Espn's Rece Davis Says Texas Qb Arch Manning Will Be College Football's 'ultimate Villain'

It's hard to think of a historical comparison with the hype surrounding Arch Manning's first season as the starting quarterback for the Texas Longhorns. Longhorns fans can't wait and the national media will fill hours of programming discussing the GQ QB.

But that popularity comes with a price, according to ESPN's Rece Davis. The College GameDay host thinks outside of Texas, Manning will become college football's ultimate villain.

“Here’s what I think that’s going to happen with Arch, and it’s unfortunate — because of the attention he’s going to get, he’s going to become a fan-favorite to those outside of Texas, and to others outside of Texas, he’s going to be the ultimate villain, and I don’t just mean Oklahoma people. It’s like the analogy that I use if you start hyping up a restaurant or a movie or a TV show, when you keep saying how great it is and how exciting it is and you cannot miss this, it is the cynical human nature of many to start rooting against it. That’s going to happen with Arch.” - ESPN's Rece Davis

Manning is going to be the face of college football if he performs on the field like Texas fans think he will. The third generation QB will also get a lot of media attention just for being 'Arch Manning,' theoretically taking attention away from other programs and quarterbacks.

“Those who are not predisposed to like him, whether they are a Texas fan or they like the Mannings or they like 'ManningCast' or whatever, or they just feel like it’s too much too soon, they’re going to root against him. . . . Everything's going to be amplified." - ESPN's Rece Davis

The Mannings family's broad popularity and Arch's decision to stay in with one school and stick to his commitment to the University of Texas might get a lot neutral fans on his side. His charisma and humor might win over even more.

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This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Why ESPN's Rece Davis says Arch Manning will be 'Ultimate Villain'