Manziel has the starter's back for tonight's CFL season opener
ByJEFF TARPLEY 7 hours ago
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The Hamilton Tiger-Cats 2018 season begins tonight when they take the Calgary Stampeders at 6:00 PM CST. For Tiger-Cats fans, it's the first step on the road back to respectibility after a 6-12 finish in 2017 that left them out of the Canadian Football League playoffs for the first time since the 2012 season. It'a also the first step on the road back for former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel who is set to make his regular season debut.
Manziel never failed to generate attention at A&M, especially after winning the Heisman Trophy in 2012 and becoming a first round pick of the Cleveland Browns in the 2014 NFL Draft. However, he ran into problems both on and off of the field and was released by the Browns in 2016. Now, he's generating attention south of the border for a league situated north of the bolder that doesn't garner much thought with American football fans unless someone makes a successful transition back to the NFL.
The NFL may be Manziel's goal in the long term but right now he's just happy to have a spot in professional football. However, the attention he is generating for himself, the Tiger Cats, and the Canadian Football League doesn't correlate to his actual role on the Hamilton roster. Manziel was signed to be a backup for incumbent quarterback Jeremiah Masoli who went 6-4 in Hamilton's last ten games of 2017 and threw for over 3,000 yards. Although Manziel appeared in both of Hamilton's pre season games, he did so in order to win that spot (Manziel was 21 of 32 for 168 yards and a touchdown).
We’re all behind Jeremiah, starting tomorrow,” Manziel said on Friday. “More than anything, I want a win for this team. It’s more than me. It’s more than just one individual. It’s a team effort and it takes everybody we have on this roster to go out and win games.”
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Even so, people are going to be watching Masoli's every move in anticipation of something that could occur that would propel Manziel into a bigger role with the Tiger Cats. At A&M, people forget that Manziel arrived on campus in 2011 and redshirted his first season. When Ryan Tannehill was drafted by the Miami Dolphins, Manziel had to battle not one but two older quarterbacks in Matt Joeckel and Jamail Showers during the spring of 2012 in order to win the starting job. He wasn't even considered the starter coming out of spring football and it took a new approach and work with quarterback guru George Whitfield before he emerged as the top dog among the trio in fall camp and eventual stardom. Now, he's hoping for a similar opportunity if something happens with Masoli.
“We’ll see how things go,” Manziel said. “Any backup or anybody on our depth chart is one play, two plays away from getting in the game. That’s something I’ve learned over the course of the years and take very seriously."There's been a lot written about former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel and the move made to resurrect his career by relocating to Canada and becoming a backup for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the CFL. Not only are far more reporters than usual following his every move, it's also increased the visibility of both the league and the franchise south of the border. However, Sports Illustrated 's Alex Prewitt had a different take on Manziel and the Tiger-Cats, namely the unknown process of how Hamilton obtained his rights and what they needed to do secure him.
Everything started when Manziel was a redshirt freshman at Texas A&M. The Tiger-Cats saw enough to throw him onto their negotiation list, a secretive pool then comprised of 35 names (now 45 names) that them place rights on players who might one day join the CFL. The organization followed Manziel's rise in Aggieland to Heisman Trophy winner and first round NFL draft pick and then the lows of being released by the Cleveland Browns in early 2016, being charged with domestic abuse, and going through rehab not once but twice. Tiger-Cats general manager Scott Mitchell contacted his agent, Erik Burkhardt, last summer about working Manziel out to see if there should be some interest on their part. Manziel went to Newport Beach, California where he threw the ball for then Hamilton assistant June Jones (now the Tiger-Cats head coach and the first college coach to offer Manziel when Jones at SMU).
“From an on-field perspective, it was, not surprisingly, very strong,” Mitchell says. “There was never a doubt about his physical ability. The workout confirmed what we already heard. At that point it was more of a situation of, ‘Let us know when he’s ready to get serious about the CFL, and good luck with all your opportunities, and we’re here to have discussions at the right time.’”
