The Texas A&M Aggies are having a season for the ages in 2025. They went 11-1 and earned a berth in the College Football Playoff as the No. 7 seed. They haven’t been this good since a bad boy quarterback named Johnny Manziel was strolling through campus in 2012.
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Manziel became the first freshman ever to win the Heisman Trophy that season as he led the Aggies to an 11-2 record and a win in the Cotton Bowl. His career spiraled after that, but he remains a school legend. That’s why ESPN invited him to be the Guest Picker during College GameDay‘s pregame show for A&M’s CFP matchup with No. 10 Miami on Saturday afternoon.
Unfortunately, in classic Manziel fashion, he did not show up. One of the big reasons for his career falling apart was that he was immature and too often blew off important events so he could party and “have fun.” Well, it seems old habits die hard for Johnny Football.
Hours before the game, Manziel’s Instagram Stories were filled with pictures and videos of him and his buddies partying lavishly in Miami for that so-called boxing match between Anthony Joshua and Jake Paul on Friday night.
Many bottles of vodka were featured—Manziel is known to over-indulge more often than not—and the party clearly went on into the wee hours.
Johnny Manziel’s Instagram story the night before he was supposed to be College GameDay’s guest picker for his former school’s first playoff appearance #CFPplayoff pic.twitter.com/TRMvSQL5GD
— Leah Vann (@LVann_Sports) December 20, 2025
Now, the above posts aren’t 100 percent proof that Manziel missed College Gameday because of a post-boxing match hangover. But it’s certainly compelling evidence to suggest that is the reason he missed out on his duties for ESPN.
And while the bosses at ESPN/Disney were likely furious with Manziel for skipping out on his agreement, online football fans weren’t surprised by the development in the slightest.
“Every time I see his name trending, I automatically assume the worst. Unfortunately, I’m pretty sure I know how this story will eventually end,” said one user.
“Welp, so much for Johnny Manziel being a changed man narrative he’s pushed in recent years lol,” quipped another. “The most Johnny Manziel moment ever,” remarked one Twitter user.
“Typical Johnny. He’ll find a way to blame Cleveland for this garbage, too,” joked one fan.
Another fan joked that because Texas A&M was playing against Miami, Manziel thought the game would be in Miami as well, which is where the fight was.
In the end, ESPN had to scramble to find a replacement. Which they did: Oklahoma City Thunder wing Alex Caruso. The two-time NBA champ actually attended A&M during the same years as Manziel from 2012-2016. And he was able to come down to take on Guest Picker duties despite playing in an NBA game in Minnesota the night before.
One couldn’t come because he had too much to drink at the Paul-fest in Miami. The other came on short notice after playing a professional sports game in Minnesota. Two different kinds of people.
