{"id":275256,"date":"2025-04-30T13:49:54","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T13:49:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/30\/cfb-insider-makes-thoughts-abundantly-clear-on-arch-manning-and-steve-sarkisians-ea-cfb-26-cover-opt-out-decision\/"},"modified":"2025-06-25T17:08:41","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T17:08:41","slug":"cfb-insider-makes-thoughts-abundantly-clear-on-arch-manning-and-steve-sarkisians-ea-cfb-26-cover-opt-out-decision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/30\/cfb-insider-makes-thoughts-abundantly-clear-on-arch-manning-and-steve-sarkisians-ea-cfb-26-cover-opt-out-decision\/","title":{"rendered":"CFB insider makes thoughts abundantly clear on Arch Manning and Steve Sarkisian\u2019s EA CFB 26 cover opt-out decision"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> [ad_1]<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-content\" data-postid=\"4898323\" data-slug-id=\"2498468\">\n<div class=\"vidazoo-player-container\">\n<span class=\"vidazoo-close-btn  hidden \"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/cmc-predictor\/v2\/cross-icon.png?w=40\" width=\"20\" height=\"20\" alt=\"close\"\/><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>College football insider J.D. Pickell is a fan who Arch Manning and Steve Sarkisian said no to being on the EA CFB 26 cover.<\/p>\n<p>The deluxe cover was leaked, which featured the likes of Jeremiah Smith and Kirby Smart. It was notable that Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian and quarterback Arch Manning weren&#8217;t there.<\/p>\n<p>Pickell likes the fact they said no to the cover, as he says it shows Texas just cares about what they do on the field, and not off the field.<\/p>\n<p><template id=\"bets-today-poll\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"preview-card-holder bets-today-poll\">\n<p><span class=\"date\"\/> \u2022 <span class=\"time\"\/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"march-madness-logo\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/skm\/assets\/march-madness-logo.png\" height=\"42\" width=\"99\" alt=\"march madness logo\"\/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<div class=\"sportskeeda-embed\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/college-football\/youtube\">\n<div class=\"yt-wrapper\">                    <noscript><iframe title=\"Why Texas Fans Should LOVE This Move From Arch Maning and Steve Sarkisian\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1qRQNWUw-D0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/noscript>                    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><template id=\"also-read-articles-template\"><\/p>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;You know who wasn&#8217;t on there was Steve Sarkisian and Arch Manning. Steve Sarkisian told the Houston Touchdown Club we said thanks but no thanks to making the trip out to the Rose Bowl to do the photo shoot&#8230;,&#8221; Pickell said right off the beginning of the video.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;I absolutely love that Arch and Sark said, no we are cool with that&#8230; As much as I love the video game, for Texas to be as close as they were the last couple of years, came down to the margins, came down to one play against Washington, a play against Ohio State. If you show me where your time is going, I&#8217;ll show you what you care about. I have to believe Arch Manning and Steve Sarkisian said no to this, their time is going towards football and getting to the top of the college football mountain.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Although <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/college-football\/news-steve-sarkisian-turns-protective-wunderkind-arch-manning-locks-live-lifelong-dream\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">Sarkisian<\/a> and Manning decided not to go to the Rose Bowl for the photo shoot, Pickell says that doesn&#8217;t mean any of the coaches or players who did aren&#8217;t as focused on football, he just likes that Texas decided not to.<\/p>\n<p>Pickell makes a fair point that Texas has been one of the closest teams to winning it all and says their focus is on that.<\/p>\n<h2>Arch Manning is ready to be the Longhorns&#8217; starting QB in 2025<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/college-football\/arch-manning\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">Arch Manning<\/a> and the Texas Longhorns enter 2025 with plenty of hype.<\/p>\n<p>Manning is set to be the Longhorns&#8217; starting quarterback in 2025 after sitting behind Quinn Ewers for two seasons.<\/p>\n<p>Entering 2025, Manning is eager to finally get the chance to start and help Texas get over the hump.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cIt was tough. I mean, it\u2019s tough in this age,\u201d Manning said, via The Athletic. \u201cBut I hope it pays off. There\u2019s nowhere else I want to be. I want to be at Texas. I\u2019ve got friends here; I love this place. So I want to be the quarterback at the University of Texas. Sometimes it\u2019s worth the wait.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Manning started and appeared in multiple games last season due to an injury to Ewers. He went 61-for-90 for 939 yards, 9 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions last season for the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/college-football\/texas-longhorns-football\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">Longhorns<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Manning enters 2025 as the Heisman frontrunner with odds of +700.