No, Texas QB Arch Manning hasn't reached the levels of the 2006 version of Tim Tebow

One of the visions Florida Football fans had coming into the 2024 season was that DJ Lagway could play the role of Tim Tebow in 2006 while Graham Mertz led the bulk of the offense. That vision never panned out as Billy Napier insisted upon a straight-up rotation until Mertz got hurt, handing the keys to Lagway for good.

There is another high-profile backup QB in 2024 who popped up in a big moment last weekend to propel his team to the SEC Championship Game. But the comparisons being made to Tebow after a single play are just a wee bit hasty.

Florida Football: Golden Arches

In a column on On3 today, a comparison was made that tried to link Arch Manning with Tim Tebow. The idea is that after Manning came in and scored on a designed run against Texas A&M, Texas can parlay that into an array of packages similar to what Tebow had during the 2006 season when he would come in on specific plays for Chris Leak.

The problem is that the headline didn't state, "Arch Manning could turn into 2006 Tim Tebow," it boldly stated, "How 2024 Arch Manning turned into 2006 Tim Tebow."

In 2006, Tebow ran the ball an average of 6.3 times per game while also keeping defenses honest with 2.3 passes per game.

Against Texas A&M, Manning ran three times for 14 yards and did not attempt a pass.

Tebow was a regular part of Florida's 2006 season and had eight rushing touchdowns and five passing touchdowns. Manning has been largely relegated to being a sideshow in Austin and is up to a grand total of two rushing touchdowns and hasn't thrown for one since September 28th against Mississippi State.

Could Manning get a bigger role in the SEC Championship and into the playoffs?

Sure.

But it would be a role Texas found by accident rather than one planned out by the coaching staff in the offseason.

Win a national title in 2024, and we can cycle back to the Tebow and Manning comparisons.