2017 Hansen Top 100

The latest offseason highlight for Arizona QB Khalil Tate: Being invited to the Manning Passing Academy.

Arizona’s Khalil Tate is among the quarterbacks participating in the prestigious Manning Passing Academy this weekend.

The UA junior will serve as a counselor at the annual camp run by the Manning family at Nicholls State in Thibodaux, Louisiana. The Academy runs Thursday-Sunday.

As a college counselor, Tate will work with campers at different stations and coach a 7-on-7 team.

The Manning Passing Academy draws a who’s-who of top college quarterbacks. Other participants this year, according to media reports, include Jalen Hurts of Alabama, Jarrett Stidham of Auburn, Jake Fromm of Georgia, Drew Lock of Missouri and Jake Browning of Washington.

Last year’s participants included Sam Darnold of USC, Josh Allen of Wyoming and Lamar Jackson of Louisville, all of whom went on to become first-round picks in the 2018 NFL draft.

In addition to instructing the campers, Tate and the other college counselors get to learn from Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. The Mannings have been operating the camp since 1996.


Meanwhile, SI.com concluded its series on the top 100 college football players of 2018, and Tate ranks No. 4 on that list. Here's what SI.com wrote about Tate:

Tate was not a one-season wonder. The Wildcats may have changed head coaches this offseason, with Texas A&M’s  Kevin Sumlin replacing Rich Rodriguez, and defensive coordinators around the Pac-12 have plenty of tape on Tate now. But that doesn’t change what makes him such a devastating playmaker: the pinpoint passes into the outstretched arms of wide receivers, the searing sprints into open space, the ankle-breaking body feints in tight quarters.

When he captivated the college football-viewing masses by repeatedly shredding Pac-12 defenses last season, Tate was a revelation—an out-of-left-field jolt for a team that had dropped two of its first four games and looked destined for a dismal season. Once Tate took over under center, the Wildcats became appointment TV en route to a bowl bid, and Tate finished the season having set a new single-game rushing record for a quarterback (327 yards, against Colorado), totaled more rushing yards per game (128.3) than any other Power 5 quarterback and tacked on 1,591 passing yards. Tate’s assault on Pac-12 opponents will continue in 2018, and unlike last season, he’ll be leading Arizona’s first-team offense from the jump. The coaching swap shouldn’t be an obstacle, either; it wasn’t that long ago that Sumlin helped turn a gifted dual-threat quarterback in the SEC into a national phenomenon.

Tate is the top-ranked quarterback on SI.com's list. The three players ahead of him: Houston defensive tackle Ed Oliver (1), Stanford tailback Bryce Love (2) and Clemson defensive end Christian Wilkins (3).

Arizona visits Houston in Week 2.


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