Morton named to Manning Award watch list
August 14, 2025 | Football
NEW ORLEANS – Texas Tech's Behren Morton was named to the Manning Award preseason watch list on Thursday, which is presented by the Allstate Sugar Bowl to the nation's top quarterback. The list includes 27 of the top quarterbacks in the nation heading into the 2025 season.
This year's watch list is led by the Big 12 with seven selections, followed by the SEC with five, and the ACC with four representatives. Overall, it includes players from nine Football Bowl Subdivision conferences.
Morton's preseason accolades have started to pile up, as the Manning Award is the fourth watch list for the senior signal caller in the last two weeks-plus, joining the Davey O'Brien, Wuerffel Trophy, and Maxwell Award watch lists.
The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in honor of the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton, and Eli Manning, and is the only quarterback award that includes the candidates' postseason performances in its balloting. The winner will be selected by a voting panel, which includes national media and each of the Mannings, after the postseason.
"We're looking forward to another exciting year of college football," said Archie Manning. "I'd like to thank the Sugar Bowl for continuing to build the tradition of the Manning Award, which now has over 20 years of honoring the top quarterbacks in the country for the entire football season. This year, we have another great group on our preseason watch list; in October, we'll review the transfers and other newcomers and then boost the watch list with the best from that group."
Inclusion on the watch list is not necessary for the quarterbacks to be selected for the honor. Transfers and other newcomers at schools were not eligible for the preseason watch list, but additional quarterbacks will be added to the watch list during the season. Finalists will be selected prior to the postseason, and the winner will be announced following the College Football Playoff National Championship.
ABOUT THEÂ MANNING AWARD
In its first 21 years, the Manning Award has recognized the top names in college football. All the Manning Award winners follow in the footsteps of the Mannings themselves. In college, Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning combined for over 25,000 passing yards and 201 touchdowns while playing in 10 bowl games and earning four bowl MVP awards. Archie was the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft, while both Peyton and Eli were selected No. 1 overall.
In addition to the Manning Award's yearly honor, each week during the regular season, eight quarterbacks are recognized as Manning Award Stars of the Week. Seventy-four quarterbacks were honored during the 2024 season and 570 different quarterbacks from 135 schools have been recognized since 2011.
For full Manning Award information, follow @ManningAward on X (FKA Twitter) and Instagram; or visit AllstateSugarBowl.org.
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