“He Ain’t Him”: Arch Manning Compared to Rich Kid Who Can’t Buy Talent as Desmond Howard Calls Out Texas’ $50M Roster

Texas is coming off a second straight loss, and Desmond Howard used his Monday morning to raise a pointed question about the Longhorns quarterback. However, the ESPN analyst isn’t the first one to do that. Recently, Shannon Sharpe also shared his views on his Nightcap podcast, opining that people have to stop expecting Arch to deliver on the Manning surname.

In an Instagram clip, ESPN’s Howard compared Manning to a wealthy childhood kid who had every piece of gear but not the talent to back it, then turned to what Texas reportedly spent on its roster.

“He’s a cool kid, everybody loves him, and he’s got some talent,” Howard said. “But he ain’t him… And you can apply that same analogy to the Texas Longhorns as a team. We’re talking about a roster worth around $50 million. You do the math, baby.”

Howard explained that he grew up playing sports with a kid like that, a likable player from a rich family who always had the best gear. Under the lines, his point was that influence and hype can never close the talent gap.

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Florida beat Texas 27-24 last Saturday, and the Longhorns are now 4-2. The Gators moved to 5-2, and it was their first road win over a top-10 team since 2012. QB Tramell Jones Jr. got his first career start because Aaron Philo was hurt, and he threw two touchdown passes to Lacota Dippre.

Texas looked like it was in control early. Ryan Niblett returned a punt 63 yards for a touchdown to make it 17-3 in the second quarter, and Manning hit Cam Coleman with a nine-yard touchdown pass. But Florida bounced back.

Jadan Baugh ran in an 11-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, and Patrick Durkin’s 28-yard field goal put the Gators in front for the first time.

Then Myles Graham forced a fumble on Texas’ last drive and, to make things worse for the Longhorns, edge rusher Colin Simmons left the game with what looked like an ankle injury.

Manning had a tough day against Florida as the Gators sacked him five times and held Texas under 300 total yards. He did have moments, like the nine-yard touchdown pass to Cam Coleman and a 62-yard completion to Emmett Mosley V after he escaped a sack on fourth down.

But Texas couldn’t hold its 17-3 lead, and Sarkisian said the team’s trouble converting short-yardage situations hurt.

“We didn’t play good football today. Kind of bled out,” Coach Steve Sarkisian said in the postgame presser, and he pointed to the team’s trouble converting short-yardage situations.

Florida coach Jon Sumrall said his team had struggled to respond when games got difficult in the past but did better against Texas.

Now, Howard’s comment lands in the middle of a larger argument about Manning. After the loss to Oklahoma, Sarkisian defended his quarterback against expectations tied to the family name. Manning is the nephew of Super Bowl champions Peyton and Eli Manning, and Sarkisian argued he should be judged on his own play.

This wasn’t the first time he had raised doubts. In August 2025, he questioned the preseason Heisman buzz around Manning, saying, “The kid has a very high ceiling. He’s extremely talented,” but arguing that a Heisman push was premature at that stage.

In the view of the 1991 Heisman winner, the Davey O’Brien Award or the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award made more sense for Manning. He also suggested that the famous Manning name was driving much of the attention and generating clicks.

The $50 million figure comes from The Athletic, which estimated that Texas spent between $45 million and $55 million on its 2026 roster. That placed the Longhorns third in average roster budget, behind Ohio State at $52.5 million and Oregon at $51 million.

On paper, the roster looked ready for a big year. Manning chose to return rather than enter the 2026 NFL Draft, while Texas added transfers such as Coleman from Auburn, Hollywood Smothers from NC State, and Raleek Brown from Arizona State.

Under Sarkisian, Texas had won at least 10 games in each of the previous three seasons, but the Longhorns missed the College Football Playoff last year. Next up, Texas hosts No. 9 Mississippi on October 24, while Florida travels to face No. 1 Georgia on October 31.

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