Johnny Manziel: The Rise and Fall of "Johnny Football"
Johnathan Paul Manziel, born on December 6, 1992, and famously nicknamed "Johnny Football," is a former American football quarterback whose college career at Texas A&M University was marked by both extraordinary success and off-field controversies. He was the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy.
High School Career
Manziel grew up playing a variety of sports, including football, basketball, baseball, and golf. At Tivy High School in Kerrville, Texas, he focused on baseball and football. For Manziel's three years as a starter, he completed 520-of-819 passes (63.5%) for 7,626 yards and 76 touchdowns, rushed 531 times for 4,045 yards and 77 touchdowns and caught 30 passes for 582 yards and another five touchdowns. He was the only quarterback in America named as a Parade All-American his senior year, and he was also named The National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) Senior Athlete of the Year in football.
At Tivy High School, Manziel played high school football for four years, beginning with the freshman team in his first year. By the end of his first season, he played with the varsity team as a receiver. He began his sophomore year primarily as a receiver, but started the fourth game at quarterback. He shared that position for the remainder of the season, finishing with 1,164 yards passing, 806 rushing and 408 receiving for a combined 28 touchdowns. His junior year was his first as starting quarterback, and he completed that season with 2,903 passing yards, 1,544 rushing yards, 152 receiving yards and 55 touchdowns. During Manziel's senior season, he compiled 228-of-347 (65.7%) passing for 3,609 yards with 45 touchdowns and five interceptions. He also had 170 carries for 1,674 yards and 30 touchdowns. He had one touchdown reception and returned a kickoff for a touchdown for a combined 77 touchdowns. That year, he was honored as District 28-4A MVP (unanimous selection), Class 4A First-team All-State (AP), San Antonio Express-News Offensive Player of the Year (second year in a row), the Associated Press (AP) Sports Editors Texas Player of the Year, Sub-5A First-team All-Area (SA Express-News), No. Manziel was named to the NUC All World Game (started by David Schuman and National Underclassmen Combine) in 2010 where he rushed for over 100 yards and threw for over 200. It was the first time Manziel dominated on a national stage.
Manziel was highly recruited out of high school; in addition to Texas A&M, he received offers from Baylor, Colorado State, Iowa State, Louisiana Tech, Oregon, Rice, Stanford, Tulsa, and Wyoming. Although he grew up a Texas Longhorns fan, the University of Texas did not recruit him.
College Career at Texas A&M
Manziel debuted in college football for the Aggies as a redshirt freshman in Kevin Sumlin's Air Raid offense during A&M's first season in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in 2012. Manziel was redshirted during the 2011 season and did not play in any games.
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Although Manziel began the season in relative obscurity, his play against Arkansas in which he broke Archie Manning's 43-year-old total offense record gained him some attention. Manziel produced 557 yards of total offense, breaking Manning's record of 540. Two games later, Manziel surpassed his own total offense record against No. 24 Louisiana Tech by achieving 576 yards of total offense, becoming the first player in Southeastern Conference (SEC) history to have two 500+ total offense games in one season. Manziel was launched into the national scene after he led Texas A&M to a 29-24 victory over No. 1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa. In that game, Manziel accounted for 345 of A&M's 418 yards of offense, including two passing touchdowns. On November 24, during the game against the Missouri Tigers before a home crowd, Manziel left the game with an apparent knee injury late in the first quarter. He returned to the field for the next series of downs wearing a knee brace and finished the game with 439 yards of total offense, including three passing and two rushing touchdowns. During the game, he broke the single-season record for offensive production in the SEC with 4,600 yards, surpassing Cam Newton and Tim Tebow, notable recent Heisman Trophy winners. He also became the first freshman and only the fifth player in NCAA history to pass for 3,000 and rush for 1,000 yards in a season, reaching that mark two games earlier than any other player.
Manziel is the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy, capturing the award in his redshirt year on the strength of remarkable performances on the ground and in the air. He joined John David Crow as one of two Texas A&M Aggies to win the Heisman.
Manziel threw for 3,419 yards and 24 touchdowns while adding 1,181 yards with 19 scores on the ground. The key game in his Heisman resume came when he led the Aggies to a 29-24 upset of No. 1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa, totaling 345 yards of total offense while ripping off several highlight-reel plays. For his efforts, he was named the SEC Freshman of the Year, the Davey O’Brien winner and the 77th recipient of the Heisman Trophy. He later led Texas A&M to a 41-13 smashing of Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl, as he produced 516 yards of offense and four touchdowns.
