Peyton Manning’s alma mater is playing host to a huge college football game on Saturday. Tennessee will be hosting No. 1 Texas at Neyland Stadium. ESPN’s “College GameDay” will be on site.
But Manning will not be rooting for the Volunteers.
Instead, Manning has made it clear that he will be rooting for his nephew, Arch Manning, who plays quarterback for the Longhorns.
“One of the kids was asking me earlier who I was going to go for,” said Peyton at the Manning Passing Academy in June. “And I said, ‘Well, who do you think?’ And he said that he would go for his school over his relative. And I went, ‘Well, you and I are different. You and I are wired differently.’ Nothing’s more important than your family.
“But obviously, it’s going to be a huge SEC game. My dad dealt with it when I was in college — when Tennessee played Ole Miss. Look, I love my university, my alma mater, and I pull for them unconditionally. But nothing’s more important to me than my family. And when you have a nephew playing — I pull very hard for him every single Saturday. So that’s pretty much a no-brainer that you’re pulling for your nephew to play well. But, like I said, everybody knows pretty strongly where my loyalties lie on all other Saturdays — with the University of Tennessee.”
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Tennessee fans aren’t very happy with their famous NFL legend
When fans asked who ESPN’s “College GameDay” should have as a celebrity guest picker on Saturday, many replied: Not Peyton.
“Not Peyton. It needs to be someone who wants Tennessee to beat Texas,” one fan wrote.
“Maybe he will put the jinx on Texas when he’s cheering for them. Nothing is better than a little reverse psychology,” one fan added.
“Once he gets there, his mind will change,” one fan added.
“I’d pull for my nephew to play well to, BUT for my team to win. Both can happen,” one fan added.
Tennessee and Texas are scheduled to kick off at 12 p.m. E.T. on Saturday.
Who would you be rooting for if you were Peyton Manning?
