Amid the frenzied build-up to the Texas-Ohio State matchup to start the season, there were precious few voices out there to suggest that Arch Manning was not, in fact, the greatest thing since sliced bread or the best college football quarterback since Tim Tebow. ESPN's Jordan Rodgers was one of them, serving as a counterbalance to Paul Finebaum, who may have gotten out a bit over his skis considering the Longhorns QB's struggles in Columbus.
Rodgers joined Get Up on Wednesday to take a victory lap for his correct take, complete with a cowboy hat and lit cigar.
"I learned from one Stephen A. Smith that when a certain team in Texas lives up to the expectations that you put out there, you've got to have a little bit of a celebration, right?"
.@JRodgers11 had to pull out the cowboy hat and cigar after Arch Manning's play last weekend 😂 pic.twitter.com/iypBfZrJyL
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) September 3, 2025
Rodgers immediately ditched the character and got serious and sincere.
"I don't want to take a victory lap on Arch because it's just something that I expected," he said. "This kid's going to be really good down the road ... everything was just moving a little too fast for Arch and that's why you saw those inaccuracies."
That all seems reasonable and not hyperbolic. The type of thing someone not wearing a prop hat might say after someone struggled in their first collegiate start.
Perhaps now the hype will match the tape.
The good news for Manning and Texas is that it's a long season and losing on the road to Ohio State won't hurt them if they have the type of season going forward they were expecting to post. And Manning could get the last laugh with a Heisman and national title. Then someone else will have to dig into the custom closet for their own victory lap.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jordan Rodgers Reacted to Arch Manning's Bad Game With a Cowboy Hat and Cigar.
