To open up the SEC slate in week four, Tennessee football will be welcoming an unfamiliar opponent with a familiar face. The nephew of Vols legend Peyton Manning, Arch Manning, will be leading Texas into Neyland Stadium at noon ET in front of a Checker Neyland crowd on September 26.
This will be just the fourth time the teams have ever met on the gridiron. Tennessee trails the series 1-2, with each game being played in Dallas. The first meeting was in 1950, with the most recent matchup in 1968.
While Arch Manning grew up with ties to Tennessee, he’s never actually been to Neyland Stadium. While being asked about his experience, or lack thereof, in Knoxville, he did reveal another connection to the Vols’ program, though. He said he spent time with UT quarterback George MacIntyre this offseason at the Manning Passing Academy.
“I’ve never been. So I’m excited to go for the first time,” Arch Manning said at SEC Media Days. “We’re all pumped up. First SEC game. That’s a great program. I spent some time with George MacIntyre this offseason. He’s a really good dude. We’re all excited.”
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MacIntyre is now entrenched in a quarterback battle with true freshman Faizon Brandon. The job is up for the taking in fall camp, with Josh Heupel keeping it as a clean slate for both to prove they’re worthy of leading Tennessee’s offense.
However, when Texas comes to town to open the SEC slate, Peyton Manning won’t be on the side of his alma mater, MacIntyre and Brandon. Instead, he said that he’ll be pulling for his family, Arch Manning and Texas.
“One of the kids was asking me earlier who I was going to go,” Manning told Chris Gordy at the Manning Passing Academy. “I said, ‘Who do you think?’ and he said that he would go for his school over his relative. I went ‘You and I are different. You and I are wired differently.’ Nothing is more important than your family. Obviously, it’s going to be a huge SEC game. My dad dealt with it when I was in college when Tennessee played Ole Miss. I love my university, my alma mater. Pull for them unconditionally, but nothing is more important to me than my family, and when you have a nephew playing, I pull very hard for him every single Saturday.”
Peyton Manning is a staple at Tennessee sporting events, typically attending multiple games across the spectrum of sports throughout the year. The Vols’ first game this year is scheduled for September 5 against Furman at home.
