Steve Spurrier Continues Antagonizing College Football’s First Family With Dig At Arch Manning

The Head Ball Coach questioned the passer’s Heisman candidacy ahead of his first season as Texas’s starting quarterback. He doesn’t understand the hype!

Spurrier sat down with Pat Dooley to speak on the upcoming season in the SEC. Always a homer for his former programs, he’s often heard propping Florida and South Carolina up while taking lighthearted jabs at conference rivals.

The Longhorns were in the coach’s crosshairs on Tuesday. He didn’t hold back in his outlook of the team in Austin.

“Most people picking Texas to win the SEC. They’ve got Arch Manning already winning the Heisman, too. My question is: If he was this good, how come they let Quinn Ewers play all the time last year? And he was a 7th round pick.”

-Steve Spurrier

Steve Spurrier was a Heisman winner at Florida. He coached another while leading the Gators in the 1990s. He knows what it takes to be considered college football’s top player. He’s not quite sure if Arch Manning is there quite yet.

Spurrier noted Manning’s status as a backup in 2024 as he sat behind seventh-round NFL Draft pick Quinn Ewers. Despite some struggles, Manning only broke into the starting lineup due to injury. He then returned to the bench when Ewers got healthy.

Ewers was once considered a top prospect. He was the No. 1 recruit upon entering college. He had a more than productive career with the Longhorns, nearly leading his team to a national championship appearance last fall.

Still, Spurrier insists that if Manning was the better player, he would’ve been “the guy.”

The Head Ball Coach has never been shy about giving players’ an opportunity off the bench. He implemented two-QB systems at both Florida and South Carolina, and in many cases, it worked out.

Texas allowed Arch Manning to see the field often as a redshirt freshman, but he never overtook Ewers on the depth chart. That’s a red flag to Steve Spurrier.

Steve Spurrier has been antagonizing the Mannings for decades.

The jab will surely attract the eyeballs of college football fans and media. It should also grab some attention from the Manning family, even if they don’t respond to it publicly. It’s continued a (one-sided?) rivalry that dates back to the mid-90s.

Peyton Manning suited up for Tennessee, leading the Vols to an incredible 45-5 record between 1995 and 1998. More than half of those losses were at the hands of the Florida Gators.

Across his four NCAA seasons, Manning’s Vols were 0-4 against Florida. He played sparingly in a 31-0 rout as a freshman but started each season that followed.

“It bothers me that we never beat Florida,” Manning said after his final loss to the Gators. “But hey, I can’t control the way other people view Tennessee… I’m sure Coach Spurrier will go make a few more jokes. That’s fine.”

Peyton Manning was referring to a well-known quip from the Head Ball Coach that said, “You can’t spell Citrus without UT,” a jab at the Vols’ inability to get to a national championship game. He also said that Manning returned to Knoxville as a senior to become a “three-year star of the Citrus Bowl.”

What sparked Steve Spurrier’s beef with the Mannings? Does it stem from a previous rejection?

Peyton Manning chose to play for Tennessee over Florida.

“It was close,” Manning said of the recruiting battle between the Vols and Gators. “Coach Spurrier was good to me and I liked the coaching staff when I visited there. I had to pick between ’em, and I picked Tennessee.”

Manning spurned Spurrier as a high school recruit. The coach might still be holding onto that resentment 30 years later!

Arch Manning is the Heisman favorite entering the 2025 season. He is not Steve Spurrier’s top candidate. We’ll see if the passer can get his family a win in this college football rivalry on the field this year.