Every November, Austin finds a new way to argue with itself. This year, a headline did the heavy lifting: A Longhorn for the Heisman? It's not the bearded Arch Manning but LB Rasheem Biles | Bohls' 9 things - a Kirk Bohls column that, if the headline holds, flips the script on everything Texas fans assumed about the 2026 Heisman conversation. Not the quarterback with the famous last name and the even more famous beard. A linebacker.
Let's be crystal clear about the framing, because the stakes demand it: this is a headline-driven debate piece, not a confirmed report. Get Sports Journals is working to verify the column's specifics - Biles' roster status, his 2026 production, and whether real Heisman buzz exists - with UT athletics and Bohls' original work. Until then, we're writing about the storylines and questions the headline raises. And there are plenty.
The Twist: It's Not the Bearded Manning
Normally this headline writes itself. Arch Manning, Texas quarterback, grandson of Archie, nephew of Peyton and Eli - and, in a detail that somehow went viral, rocking a full beard that made him look less like a sophomore and more like a guy who owns a lake house. That name alone would carry a Heisman narrative for months.
Instead, the headline punts him to the background of his own program's hype cycle. The spotlight lands on a defender. That's a wild hook precisely because it's counterintuitive - Heisman voters haven't handed the trophy to a defensive player since Charles Woodson in 1997, per Heisman Trust history. A linebacker crashing that party isn't a bandwagon. It's a heist.
> 📊 One Heisman winner in the last 29 years played defense (Charles Woodson, 1997) - context for just how steep the climb is for any defender.
Section 1: Rasheem Biles - The Linebacker Stealing the Spotlight
What a Linebacker Heisman Case Would Actually Require
Put the reality check on the table. A linebacker Heisman case needs dominant tackle numbers, splash plays - sacks, takeaways, defensive scores - a nationally relevant Texas team, and a genuine media campaign. Even then, history says no: Ndamukong Suh was arguably the most destructive defensive player of the modern era in 2009 and still finished fourth, per Heisman Trust archives. That's the wall Biles would be trying to run through.
The Longhorn Defensive Tradition
Texas has produced elite defenders who owned the national spotlight - and that tradition is exactly the runway a defender-for-Heisman narrative would need. But there's a gap between "great college linebacker" and "Heisman candidate" in the modern game: one is a weekly war won on film, the other is a season-long conversation won in the media. That's the distance a campaign like this would have to close.
Section 2: Arch Manning and the Heisman Conversation That Won't Go Away
Here's the irony baked into A Longhorn for the Heisman? It's not the bearded Arch Manning but LB Rasheem Biles | Bohls' 9 things: even when another Longhorn steals the billing, Manning's profile dominates the frame. His face is on the headline. His beard is in the headline. The defender is the twist, but the quarterback is still the gravity well.
And that two-story dynamic - the star QB versus the breakout defender - is a gift for debate shows, message boards, and group chats across the state. A quarterback-driven Heisman race is a conversation about numbers. A quarterback-versus-linebacker race is a conversation about what the sport values. That's a better show, and everyone in Austin knows it.
| Texas Heisman Angles (2026) | Frame | Voter Follow-Through |
|---|---|---|
| QB Arch Manning | Name brand + viral beard + QB-friendly history | High - the default cand conversation |
| LB Rasheem Biles (per headline) | Counterintuitive defender push | Low to unproven - unverified buzz |
Section 3: Bohls' 9 Things and What It Means for Texas' Season
Kirk Bohls' "9 things" format is a long-standing fixture of Austin sports commentary, so a headline like this lands with built-in reach. What readers should track over November: does the Biles talk build into a real campaign or fade? How does Manning's season overlap it? And what does any of it say about Texas' playoff positioning - because Heisman chatter in November is almost always a proxy for the CFP conversation, per NCAA.com rankings coverage.
What we're tracking: whether a verified Biles Heisman case materializes, how Bohls' full column frames it, and whether November becomes a two-Longhorn storyline. Got a take? We want to hear it. (Get Sports Journals covers the debate - not the unverified specifics.)
Editorial disclaimer: Several details attributed to the Bohls column and Rasheem Biles could not be verified at press time. Get Sports Journals will update this piece as confirmed information becomes available.