Manziel and members of the Hamilton organization met in Buffalo several days after that. The meeting didn't generate any publicity but comments from a source near that time indicated that Manziel had too many red flags to sign. However, by mid September, people around Manziel opened a ten day window that was used to help negotiation-list players into teams either into offering a contract, trading or releasing them. The CFL extended that window through Thanksgiving and on December 27 announced that the CFL would approve a contract agreement between the parties given the resolution of Manziel's off the field issues.
According to a CFL spokesman, after Hamilton informed the CFL that it was close to signing Manziel, the league followed up to investigate whether he had been retroactively meeting conditions that Ambrolise would eventually apply. (Ambroise was unavailable for comment.) Recently Manziel told USA Today that he must regularly see a doctor, receive monthly lithium tests for a bipolar disorder diagnosis, and “visit with a therapist once a week.” Mitchell says the Ticats have also imposed their own set of regulations, developed separately from the CFL but which “parallels in a lot of specific situations.” Asked whom the team consulted, Mitchell replies, “I will say it’s medical professionals and diagnostic professionals who deal with issues that are well-known to what Johnny’s issues are.”
The two parties talked again in the spring and waited to see what interest the NFL might have before any commitments were made. Given the NFL's lack of interest, the two parties got serious about negotiating a deal. Reportedly, another team made inquiries about a trade for Manziel's rights (the Montreal Alouettes coached by former A&M head coach Mike Sherman who recruited Manziel to Aggieland) but eventually Hamilton offered two years at $122,000 in base salary, plus $18,000 in housing, $10,000 to sign, and performance incentives.
Manziel tweeted that a deal had been reach on May 19. He's been through training camp, entrenched himself as the backup to starter Jeremiah Masoli, and now begins a season that could extend to as many as 21 games as he attempts to rebuild both his life and his career.
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4-star WR Wright shaping up to be an A&M, Texas battle?
VIPBy BRIAN PERRONI16 hrs
20
Both Texas A&M and Texas are in good shape with four-star West Mesquite WR Dylan Wright.
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RB King Doerue includes A&M in top 10
By DAMON SAYLES 17 hrs
6
(Photo: 247Sports)
The Texas A&M football program is sitting pretty at No. 2 in the latest 247Sports recruiting composite team rankings for the 2019 recruiting cycle. While the Aggies chase Alabama for the No. 1 spot, they look to continue filling the class with stud talent.
Texas A&M has 17 player currently committed in the 2019 class, but the Aggies are still looking to land a running back pledge. Amarillo Tascosa High School running back King Doerue, a 3-star prospect, announced his top 10 Saturday afternoon, including Texas A&M with, in alphabetical order, Arkansas, Baylor, Iowa State, Minnesota, Ole Miss, Nebraska, Notre Dame, TCU and Texas Tech.
A 5-foot-11, 197-pound running back, Doerue said last month that he planned on cutting his list of schools to a top 10 around this time. He currently has 18 reported offers.
Running backs coach Jay Graham and defensive ends coach Terry Price have served as the Texas A&M tag team recruiting Doerue, who last was on the campus April 14 for the Maroon & White Game.
Doerue told GigEm247 last month that his top 10 would include schools that would benefit him on and off the field. In addition to being a household name in college football, Doerue wants to major in kinesiology.
"I want to go somewhere where I'm going to play and the coaches can get me to my maximum potential," Doerue told GigEm247. "I want to get a good academic degree, too. I want to have a successful life after football."
Doerue plays at Tascosa in an offense that thrived off a run-oriented system. Eighteen players ran the ball at least 17 times in 2017. Doerue rushed for 473 yards and nine touchdowns on 53 carries as a junior, but he averaged nearly nine yards per carry. He also was the team's leading kickoff returner and punt returner.
Doerue once was a four-sport athlete at Tascosa, participating in football, basketball, soccer and track and field. He was a striker for the soccer team and a point guard for the
basketball team. He remained on the track and field team as a sprinter, running the 100 meters in 10.6 seconds and serving as a valuable member of the Tascosa sprint relay.
