ArizonaLonghorn

Sounds like there are a few teams he doesn't want drafting him, so he's probably acting aloof in those interviews. Here's an example in the tweet, a QB coach from a team drafting in the first 7 spots slagging on him (lot of guys don't want to go to Cleveland or the Jets, just sayin'). This isn't as bad as John Elway snubbing the Colts or Eli Manning's family telling the Chargers not to draft him, but those two had more leverage. Also, Deion rubs a lot of guys the wrong way, just saying ...

Dunno how many QBs and playmakers we have from the chats but I'm sure we can find a lot of great coaches and coordinators !!

I think it's the opponent's ranking in points allowed, from # 1 to # 135 or however many teams there are (and next col is yards allowed ranking). So basically against the 3 teams he faced ranked in the top half on defense he struggled, and none of those teams were as good as several teams he'll face in the SEC.

Digging a little on Arch's fall from # 1 to # 3 QB in ESPN rankings I found this from when he dropped to # 2 behind Malachi Nelson. In June, when Arch committed to Texas, he was ESPN # 1 QB but in July they placed Nelson ahead of him. Here's an article in a Louisiana site from Tom Luginbill, ESPN's national recruiting director at the time. ESPN's Tom Luginbill explains Arch Manning's fall from top spot in recruiting rankings (free site Lafayette Daily Advertiser) Short version - "Manning’s drop to No. 2 was about seeing more and more of the other talented quarterbacks in the 2023 class during the past several months." Later Arch would drop to # 3 in the ESPN rankings behind Dante Moore after Moore's strong showing at the Elite 11 Finals, which Arch did not attend. Couple of other interesting tidbits about Arch disrespect from my quick research - "Former Rivals recruiting director Mike Farrell said if not for his last name, Manning would be a high, three-star quarterback, that he hasn’t “progressed” since his freshman year and that he hasn’t stepped up against better competition." And when ESPN writer Adam Rittenberg released his Top 15 returning QBs for 2025 Arch was # 12 !! Arch Manning's Surprising Spot in ESPN's 2025 QB Rankings Sparks Debate (Athlon from free Yahoo link)

ESPN said they were dropping Arch below the other QBs because he wouldn't compete in the summer camps like Elite 11. They said because he played at a small high school it was hard to evaluate him properly and so they were rewarding players who (in their words) "were willing to compete against their peers at a high level". I remember specifically that Moore had a good camp and ESPN made a big deal about elevating him above Arch because of that. I thought at the time it seemed petty and spiteful, maybe a little dumb, to downgrade a player just because he didn't go to Elite 11 camp. Also, not a bad way to click-bait more attention to their recruiting pay site I guess? Obviously they were wrong (Nelson went from USC -> Boise State -> UTEP !!!) and I'm not defending ESPN, just relating what they wrote on the espn.com website at the time it happened. Edit: I see I was typing at the same time as thatdude2, glad someone else remembered it the same way 🤘

Well they are paying a coach $9,000,000 to NOT coach so it's possible they might pay a player $500K to not play, right? Makes sense I guess 🙃

Kyler Murray agrees with this message. For those who forgot, he was the # 1 overall pick in the NFL draft and # 9 overall pick in the MLB draft and chose pro football.

I remember seeing clips of Malik Agbo catching passes downfield in 7-on-7 games while listed at 6'5" 305 lbs, thinking "man, we could really use a guy that size with that athleticism". He was rated almost140 spots higher than Cam Williams in the same class and I was really happy when he signed. Sorry and a little surprised it didn't work out better for him at Texas and I wish him luck at his next stop (so long as they're not on our schedule). Further proof you never know how guys will sort themselves out once they get on campus.

In that case they made yet ANOTHER big mistake by picking a bottom feeder team in the conference that won the past two national championships and has 3-4 top programs pretty much each year (OSU, Oregon, Penn State, Michigan). UCLA is rarely even the best program in Los Angeles. Not much chance Nico leads them to the CFB playoffs.

Amen. His reps (dad and handler) really messed up by not having a backup offer in hand before trying to force Tennessee to renegotiate. No leverage. Like bluffing with a 2 and 3 offsuit hole cards. They totally misjudged how Tennessee would react and then both sides were boxed in when he skipped practice. Wonder how much he got from UCLA? I'd guess more than $1 million but less than $2. Plus the hit to his reputation (which, let's be real here, won't matter much if he plays great for the Bruins - but he had a lot better players surrounding him in Knoxville so no surprise if he struggles). Anyway, glad this is settled. Back to Texas and the transfer portal 🙂

No word on the $$ (reportedly nowhere near the asked for $4 million) but at least he's playing near home. And his dad and 'uncle' are saying a big reason they left Tennessee was because they wanted Nico to play in a scheme that better prepares him for the NFL. Yeah, OK. Colin Cowherd was the first to report this story so a tip of the cap to him. Ex-Tennessee Quarterback Nico Iamaleava Set to Transfer to UCLA (SI.com - free) Nico Iamaleava expected to transfer to UCLA after departure from Tennessee: Source (Athletic - $)

What's the joke? Can you share 🤘

It's quite possible they didn't try very hard to keep him, no? 994 yards seems like a lot but it's over 4 seasons - last year he went for just 303 yards, 4.1 ypc. Wouldn't be a shock if they have other dudes in mind with similar or better stats at << $$

I'd like to see their predictions for the past 10 drafts to check how accurate their predictions turned out to be. Anyone have that data? 96% seems too high, and I'd be surprised if Shough (who played in high school next door to me here at Chandler years ago) and Will Howard are much better than Quinn. Who was ESPN's biggest miss? (Guessing Lamar Jackson) How high do you need to be drafted to be considered a 'bust'?