Arch Manning's NIL status - power plays, charity and controversy (2024)

The past few days have seen a great deal of hoopla over Quinn Ewers' new name, image and likeness licensing deals with Dr Pepper and Rhoback. But what is the status of Arch Manning’s NIL partnerships?

Even though he is Texas’ backup QB, Manning is one of the most marketable players in the country. Manning ranks third in the On3 NIL 100 behind Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders and LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne. Dunne is the most followed athlete on social media. On3 estimates Manning’s NIL value at $3.1 million. Quinn Ewers NIL value is $1.7 million, according to the site.

But Manning only has a couple of deals. And even that has caused some controversy.

Before Manning’s freshman season, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian indicated Manning would not sign NIL deals until he became a starter. Sark said, “His grandpa (former NFL quarterback Archie Manning) won’t let him take any NIL money. He said, ‘You can take money when you become a player and you start.’”

“The beauty of it for us, here’s a guy whose NIL value of whatever it is – and this guy’s grandpa won’t let him take NIL money,” Sarkisian said. “It is a pretty good message from Archie.”

Soon after Sark made that statement, it was reported Manning had landed an NIL deal with Panini America. Panini America was also Ewers' first NIL deal when he was at Ohio State. However, Manning’s Panini deal is unique.

Panini America, which is one of the world’s largest sports and entertainment collectibles companies, auctioned a single autographed Arch Manning card last summer. The auction had 30 bids with a top bid of $60,250.

Instead of keeping the proceeds, Manning directed all of the money to a Central Texas nonprofit with the help of St. David’s Healthcare and the St. David’s Foundation.

Manning’s other NIL deal is with EA College Football 25. EA pays each athlete a flat $600 payment and a copy of the game for allowing the NIL to be used. But when the game came out, Manning decided not to opt in. Ewers in contrast, is on the cover.

After what some behind the scenes negotiation, EA announced Manning would indeed be included in the game. On3’s Pete Nakos learned the partnership between EA and Manning was for between $50,000 and $60,000. EA must have really wanted Manning in the game.

There has been no official word from the Manning camp on the deal specifics, and it is unknown if Manning kept or donated the money. That ambiguity has led some to call out Manning for being, what they call, dishonest.

In an article called “Arch Manning called out for dishonesty,” Kevin Harrish of Next Impulse Sports said of the EA deal, “it sounds like he isn’t actually waiting until he earns the starting role to accept NIL money, and he got called out for it.”

But some have applauded the power play. Anushree Gupta of the Sports Rush said, “it was an ingenious move for young Manning who chose to stay away from the herd. … For Arch, it was not about making extra cash from the deal but to display how his likeness comes at a higher cost than the rest.”

Gupta says it was more about protecting his name's value.

"To further capitalize on Manning’s star power, EA Sports orchestrated a commercial featuring Arch alongside his two-time Super Bowl-winning uncle, Eli Manning, promoting the game in classic Manning fashion. To say the least, this is a genius move on the part of Longhorns backup quarterback Manning as he is using his existing NIL value quite well,” Gupta continued.

Whatever the case, it will be fun seeing the massive companies that line up to work with Arch when he becomes the Longhorns starter. Just like it will be fun seeing Ewers pop up in Dr Pepper and Hulu commercials this season.

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This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Arch Manning's NIL status - power plays, charity and controversy