Doerue, who's run the 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds, has held an offer from Texas A&M since Feb. 24. He visited the campus for a junior day and received the good news personally from Jimbo Fisher.
Doerue had his first official visit last weekend at Minnesota and spoke very highly of the program to 247Sports. He said it was a place his parents loved and felt he should consider.
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"Minnesota's campus is huge, and it's one of the best campuses I've ever seen," Doerue told GopherIllustrated, the 247Sports site covering the Gophers. "I loved their facilities. They were amazing, especially their locker room."
Doerue is ranked the nation's No. 34 running back and No. 543 player overall in the 2019 class, according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite.
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A&M commit Leal offers quickness, size, and versatility
By JEFF TARPLEY19 hrs
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GigEm247 takes a look at the prospects on Texas A&M’s commitment list. We’re taking a look at each player’s background, their strengths and weaknesses, and what to look for from them when they finally arrive on campus as part of the class of 2019. This particular write up is on Comverse Judson defensive tackle DeMarvin Leal.
Leal is a four star rated prospect in the 247 Sports composite, a top ten ranked player in the state of Texas and the fourth best defensive tackle prospect in the country. He had offers from just about everyone including Alabama, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Michigan, Oklahoma, and USC. He committed to the Aggies over Texas on April 18. The 6 foot 4, 280 pound Leal has been an extremely productive player during his first two years at the high school level. He has 27 tackles for loss, seven sacks, five pass breakups, and two forced fumbles. He was named the District 27-6A Defensive MVP and an Associated Press Class 6A second-team all-state selection as a junior and was first-team all-district at defensive end as a sophomore.He has even played some basketball along the way.
Many players who have the ability to play either defensive end or defensive tackle are labeled tweeners, lacking ideal size to play inside but also the burst to consistently play on the edge. In Leal’s case, he’s got enough of both attributes to be labeled as versatile. He spent much of his time during his junior season as a defensive end in a three man front and oftentimes he was head up on a tackle. Sometimes he moved to the tackle’s outside shoulder or even to a seven technique for pass rushing purposes. Leal even played a little nose tackle at times head up over a center.
Leal checks just about every box imaginable from an athletic standpoint. He can get low in his stance like a sprinter and has great get off for someone his size. Leal has fantastic hand/eye coordination and comes out of his stance with his hands extended and ready for use. He sheds people very quickly when he comes in contact with them which frees him up to make plays all over the field. Those hands also come up to knock down passes or strip ball carriers.
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Nonetheless, there’s a lot of times when Leal doesn’t need to use his hands. His get off enables him to flash past a blocker and put himself in position to make plays. That facilitates another point about his game: he has great hips and bend for his size. He comes off of the ball low and stays low which enables him to play below the pad level of opposing linemen. He can split double teams to the interior or work around blockers coming off of the edge. When combined with his quick hands that work under the pads of a blocker as well as a strong upper body, this also means that it’s difficult to move him off of the line of scrimmage. Leal also has enough athletic ability to change direction and redirect plays or make them himself.
Overall, Leal is a big, athletic players whose gifts enable him to play multiple positions and play with violence against his opponents. Texas A&M defensive coordinator Mike Elko plays a defense that demands a lot of versatility and Leal should fit in well with it. He has the size and strength to play as a disruptive three technique and the feet and change of direction to anchor the edge as a five technique defensive end. In addition, Leal’s gifts mean that he shouldn’t take time to much time to develop and that he will see the field early in his A&M career.
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ESPN analyst breaks down Clemson vs. Texas A&M matchup
By AUSTIN NIVISON13 hrs
0
Over the last few seasons, the marquee matchup in the ACC has been Dabo Swinney’s Clemson teams against the Florida State teams coached by Jimbo Fisher. Now Fisher is in the SEC at Texas A&M, but that doesn’t mean the meetings between those two head coaches will end. This fall, Clemson visits College Station in Week 2 in what is one of the more intersting games early on in the season. In 2019, they’ll turn around and meet in Death Valley. Will the Aggies be ready to go toe to toe with a powerhouse like the Tigers so quickly after a coaching change? That’s the question ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg tried to answer on The Paul Finebaum Show on Friday afternoon.
