History Could be Working Against Arch Manning vs. the Florida Gators

Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning may come from football royalty, but his uncles both had their struggles against the Florida Gators.

Sep 13, 2025; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning (16) warms up before a game against the Texas El Paso Miners at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Arch Manning's first month as the Texas Longhorns' starter was... underwhelming, in a word. After nearly unprecedented hype before the season, Manning's inexperience showed early on as he struggled not only in the opener against Ohio State, but in Week 3 against UTEP of all teams.

Of course, Manning is coming off easily his best game of the season against Sam Houston on Sept. 20, but now he dives into the real test: SEC play. That begins with Saturday's game against the Florida Gators, who have a pretty stout defense in spite of their 1-3 record, which is mostly due to their putrid offense.

While the Gators may not look like much now, Manning should know better than anyone not to take them lightly.

Peyton Manning Went 0-3 vs. Florida Gators

Jan 2, 1997; Orlando, FL; USA; FILE PHOTO; Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Peyton Manning (16) in action during the 1997 Citrus Bowl where Tennessee defeated the Northwestern Wildcats 48-28 at the Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium. Mandatory Credit: RVR Photos-Imagn Images | RVR Photos-Imagn Images

Before he became one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, Peyton Manning, Arch's uncle, was a superstar with the Tennessee Volunteers, winning numerous awards over four-year career. However, the Gators were a persistent thorn in his side.

Peyton went 39-6 as Tennessee's starting quarterback, but bizarrely went 0-3 against Florida. That's not counting a 31-0 loss to the Gators in 1994, as he wasn't the Volunteers' starting quarterback at that point.

Peyton's first matchup against the Gators came in 1995, when he completed 23 of 36 passes for 326 yards and two touchdowns in a 62-37 loss. Then in 1996, he completed 39 of 65 passes for 492 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions in a 35-29 loss. Finally in 1997, he completed 29 of 51 passes for 353 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions in a 33-20 defeat.

A common theme throughout these game is that the Volunteers played from behind most of the time. They fell behind 35-6 in 1996 and 26-7 in 1997. The 1995 game was the exception, as they were instead outscored 41-6 in the second half after building an early lead.

Yes, the Gators were one of the best teams in college football throughout the 1990s, but the fact that Peyton never beat them once when he was so good against anyone else is baffling. It's not an exaggeration to say that these losses to Florida cost Peyton and Tennessee at least one national championship, and possibly multipl.

Eli Manning Went 2-0, But Still Struggled

Oct 4, 2003; Gainesville, FL, USA: FILE PHOTO; Ole Miss Rebels quarterback (10) Eli Manning in action against the Florida Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Photo by Paul Chapman-Imagn Images | Paul Chapman-Imagn Images

On the other hand, Eli Manning, Arch's other uncle, went 2-0 against the Gators with the Ole Miss Rebels, but wasn't especially productive in either game. He completed 18 of 33 passes for 154 yards in 2002, then completed 17 of 29 passes for 262 yards and an interception in 2003. He did not throw a touchdown in either game.

It's almost the opposite of Peyton, who put up gaudy numbers but couldn't get a win. Granted, this was Ron Zook's Gators and not Steve Spurrier's, so the competition wasn't quite as strong.

If given the choice, though, Arch would almost certainly take the win while being less productive, rather than putting up big numbers and losing.