Arch Manning gets advice from Uncle Eli about riding the bench
Austin, Texas - Is Arch Manning learning more from the bench than on the field as a redshirt?
It takes a football expert to see the beauty in warming the bench!
In a recent chat with Yahoo Sports' Jason Fitz, Eli Manning, the two-time Super Bowl champ, talked about his nephew, Arch, who's currently riding the bench as a freshman quarterback at Texas.
While some fans have been fuming about Arch not getting to play, Uncle Eli had a cool perspective on what Arch could pick up while sitting on the sidelines.
"I know for me in college, I redshirted one year, then sat a year, then played the next three. And I think that was the best thing for me," Eli revealed. "Even coming into the NFL, just sitting for the first ten games of the season was beneficial to me."
Eli believes that by being on the sidelines this season, nephew Arch will learn two key components of college football: the speed of the game and the playbook.
"He's going to learn a ton this season, whether he's redshirting or kind of sitting and watching and learning," Eli added. "And hopefully, I think that just gets him more prepared, so when he does get into games just by going through the practices, he's gotten used to the speed of college football and learning the playbook."
Arch Manning is reminded that he is still a college student
While it might be hard to relate to that of a normal college student, Eli reminded Arch about the beauty that the college life has to offer.
"'I said, hey, just go in there and don't forget to be a college student. Don't forget that, hey, this is a great time in your life. And you're in college. You're at Austin," Eli recalled telling Arch about dealing with the pressure of being a Manning.
"Learning the game of football, being with your teammates, all those things are awesome."
Prior to committing to the Longhorns, Arch was the most sought-after college football recruit in the nation.
During the offseason, the Louisiana native consistently made headlines and had a multimillion-dollar NIL valuation even before the season started.
On Saturday, Arch and the Texas Longhorns will roll into Week 5 of the season undefeated, hosting Kansas at home at 3:30 PM ET.
Cover photo: Collage: Sarah Stier & Kevin C. Cox / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP