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Backup QB Marshall Manning Hits First Varsity Pass

8/21/2026

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Summary

Story summary

Marshall Manning completed an eight-yard pass to Antwaun Adams on his first varsity snap.
He entered the second quarter of the Aug. 20, 2026 season opener against Brentwood Academy as backup to Keegan Croucher.
Manning wore No. 16, the number his father Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning wore at Tennessee.
Four-star senior Keegan Croucher, committed to Ole Miss, started the game.

History

Historical Context

In 1994 freshman Peyton Manning sparked Tennessee’s turnaround, completing 86 of 139 passes for 1,114 yards and earning SEC Freshman of the Year as the Volunteers finished 10-2 and won the Gator Bowl 45–23. Decades later, his son Marshall entered Brentwood Academy’s Aug. 20, 2026 opener as a backup wearing No. 16, showing how high-school programs now borrow college-level branding by highlighting NFL lineages.

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Story summary

Marshall Manning completed an eight-yard pass to Antwaun Adams on his first varsity snap.
He entered the second quarter of the Aug. 20, 2026 season opener against Brentwood Academy as backup to Keegan Croucher.
Manning wore No. 16, the number his father Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning wore at Tennessee.
Four-star senior Keegan Croucher, committed to Ole Miss, started the game.

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