Truck-driving Arch Manning loves Clemson visit, where the culture stands out

Arch Manning smiles during Saturday's visit to Clemson.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Thu Nov 04 08:00:06 GMT-04:00 2021

Yes, everyone, Clemson does have a shot with one of the more heralded quarterback prospects in recent memory.

All eyes were on Arch Manning last Saturday when the top 2023 quarterback recruit visited Clemson with his parents, but that’s nothing new. If you have a last name like Manning and you play quarterback, attention is going to come your way. Manning is a 5-star prospect out of New Orleans (LA) Isidore Newman, and he is also the grandson of football legend Archie Manning and the nephew of former NFL signal callers Peyton and Eli Manning.

The younger Manning visited Clemson for camp this summer and made the return trip with his parents for last weekend’s game against Florida State. TigerNet caught up with Manning’s high school coach, Nelson Stewart, for an in-depth look at the visit, Manning as a player, and Manning’s thoughts on the Tigers.

Stewart said the attention surrounding Manning has been “surreal.”

“First and foremost I've had a long history in this, so I have a deep appreciation for not just him in football, but I was blessed to play with his father, Cooper, and his uncle, Peyton. And so, that obviously... knowing the family, I think it's very important and I'm really honored to have a teammate's son more than anything. It's surreal,” Stewart said. “Obviously, the attention has certainly been a little different, like no other, but the thing I would say is because of the kind of kid he is, and how humble he is, and authentic, and hardworking, and he never seeks the limelight. He has that amazing amount of humility to everything he does. It's very rewarding...Focused on the first name, not the last, and coaching Arch is...just trying to coach quarterback on the details and also let him have fun.

“We want him to have a normal high school experience, or as normal as he can, and enjoy being a good teammate, letting it rip out there on Fridays. So, it's a lot, but my job is to try and hopefully stand in front of him and lessen the load and take on as much of the burden as I can so he can have that normal existence. And thankfully, when you have a young man like him that's off social media and not tweeting things and not looking to share everything, it makes it a heck of a lot easier. So I give him so much credit for the kind of kid he is (and) obviously his parents for the son they've raised.”

Considering the bloodlines, there are bound to be comparisons to the other quarterbacks in the family, but Manning is his own person.

“He's his own entity. I think that it's kind of a neat quote that his grandfather said, 'Maybe he's a little bit of all of them.' If you want to see him run and throw it all over the lawn, you should watch him on film,” Stewart said. “You should see him running around. What's so neat about him is, while there are characteristics, he's not just one thing...He's 6-4, 220 pounds. He has amazing speed. He's a high jumper. He runs on the 4x100 relay team, he plays basketball. His athleticism is outstanding...He's a rarity that his release is kind of unlike any other. The ball comes up fast. He's got great footwork.

“He can really drive the ball with velocity. He also has accuracy and he loves to study. So, without the last name, he kind of stands on his own just because he is a very special quarterback. And with that name obviously comes the spotlight but he's been able to kind of have his own existence. He leans on as much of his family and uses all his resources, but he really does want to be his own entity. I think that he doesn't force anything and the offense we run, we try and cater to his skillset and what he can do. So, that's a normal comparison, but his dad was an all-state wide receiver and a pretty good athlete.”

Stewart said Clemson is definitely in the mix, and that quarterbacks coach Brandon Streeter calls so much it forced Stewart to get a new phone. However, it’s also a recruitment that has been kept low-key.

“The entire time in this recruitment, it's been very quiet. We've tried to keep it personal and really focusing on what matters, which is the relationship piece and really doing the research,” Stewart said. “And while obviously there are cameras and social media which changes everything, those visits are important. Just getting to know people, getting to know programs. And I can assure you, he's enjoyed talking to the trainers as much as he has the players. And he loves talking to the students and getting the environment. And this is a quiet recruitment only because that's where the real decision making's done. And him not being on Twitter, sometimes you don't even know who's offered, who hasn't, because it's not about that with him.

“He's really about getting those relationships that there's probably going to be a time when he goes and visits or has a conversation and it's going to feel right, it's going to look right. And he'll quietly make that declaration. But yeah, there's not going to be any formal list or announcement or anything like that because he's not about that. The family is not about that.

"I definitely think the fact he's been to Clemson twice and that, most recently this past weekend, speaks volumes about the job that they've done. Brandon Streeter, and I say this jokingly, is a big reason I had to get a new iPhone because he FaceTimed me so many times we didn't get good reception in my office for Arch. So I had to upgrade just so he could get through.”

Clemson has made all the right moves in its recruitment of Manning.

“He's handled it beautifully the way he's formulated his own relationship. Coach Swinney, I know when he's been there he's enjoyed seeing him,” Stewart said. “So they've recruited in the right way. Their culture speaks for itself. I think that their program and really their work over the past decade-plus, speaks for itself. They absolutely have done a great job and it's his choice, but I'd certainly say they're in the running obviously for him to go to school.”

The visit to see the Tigers and the Seminoles made an impression on the family.

“First off his parents and he echoed the same thoughts. He said they had a great visit. They loved the game day environment,” Stewart said. “And really the thing they keep saying is just everyone is so friendly. Everyone is so welcoming. You get there and it's just a great culture. Everybody's so nice. Even on the sidelines, how Coach Swinney, you saw... you ran into him and Coach Streeter, and just great people. Death Valley speaks for itself...And you know, he really squeezed that visit in because you remember, we start playoffs in a week. So this is, while it's late -- it's probably tougher at this point in the year, he still wanted to go up with his parents and just have a chance to see what game day was like.

“And that's what it's about. And one of the things in our relationship is, I don't really press him. He's never had a bad visit. Every time it's one little nugget. This time, it was... yeah, it was really neat on the field getting to talk to Coach Swinney. So, he had a great visit. He enjoyed every part of it and I'm glad that he did. And I think that'll probably (be) put (to) a halt until we get in the playoffs and we folks are trying to make a run of this thing, but no, he had a great experience.”

Stewart then gave some insight into Arch Manning the person, not just the football player.

“I think the biggest thing is you would think with a young man that you read all about and the cameras, it is really that he has that unbelievable authenticity and humility. He doesn't want to draw attention to himself,” Stewart said. “He's a great teammate. He's a leader by his actions. He's not a front runner. This is a kid that, when he was a freshman starting quarterback, stayed in the freshman locker room. He ran out with the freshman in the back. He does not seek the limelight. He just does things the right way. The way he studies, the way he works, he's respectful in everything that he does, and while he's a fierce competitor, I think he's a kid that just gets it. They're just not many kids like that across the country that aren't anxious to announce that they're blessed and humble to receive anything or invite people in their world.

“He's a rarity. He drives a truck, an old truck, to work. He's beloved by his teammates. And he's just a great kid. He's the kind of kid that if you walk around campus in a program, you're never going to hear a bad word about him for good reason. He's just a thoughtful, old school, humble kid, that really understands what great culture is.

"And obviously, that's what Clemson, you know, (that's) their big buzzword: culture. He wants good culture. He likes a good locker room and he's a joy to coach just because of who he is as a person. The physical skillset is wonderful. All the things he brings but really, it's that humility and his thoughtfulness that really set him apart really from any kid I've had at this level.”