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-post-rating-widget\">\n<p><template id=\"post-rating-feedback-modal-template\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-feedback-box\">\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-content\">\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-data\">\n<p>Why did you not like this content?<\/p>\n<p><textarea id=\"dislike-feedback-text\" rows=\"4\" placeholder=\"Please type your feedback...\"\/>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n<button class=\"close\">Cancel<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"submit\">Submit<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-widget-parent hidden\">\n<div class=\"rating-parent-container\">\n<div class=\"rating-content-holder\">\n<p>Was this article helpful?<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-action-container\">\n<div class=\"like-container\">\n<button class=\"post-rating-like-button post-rating-button\" data-action=\"like\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"post-like-image post-rating-image\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/like-articles\/upvote-icon-grey.svg\" height=\"20\" width=\"20\" alt=\"like selected\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dislike-container\">\n<button class=\"post-rating-dislike-button post-rating-button\" data-action=\"dislike\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"post-dis-like-image post-rating-image\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/like-articles\/upvote-icon-grey.svg\" height=\"20\" width=\"20\" alt=\"avatar selected\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\nThank You for feedback\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"post-author-info-parent\">\n<span class=\"about-the-author\">About the author<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"author-info-holder\">\n<div class=\"author-pic-holder\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"author-pic\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,&lt;svg width=\" height=\"100\"\/><rect width=\"100\" height=\"100\" style=\"fill:rgb(128, 128, 128);\"\/>&#8221; data-lazy=&#8221;https:\/\/keedag.sportskeeda.com\/user-pic\/957157-1716736522-200.jpg?w=200&#8243;<br \/>\nalt=&#8221;Cole Shelton&#8221; height=&#8221;72&#8243; width=&#8221;72&#8243;&gt;\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"author-bio-detail-holder\">\n<div class=\"author-bio\">\n<p class=\"author-bio\" id=\"author-bio-text\">\nCole is an NHL, NFL and College Sports reporter at Sportskeeda with over 7 years of experience writing for publications like CBC, USA Today, SMG, BJPENN, Sherdog and SB Nation.<\/p>\n<p>An NHL fan his whole life, Cole played rep hockey in Canada from age 5 until 17 and grew up rooting for Martin St. Louis and the Tampa Bay Lightning. His all-time favorite players are Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, while Jon Cooper is his favorite coach of all time.<\/p>\n<p>Cole attended Sheridan College and received his journalism degree in 2019. After decades of watching and reporting, he considers his knowledge of sports as his primary strength. He ensures that the same story has been reported by at least two reputed reporters before creating it.<\/p>\n<p>Cole enjoys playing golf and spending time with friends and family when not reporting breaking stories. His favorite sports moment is from the 2010 Olympics, when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime to beat Team USA for the gold medal.\n<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"author-know-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/author\/csheltz91-66076\" aria-label=\"Author know more\">Know More<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tag-cloud\">\n<div class=\"tags-text\">\n<div class=\"scrollable-content-holder  article-padding\">\n<p class=\"article-p  \">Quick Links<\/p>\n<p><button id=\"pnAdvancerLeft\" class=\"pn-Advancer pn-Advancer_Left \" type=\"button\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" style=\"background: none;\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/skm\/assets\/article\/article-scroll-left.svg\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button><\/p>\n<nav id=\"pnProductNav\" class=\"pn-ProductNav\">\n<\/nav>\n<p><button id=\"pnAdvancerRight\" class=\"pn-Advancer pn-Advancer_Right \" type=\"button\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" style=\"background: none;\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/skm\/assets\/article\/article-scroll-right.svg\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<p>More from Sportskeeda<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n<span class=\"publisher-name\">Edited by Cole Shelton<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/college-football\/news-cfb-insider-makes-thoughts-abundantly-clear-arch-manning-steve-sarkisian-s-ea-cfb-26-cover-opt-out-decision\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] College football insider J.D. Pickell is a fan who Arch Manning and Steve Sarkisian said no to being on the EA CFB 26 cover.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":275257,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[180],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275256"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=275256"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275256\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/275257"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=275256"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=275256"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=275256"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}