By GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
The Manning family quarterbacks have staged some of the most exciting games ever in Tiger Stadium, where the family is 2-2 against LSU and 3-3 overall, counting two games in Mississippi.
“Archie Manning 27, LSU 24,” was a headline in the Baton Rouge Advocate on Nov. 3, 1968, after Manning passed for 344 yards and two touchdowns, rushed for another and led his team on a 75-yard game-winning drive in the final minutes to upset the No. 14 and 5-1 Tigers.
Manning and his Rebels trailed No. 8 and 6-0 LSU, 23-12, in the third quarter in Jackson, Mississippi, on Nov. 8, 1969, on ABC in the afternoon before Manning brought Ole Miss back again for a 26-23 win. He finished with three rushing touchdowns and a TD pass. It was LSU’s only loss of the season and cost it a bid to a major bowl, and the Tigers decided to stay home at 9-1 rather than go to a minor bowl.
No. 8 LSU gained revenge on Dec. 5, 1970, on ABC at night in Tiger Stadium with a 61-17 victory over the No. 16 Rebels to win coach Charles McClendon’s only Southeastern Conference championship, finishing 9-3 and 5-0. But Manning played with a cast on his broken, left, non-throwing arm and was not effective, particularly running the ball.
Archie’s youngest son Eli Manning led the Rebels to a 35-24 victory at LSU on Oct. 27, 2001, on ESPN2 at night in much the same fashion his grandfather did in 1968 and ’69. Manning brought his team back from a 24-21 deficit in the fourth quarter with two touchdown passes for the win and finished 28 of 44 for 249 yards and three touchdowns.
In a scheduling quirk, No. 21 LSU hosted Ole Miss again in 2002 and won 14-13 on ESPN2 at night to even the Manning series in Tiger Stadium at 2-2. Manning threw for only 218 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions on 19-of-38 passing.
The No. 3 Tigers (9-1) evened the Manning series at 3-3 overall in 2003 against the No. 15 Rebels (8-2) with a 17-14 win that clinched the SEC title for LSU, which went on to win the national championship under four-year head coach Nick Saban. It was the Tigers’ first national crown since the 1958 season.
Now, it’s up to Archie’s grandson and Texas quarterback Arch Manning to give his family name the lead over LSU. Texas will play at LSU on Nov. 14 with kickoff time to be announced.
“It’s going to be really cool,” Arch Manning said at his grandfather’s Manning Passing Academy on Friday. “Obviously, I grew up going to games there every year. It’s a great crowd, and we’re excited for the challenge.”
Manning is the son of Archie’s oldest son Cooper Manning, who signed as a wide receiver at Ole Miss in 1992 from Newman High in New Orleans. But he was found to have spinal stenosis before his freshman season with the Rebels and never played football again.
Arch will be a redshirt junior in the 2026 season and the Longhorns’ starter for the second straight season. After a rough start to the 2025 season, Manning rebounded to finish 41st in the nation and seventh in the Southeastern Conference in passing efficiency with a 144.9 rating. He completed 248 of 404 passes for 3,163 yards and 26 touchdowns with seven interceptions in 13 games for the Longhorns, who did not make the playoffs after two straight appearances, finishing 10-3, 6-2 in the SEC.
Manning’s 26 TDs ranked 16th in the nation, and his 3,163 passing yards ranked 25th.
“I’m just trying to get better one day at a time, and keep improving on last year,” Manning said. “And help my team win anyway I can. Just continue to be myself, not try to be anyone else. Play within myself, trust my teammates, trust the coaching and try to get better each week.”
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