Arch Manning Matches Up Eerily Similar to One Heisman Trophy Favorite

Arch Manning has been at the forefront of many of the conversations around college football, whether it be throughout the pre-season, when Manning was being heralded as the next great college quarterback, or throughout the season, where the signal caller was called college football's first flop.

Everybody has their opinion of the Texas Longhorns' starting quarterback, especially with the Longhorns now sitting with a 9-3 record and having their College Football Playoff hopes hanging by a thread down the final stretch of the season.

However, despite how the season has gone, Manning has been able to block out the early-season criticism and play like the quarterback many were expecting to see. In fact, removing names from numbers, Manning's statistics look very similar to one player in the running for the Heisman Trophy.

How Does Manning Stack Up to This Heisman Trophy Front-Runner?

Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin (10) throws during the NCAA football game against the Purdue Boilermakers at Ross-Ade Stadium. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Heisman Trophy favorite in which Manning measures up well to statistically may come as a surprise considering the way their programs have performed this season, stacking up to Ohio State Buckeyes starting quarterback Julian Sayin, who is currently leading the defending national champions with an undefeated record and as the No. 1 team in the country.

Through 10 games of the season, Manning has completed 195 of his 311 pass attempts for a 62.7 completion percentage, totaling 2,374 passing yards with 19 touchdowns and seven interceptions while being an important piece to the Longhorns' running game as their second leading rusher, recording 186 yards and adding six touchdowns on the ground.

And for Sayin, he is currently 226 of 282 passing, tossing for 2,675 yards, 24 touchdowns to just four interceptions with an 80.1 percent completion percentage and an impressive 90.5 quarterback rating, which ranks as the second best in the nation.

The unblemished record for Sayin and the Buckeyes compared to the Longhorns' struggle-riddled year is the primary reason for the difference in the way people speak about the first-year starting quarterbacks' seasons.

However, when taking a closer look at both quarterback seasons, what stands out is that Manning, even while being ridiculed a season for his play, is operating at a level that compares nicely to Sayin's potential Heisman Trophy campaign. Manning has been responsible for 2,560 yards of offense, not too far from Sayin's 2,695 yards, while both quarterbacks have been responsible for 25 touchdowns on the season.

While the old adage goes "you can only beat what is in front of you," when comparing the schedules each quarterback has had to face, it is completely night and day.

Manning has already played four teams ranked in the top 10 when they faced off with the Longhorns, with the quarterback having a 2-2 record in those games. And Manning has one more waiting with the No. 3 Texas A&M Aggies being the Longhorns' season finale.

Compared to Sayin, where only one team that the Buckeyes have had to face was ranked in the top 10, which was the Longhorns all the way back in week 1, where both teams are now completely different teams than they were then.

In fact, the Buckeyes have only played two ranked teams all season, one being Texas and the other being Illinois, which was ranked No. 17 when they met with the Buckeyes. And remaining on Ohio State's schedule is just one more ranked opponent, being No. 18 Michigan.