Up until a couple of weeks ago, Nathan Manning thought he was headed to Utah.

Turns out, he'll be farther south when he begins his college football career.

After a surprise message from Arizona State offensive coordinator Zak Hill and some thoughtful consideration, Manning accepted the Sun Devils' preferred walk-on offer, announcing the news March 31 on Twitter. The Century quarterback had planned to walk on at Southern Utah, but ultimately couldn't pass up an opportunity to play in the Pac-12 Conference.

"I just think it'll be the best spot for me and the best place where I'll be able to play football and really shine as an athlete and be in a culture that's good for me personally," Manning said.

The college opportunity is warranted for Manning, who led 4A in passing yardage (3,408) and passing touchdowns (37), while throwing just eight interceptions, in 2019. He also led Century in rushing (313 yards) as the centerpiece of the Diamondbacks' high-flying offense that averaged 37.4 points per game en route to a 4A District 4-5 championship.

But few colleges looked Manning's way. His only scholarship offers were from Division III schools Iowa Wesleyan and Pacific (Oregon).

The preferred walk-on spot at Southern Utah was Manning's highest-profile opportunity until Hill and ASU entered the fold and landed the 6-foot-3, 185-pound slinger.

"I don't know what college coaches think all the time. I strongly disagree with his lack of offers and I think coaches are missing out," Century coach Travis Hobson said. "On the other side, I know that recruiting quarterbacks ... you've really got to have a very specific guy to your system, to your ideology, to your future. There's generally three to five quarterbacks on a college roster, and choosing which three to five guys those are out of thousands of recruits, it's like playing the lottery.

"I guess Nate wasn't for everybody, but coach Hill saw something when he was recruiting for Boise State and he did a good job being present here." 

Manning and Hill first became acquainted when Hill was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Boise State. Manning attended multiple Boise State camps over the years, helping foster their relationship and Hill's recruiting interest.

But when Manning sent Hill a message during his recruiting process and didn't hear back for months, he figured it was time to move on.

"When he texted me back, I was super surprised, it really shocked me," Manning said. "I know that he had a lot going on and for him to call me, especially after moving schools and wanting me to still come play for him, it was really mind-blowing, so I was very excited when I heard that he wanted me to come walk on."

Manning will join some other well-known football minds at ASU.

The Sun Devils' head coach is Herm Edwards, who led the NFL's New York Jets and Kansas City Chiefs before taking over at ASU in 2018. His co-defensive coordinator is Marvin Lewis, who played and coached at Idaho State before he was the Cincinnati Bengals' head coach from 2003-2018.

Hobson hopes Manning's strong football knowledge and field-general presence continue to grow under the veteran coaches.

"Nate's the consummate coach's player, where you can count on him to do whatever he's asked to do," Hobson said. "He's that guy that's the coach on the field and really understands what coaches are trying to do in terms of scheme and play calling and understanding the long game. ... Teams often go as quarterbacks go, and I think that we've been a product of that, for sure, for the last few years."

While the NCAA's ban on in-person recruiting during the coronavirus pandemic makes it challenging for coaches and athletes to evaluate one another, Manning researched ASU and made a checklist to weigh it against SUU to help him make his decision.

Manning visited Southern Utah in Cedar City but never got the chance to visit Arizona State.

But in the end, ASU checked more boxes.

"It was one of those schools I've always wanted to go to," Manning said. "I've always wanted to go to a Pac-12 school. I thought that would be so cool to play football for a Pac-12 school. That's always been huge to me."

"I'd just like to thank my coaches and thank my parents and really thank everybody who got me to be able to go to ASU," Manning added. "This offer didn't just come from me. It didn't come from just me putting in work. It came from a lot of people helping me out. I couldn't have done this by myself."