Finebaum asked Rittenberg about the matchup, and he just doesn’t think Texas A&M will have quite enough firepower to stay with Clemson — at least in the first go around. Fisher is an excellent coach, he proved as much at Florida State, but Swinney’s team is a legitimate national title contender in 2018. Rittenberg sees it as an uphill battle for the Aggies this fall.
“They can’t seem to get away from each other. Jimbo, I don’t think, has the team yet to challenge Clemson at A&M, but we’ll see. He’s got a lot of talent left over. Talking to people around the SEC, they say that defense should be much improved this year under Mike Elko, which is one of the better coordinator hires in the country," said Rittenberg. "Clemson, to me, is a clear top four challenger this year — maybe the favorite behind Alabama to get into the playoff. It’s going to be a real challenge for Jimbo in year one, but they return the game next year when they go to Death Valley. These two are going to see each other, at least in the regular season, in the next couple of years these next two seasons. Who knows? Maybe they could see each other in the postseason soon thereafter.”
In the eight seasons Swinney and Fisher met as head coaches in the ACC, they split those eight games right down the middle with each one getting four wins. Early on in that series, Fisher had the upper hand as his Seminoles won four of the first five meetings. Once Swinney built Clemson into the program they are today, they won three games in a row against Florida State.
ESPN’s Football Power Index thinks the trend of Swinney winning these head-to-head matchups against Fisher will continue in 2018. Currently, the FPI gives the Aggies only a 24.3 percent chance at beating the Tigers. That’s not great news for the fans in College Station, but the game being played at Kyle Field levels the playing field because it will be rocking on Sept. 8.
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4-star LB Patterson at A&M as decision is very near
VIPBy BRIAN PERRONIFri Jun 15 2018
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Texas A&M had five big-time out-of-state linebackers on campus a weekend ago and the Aggies have yet another in town this weekend.
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A&M's 2012 win over Bama one of top 10 upsets since 2000
By JEFF TARPLEYFri Jun 15 2018
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During the off season, it is everybody's time to make lists of every conceivable football related matter no matter whether the topic pertains to historic moments, greatest players, or the upcoming season. One of the lists making the rounds is one put together by a DeKalb, Georgia television station which highlights the top ten upsets that have occurred in the SEC since 2000. Texas A&M made the cut even though the Aggies didn't join the SEC until 2012 and so anything that occurred prior to that season was excluded by writer Jay Clemons. Mind you, Clemons noted that if the Aggies or Missouri had upset a SEC team during that time period, the schools would have been eligible for this particular story line. In addition, Clemons noted that great emphasis was placed on coaching icons suffering rare defeats. This means that the Aggies' win over top five Auburn on the road in 2014 was excluded.
In case you haven't guessed it, the Aggies' lone contribution on the list comes in at number three behind Ole Miss' defeat of Florida in 2008 and South Carolina's win over Alabama in 2010. Here'e what Clemons had to say:
a) Alabama had been riding a tidal wave of dominance entering the A&M showdown: Defending national champions, winners of 13 straight and a stifling defense that had allowed a grand total of 82 points over the first nine games.
On the other side, Texas A&M owned a strong 7-2 record, but few doubted the Aggies' capacity to pull off the road surprise.
b) A&M exploded for 20 points in the first quarter, the result of two Christine Michael rushing scores and one scoring pass (after a bobbled snap) from improvisational quarterback Johnny Manziel.
Putting this burst into perspective, the Crimson Tide defense hadn't allowed 20 points—over four consecutive quarters—in their previous 11 outings.
c) The Crimson Tide would outscore the Aggies 24-9 after their first-quarter meltdown, but two key plays down the stretch ultimately thwarted Alabama's comeback bid:
**With less than nine minutes remaining, Manziel completed a picture-perfect TD pass to Malcome Kennedy, increasing A&M’s lead to 29-17.
