Column: Manning knew the challenges ahead of him

By By Will Bardwell/staff writer
November 9, 2003
AUBURN, Ala. Eli Manning knew what he was getting into.
When he came to Oxford in 1999, the youngest son of legendary Ole Miss quarterback Archie Manning knew every second of his career would be compared to his father's. He has walked in his father's shadow, figuratively speaking but also literally.
Throughout Eli's career, Archie has been there. Dad has been at every game Eli has played at Ole Miss. He sits in the regular stands in the regular seats with regular people, wearing an oversized pair of radio headphones and sunglasses.
From there, Archie watches silently, using all the strength he can muster to suppress screams of joy or tears of disappointment.
He has been a stoic, silent observer.
But after his baby boy's comeback win over Auburn on Saturday, the old man finally cracked a smile.
Indeed it has. Not since 1962, when the Rebels won a national championship with a 10-0 record, has Ole Miss been 6-0 in Southeastern Conference play. Not even when Archie took snaps for Ole Miss did the Rebels reach the mark to which Archie's son has led them.
With his team in first place in the SEC West, even the normally quiet Eli beamed during his post-game press conference. After years of listening to his father and brother, now he finally has a story to tell.
Even the challenges Eli faced against Auburn seemed reminiscent of another quarterback who once wore "MANNING" across the back of an Ole Miss jersey. Four of the Rebels' starting offensive linemen went down with injuries in the first half alone.
Some returned, but some did not, leaving Archie's son scrambling to avoid Auburn defenders much as his father once did behind an ill-equipped New Orleans Saints front.
There are other similarities between the careers of Ole Miss' two Mannings. For the most part, Archie carried his supporting cast to the team's successes, just as Eli did in his first two seasons.
This year, though, Eli is not alone. He has running backs to share the load, offensive linemen to pick up blitzes, and wide receivers to keep up with his rocket arm.
The story of Archie Manning's football career was, after all, somewhat a sports tragedy. Seemingly destined to win the Heisman Trophy in 1970, he broke his left arm midway through the season and finished third in voting for college football's highest individual honor.
After being drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the 1971 NFL draft, he suffered through losing seasons behind weak offensive lines and slow wide receivers.
He is widely regarded as the greatest quarterback in Ole Miss history, and yet never won more than seven regular-season games during his tenure.
His oldest son, former Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning, won the conference championship that eluded him, though. Now, after six straight wins, Archie's youngest son has led Ole Miss one win away from an SEC West title and has a chance to win a conference title of his own.