Manziel returned to school in 2013 and threw for 4,114 yards and 37 touchdowns while rushing for 759 yards and nine scores. His two-year total offense and touchdown total: A remarkable 9,989 yards and 93 scores. He was once again voted to the Heisman ceremony as a finalist, finishing fifth behind Jameis Winston.
NCAA Investigation
On August 4, ESPN reported that the NCAA was investigating whether Manziel accepted payments for autographs that he had signed in January 2013. Texas A&M started the 2013 season with a No. After serving his suspension in the first half of the opener against the Rice Owls, Manziel came off the bench in the second half and threw for 3 touchdowns to help the Aggies win 52-31. However, after his last touchdown pass, he was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for taunting Rice players and was subsequently benched by head coach Kevin Sumlin. This action led to high backlash from the media and ESPN analysts over his egotistical behavior, with some calling him a "detriment" to his football team. In the game against No. 1 Alabama, Manziel threw for a school record of 464 yards and five touchdowns in the 49-42 loss.
Read also: Reliving the Manziel Era in NCAA 14
NFL Career
In January 2014, Manziel announced that he would forgo his junior season and enter the 2014 NFL draft. He was projected to be a first-round pick, and as of January 15, 2014, his draft stock was reported to be rising by a consensus of experts who had him pegged as a top-five pick. Manziel elected to throw during Texas A&M's Pro Day on March 27, 2014, instead of during the NFL Combine. During his pro day, Manziel completed 64 of 66 passes to six different receivers. Prior to the 2014 NFL draft, Manziel became one of the most polarizing athletes in pre-draft history, with scouting opinions varying from "undraftable" to "rare competitor". Former NFL head coach Barry Switzer took it to a personal level, criticizing Manziel, saying: "I don't like his antics. I think he's an arrogant little prick.
Manziel was selected by the Browns as the 22nd overall pick of the 2014 NFL draft. On draft day, 21 teams, including the Cleveland Browns, passed over Manziel.
On November 30, 2014, Manziel entered the game against the Buffalo Bills during the fourth quarter after an ineffective performance by Hoyer. Manziel went 5 of 8 for 63 yards, and scored his first NFL touchdown on a 10-yard rush in the fourth quarter. Manziel made his first NFL start in the Browns' Week 15 game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Manziel completed 10 of 18 passes for 80 yards and two interceptions for a 27.3 passer rating while being sacked three times. Manziel completed three of eight passes in his second career start against the Carolina Panthers on December 21, 2014. He left the game with a hamstring injury with less than two minutes remaining in the first half and was replaced by Hoyer. Overall, Manziel completed 18 of 35 passes for 176 yards and two interceptions, and rushed nine times for 29 yards and one touchdown. Manziel's work ethic and commitment were questioned by over 20 sources within the Browns.
On September 13, Manziel was brought into the game against the New York Jets after starting quarterback Josh McCown was injured in the first half. Manziel scored his first career passing touchdown with a 54-yard pass to wide receiver Travis Benjamin. However, Manziel committed three turnovers in the second half (two of them being fumbles) as the Jets won 31-10. Manziel started the Week 2 game against 2014 Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota and the Tennessee Titans. Following McCown's recovery, Manziel did not take the field again until McCown suffered a shoulder injury in the fourth quarter of a Week 7 game against the St. Louis Rams. Manziel completed 4 of 5 passes for 27 yards in a 24-6 loss. In a Week 8 game against the Arizona Cardinals, Manziel again took the field in the fourth quarter after McCown suffered another injury. Manziel made his second start of the season in Week 9, completing 15 of 33 passes for 168 yards and one touchdown in a 31-10 loss to the Bengals. In Week 10, Manziel had his statistically best game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, completing 33 of 45 passes for 372 yards and one touchdown.
Despite some success, he struggled with consistency and his tenure was overshadowed by off-field controversies. He was released by the Browns after the end of the 2015 season.
Read also: Collegiate Career of Johnny Davis
Off-Field Issues and Controversies
On June 29, 2012, Manziel was arrested and charged with three misdemeanors: disorderly conduct, failure to produce identification, and possession of a fictitious driver's license. These charges stemmed from a late-night fight in College Station, Texas. Police reports stated that Manziel was with a friend who directed a racial slur at a man on the street. The man then approached the two of them and tried to get at the friend, but Manziel placed himself between the two men, saying his friend didn't mean it and he was going to take him home. The man continued pushing against Manziel to reach the other man, and Manziel eventually pushed back. At this point, the man swung at Manziel who then began fighting back. Shortly afterwards, the bicycle patrol officers arrived. Manziel was 19 at the time, and he presented to police officers a fake Louisiana driver's license that showed him to be 21 years of age.