**With Alabama down five in the waning seconds, QB AJ McCarron (309 yards passing, 1 TD) had his final pass intercepted in the end zone (Deshazor Everett).
d) A pair of freshmen carried this back-and-forth classic: Manziel accounted for 345 total yards (253 passing) and two touchdowns, and Alabama receiver Amari Cooper collected six catches for 136 yards and one TD.
e) Many believe Manziel (3,706 yards passing, 47 total TDs) only claimed the Heisman Trophy because of the Alabama upset; but that's revisionist history.
The 2012 college season simply didn't produce a flood of worthy contenders, outside of Kansas State QB Collin Klein (3,561 total yards, 39 TDs) and Southern California wideout Marqise Lee (118 catches, 1,721 yards, 14 TDs).
As further proof, two defensive players—Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o (2nd place) and South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney (6th)—finished in the top six of Heisman voting. That's an extremely rare occurrence.
Although it was considered an upset at the time, A&M closed out the 2012 season with a 10-2 record and then walloped Oklahoma in the AT&T Cotton Bowl to finish fifth nationally. In fact, their only losses were to BCS bound Florida and LSU.
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A&M basketball reportedly to hire Virginia Tech's Jeff Reynolds
By DAMON SAYLES Fri Jun 15 2018
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Texas A&M men's basketball coach Billy Kennedy will look to the ACC for the vacant assistant coaching position.
According to CBS Sports college basketball insider Jon Rothstein, Kennedy is expected to hire Virginia Tech coach Jeff Reynolds to join the Aggie staff as an assistant. Reynolds will replace Amir Abdur-Rahim, who accepted an assistant position at Georgia under coach Tom Crean.
Reynolds was the director of scouting and game management for Virginia Tech under head coach Buzz Williams. Reynolds was at Virginia Tech for four seasons. Prior to that, he was director of men's basketball operations at Marquette from 2012-14. During that span, the Golden Eagles made it to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament.
Reynolds last was a head coach in 2012. He spent five seasons as the head coach at Air Force, from 2007-12. During that span, Air Force advanced to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament during the 2010-11 season. He was an assistant for Air Force from 2005-07. Reynolds' coaching resume goes back 40 years, and he's also has been a college assistant at Tulane (2000-05), UNC-Greensboro (1995-97), UNC-Wilmington (1990-94) and Winthrop (1986-90).
Reynolds additionally has been a head coach at the Division III North Carolina Wesleyan (1985-86), as well as Division II Wingate (1997-2000). While at Wingate, Reynolds posted a 61-27 record in three seasons and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament the last two seasons. The Wingate teams in 1998-99 and 1999-2000 combined for a 49-10 record.
In Reynolds, Texas A&M gets an assistant who not only knows about game management but also someone who has a strong background in developing relationships from the high school level all the way up to the pros. He also provides the Aggies an insider on athletes in the Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina areas. He started his coaching career at Carroll County High School in Hillsville, Virginia.
While at Virginia Tech, Reynolds watched the Hokies earn 20-win seasons in three consecutive years. The team advanced to the NCAA Tournament during the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons and the NIT during the 2015-16 season. Under Williams, Virginia Tech finished 21-12 last season but lost, 86-83, to Alabama in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
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Reynolds will have a chance to coach an experienced backcourt in seniors Admon Gilder and Chris Collins and sophomores TJ Starks and Jay Jay Chandler. The arrival of junior college signees Wendell Mitchell and Brandon Mahan also will make things interesting for a Texas A&M team that will rely early on its guard play.
Reynolds also will get a chance to coach an intriguing group of new starters in the frontcourt. With Robert Williams, Tyler Davis and DJ Hogg all gone to test the professional ranks, Reynolds will look to mold sophomores Savion Flagg and Isiah Jasey, transfer Josh Nebo, redshirt freshman Trey Walker and graduate transfer Christian Mekowulu from Tennessee State.