😬 That’s from Mike Sando’s anonymous scoops on the draft’s top 10.)

Sanders played for the all-flash, minimum-grit Colorado Buffaloes. The Steelers feel like the opposite? Do they have the pieces to support a rookie QB? 

Jacob: “Given Dane’s note that Sanders isn’t a first-round quarterback for many, the Steelers would be one of the few QB-needy teams who can avoid overpaying for a prospect with questions. Few handle flashy players better than Mike Tomlin. The problem? Their offensive line won’t give Sanders the clean pocket he needs to thrive at the next level, though OC Arthur Smith’s micromanaging and play-action heavy scheme would help.”

Quick Snaps

😃 “I can yell at the kickers.” I believe UNC’s Bill Belichick when he says part of the joy of being a head coach is getting to care a lot about special teams.

👔 Former Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio is among five newcomers on the College Football Playoff committee.

🦆 News from minutes ago: Oregon is extending Dan Lanning into the $10 million club.

✈️ I think that’s the portal emoji? Hmm. Emoji suggestions welcome at untilsaturday@theathletic.com. Anyway, if your team still needs a transfer QB, keep an eye on these six high-profile depth chart battles.

❓ At Miami, will ex-Georgia QB Carson Beck have the weapons to fill Ward’s shoes? Tons of turnover at receiver.

🏀 Otherwise, this is March:

• The latest women’s Bubble Watch has me rooting for the Purdue-Fort Wayne Mastodons.
• Likewise, Austin Mock’s mid-major best bets have made me a Presbyterian Blue Hose believer.
• Was last year’s UConn team the best men’s tourney-winner ever? All 40 champs of the 64-team era, ranked.

Capitalism: ACC blueprint for power conferences?

After a year of squabbling, the ACC and the FSU/Clemson bloc appear to be sheathing their lawyers. Group photo! Smile like you mean it!

(ICYMI, this refers to the battle over whether a school could theoretically leave the ACC without surrendering enormous amounts of money to the conference, as had been contractually agreed upon. Florida State in particular has long felt its frequent success has merited a larger cut of ACC cash.)

Short version of this week’s news about these sides working on a settlement: Everybody’s happy, for now. In exchange for stability, the ACC is expected to tilt its revenue distribution in favor of its football and men’s basketball draws and to decrease its exit penalties. That could mean two things for FSU and Clemson:

1. An extra $15 million or more in ACC money per year.
2. In 2030-31, it’d cost only (“only”) $75 million to leave, if the Big Ten or SEC came calling. (Yes, $15 million times five years would happen to equal $75 million. Sliding money back and forth.)

This also provides clarity for big names like North Carolina, a potentially even more enticing candidate that is clearly interested in realignment, despite not making a big thing of it.

Here’s the part that struck me, from a realignment-focused reaction by Matt Baker and Ralph Russo:

“I think the only way you get a bigger SEC or a bigger Big Ten is if they look at a similar model to what the ACC has just put into place,” said former Fox Sports executive Bob Thompson, a mediator between Florida State and the ACC. “Because at some point the Ohio States and the Michigans, and the Georgias and Alabama are going to say, ‘OK, Vanderbilt. OK, Kentucky. OK, Northwestern. OK, Purdue. You’re not carrying your weight, so you’re not going to get paid the same.’”

Conferences have always had this tension. Decades before the Longhorn Network, Texas was unhappy about having to share money with small private schools. For the past decade or so, the Mountain West paid Boise State an extra cut, leading to grumbling whenever the Broncos slumped.

As we look ahead (with fear, trembling, etc.) to the 2030s super league scenario, the ACC’s new model looks like either a waypoint along the way, an alternative to conglomeration — or maybe a little of both.

Now let’s pass the mic to Stewart Mandel, who makes a great point about the difficulty of evaluating rosters in the big-CFP era, and then we’ll see you next week.

Mandel’s Mailbag

What’s the outlook for Ohio State this season? Can they reload and win another natty? — Joshua F.

The past two national champions (2023 Michigan and 2024 Ohio State) were senior-led teams with a ton of returning experience. The past nine, going back to 2016 Clemson with Deshaun Watson, had quarterbacks with previous starting experience (albeit in a couple of cases, only a few games). The 2025 Buckeyes will be low on returning starters not just at quarterback but across the board, save for the notable exceptions of receiver Jeremiah Smith and safety Caleb Downs.

But times have changed, and Ryan Day did very well in the portal this offseason, especially on offense. I’ve long been impressed with West Virginia running back CJ Donaldson as a guy who shares carries. Rice’s Ethan Onianwa doesn’t just fill a void at offensive tackle, he could be one of the top guys in the country. And Purdue tight end Max Klare has garnered quite a bit of buzz.

And then there’s this: The stat “returning starters” could become increasingly deceiving with these longer seasons. Technically, Ohio State will have just six. But guys like defensive ends Kenyatta Jackson and Caden Curry, receiver Brandon Inniss, DB Lorenzo Styles Jr., linebackers C.J. Hicks and Arvell Reese, and cornerback Jermaine Matthews Jr. played as many snaps as someone who started three to five games.

More from Stew here, including a note on Vanderbilt now being the Power 4’s only member of the never-won-10-games-in-a-season crew. Hmm. Simply let Diego Pavia play Auburn 10 times.

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(Top photo: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)