Arch Manning gets his wings: Texas QB’s NIL deal proves he’s already face of CFB

With Quinn Ewers off to the NFL, it's officially Arch Manning time for Texas — and the hype cycle has already kicked into overdrive. Despite the fact that he's started just two games in his collegiate career thus far, Manning has been everywhere in this young offseason: second in the early odds for next year's Heisman Trophy, in everyone's way-too-early Top 25, even on the Dallas Cowboys. (OK, that last one might be a bit much.) Heck, even the haters have found Arch impossible to ignore.

It's not hard to see why. Combine one of the most decorated high-school recruits in recent memory with the sport's most famous last name — a name associated with Hall of Fame quarterback play — and put him on arguably the biggest brands in the college game, and you've got yourself quite the attention apparatus. It's one that everyone wants a piece of, even months before he assumes QB1 duties in Austin.

Red Bull NIL deal shows just how big-money Arch Manning really is as starting QB at Texas

Manning was an NIL behemoth before he ever stepped foot on a college campus. But with the starting job his in 2025, his marketability is set to hit the stratosphere: According to On3's NIL Valuation, Arch checks in at $6.6 million, easily tops on the list. So it's no surprise that the endorsement deals have already started flowing in, starting with Red Bull, which announced a partnership with Manning in an Instagram post on Thursday.

Of course, athletes landing endorsement deals is nothing new, especially not in the current era of college football. But a quarterback with so little experience convincing a company as prominent as Red Bull to get behind him feels unique, and is a testament to Arch's ability to capture the cultural zeitgeist. No matter what happens with Texas this season, everyone's going to be talking about it; and if Manning manages to live up to even 75 percent of his hype — not a bad bet, considering Steve Sarkisian in his ear and all the talent Texas returns in 2025 — he's going to be the face of the sport before too long.