On February 4, 2015, Manziel entered a treatment program for unspecified reasons. On May 30, Manziel was involved in an incident with a heckler at the AT&T Byron Nelson golf tournament. The heckler had been continually asking for an autograph, to the point that Manziel became fed up and threw a water bottle at the man. The water bottle missed the heckler. On August 27, Manziel was ruled out for the rest of the preseason with recurring pain in his right elbow. In October 2015, Manziel was pulled over by a policeman after fighting in his car with his then-girlfriend, Colleen Crowley. Although no charges were made, Manziel admitted to having had some alcoholic drinks earlier that afternoon.
Manziel was announced as the starting quarterback for the rest of the season on November 17. However, he was demoted to third-string quarterback behind McCown and Austin Davis a week later after videos surfaced of him partying in Texas over the bye week. As a result, Manziel remained benched in favor of Davis when McCown suffered a season-ending collarbone injury in the subsequent game against the Ravens. In early February 2016, NFL Network's Ian Rappaport and ESPN's Pat McManamon reported that the Browns planned to cut ties with Manziel as soon as the league's fiscal 2016 began. On June 24, 2016, Manziel's attorney, Bob Hinton, accidentally sent a lengthy text message to the AP relating to Manziel's defense in his domestic violence case. In the message, Hinton expressed concerns about Manziel's ability to stay clean, saying that he was given a receipt that suggests Manziel spent around $1,000 at The Gas Pipe, a drug paraphernalia store. On the same day, Manziel's father, Paul, told ESPN: "He's a druggie. It's not a secret that he's a druggie. Hopefully, he doesn't die before he comes to his senses. I mean, I hate to say it, but I hope he goes to jail. I mean, that would be the best place for him. I'm doing my job, and I'm going to move on.
Following further controversies during the 2016 offseason, Manziel was not signed by another team before the start of the season and spent two years away from football until he returned with the Tiger-Cats of the CFL in 2018.
Canadian Football League (CFL)
On March 31, 2017, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL) revealed that they had placed Manziel on their negotiation list, a list of players that each team has exclusive rights to attempt to sign. After a year out of football, Manziel had a workout in Buffalo, New York, with the Tiger-Cats, during which he was "put through a series of physical and medical tests" from August 23 to 24, 2017. He did not initially sign with the team. On September 2, Manziel's representatives requested a contract offer from the Tiger-Cats. On December 28, 2017, the CFL approved Manziel to play in the league. The Tiger-Cats had until January 7 to offer him a contract or trade his rights. If neither was done, the team would lose his rights. On January 7, the team confirmed that they had made Manziel an offer. Not long after, Manziel's agent, Eric Burkhardt, responded to the Tiger-Cats offer stating that Hamilton had until January 31, 2018, to offer his client a "fair deal".
On July 22, after spending the first six weeks on Hamilton's bench without playing, as backup to Jeremiah Masoli, the Tiger-Cats traded Manziel and offensive linemen Tony Washington and Landon Rice to the Montreal Alouettes for defensive lineman Jamaal Westerman, wide receiver Chris Williams, and Montreal's 2020 and 2021 first-round draft picks. Hamilton coach June Jones stated Manziel was traded to give him a better chance at receiving playing time, while the development of quarterback Dane Evans was also a factor in the trade. On July 31, Alouettes head coach Mike Sherman announced that Manziel would start their August 3 game against the Tiger-Cats, his former team. By halftime of his first CFL start, Manziel had thrown four interceptions, including two to Jumal Rolle. Following a four-interception game by Pipkin in Week 14, Manziel took over the reins as starting quarterback for the Alouettes in Week 15, a game they ended up losing 31-14 to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Manziel played in eight games in his first season in the CFL, completing 106 of 165 pass attempts (64.2%) for 1,290 yards with five touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also rushed the ball 29 times for 215 yards.
He was later traded to the Alouettes during the season, but was released the following year and rendered ineligible to play in the CFL after it was determined he violated the terms of his contract.
Legacy
Manziel was slated to compete with Pipkin and Vernon Adams for the starting role in 2019, but on February 27 it was revealed that Manziel was one of the most dynamic Aggie footballer of the 21st century. Manziel dropped jaws of Aggie fans and college football fans alike during his pair of seasons under center in College Station, and despite some controversy off the field, his overall talents on the field simply could not be ignored.
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