Arch Manning has a lot of strong football influences in his life.
You'd think that would set up the Texas Longhorns' QB phenom to pick a jersey number that pays homage to a family member.
He could wear uncle Peyton's No. 18, or uncle Eli's No. 10, or grandfather Archie's No. 8.
He instead wears No. 16, which is what Peyton wore at Tennessee, but that's not actually why.
Why does Arch Manning wear No. 16 on his jersey?
Arch Manning wears No. 16 because of Trevor Lawrence.
The former Clemson star, a No. 1 overall draft pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars, rocked 16 in both college and now in the NFL.
Arch started wearing the No. 16 in sixth grade.
This is how Arch explained his choice, via Longhorns Wire:
“You know, 18 was retired at (Isidore) Newman, so I didn’t want to wear 18. Eli wore 10. My grandfather wore eight in the pros. So, I always liked Trevor Lawrence. He was a big high school recruit, and so in sixth grade, I wore 16 and I’ve worn it since.”
Fox Sports' top college football game analyst Joel Klatt actually has compared Manning to Lawrence.
"In his two starts, he reminded me a lot of Trevor Lawrence when Trevor Lawrence was at Clemson – an athletic guy that didn’t beat you with his athleticism, but could, but beat you with his arm," Klatt said. "Smart, competitive. Great pedigree, obviously. In his two starts, 13 total touchdowns, two interceptions. Like, the guy can play and he’s very, very good.”
If Manning can have a national championship career like Lawrence, Texas would certainly take that.
MORE: Why Arch Manning was backup QB and didn't transfer from Texas