Better Late Than Never for Johnny Football

Before the 2012 football season started there was a lot of doubt across the nation concerning Texas A&M as it prepared to embark on its newest adventure as part of the toughest conference in college football.

The team has not been bad; just not exceptionally good. In the last decade and a half they have they won a bowl game twice and only once did the Aggies finish in the top 25. Since winning the conference in ’98 they have finished with a losing record just four times since then; twice they were within a game of .500.

On paper the doubt was warranted. They were heading into the lion’s den with a new head coach and they needed a new quarterback with senior Ryan Tannehill moving on to the NFL. Suffice it to say the odds were stacked against them.

Enter redshirt freshman Johnny Manziel.

The initial word on the youngster was that he had some trouble holding onto the ball, but somewhere along the way he did enough to earn the starting job.  Against Florida he looked surprisingly poised for a freshman playing a ranked team in his first game as the starter.

Hmm…so maybe we have something here…who knows…at least we will not suck this year…

Bit by bit over the next nine games Manziel proved that he was much more than just a project for his new head coach. In fact, as each game ended it became more and more clear that the guy soon to be known as Johnny Football was something special.

He can run. He can pass. He’s solid in the clutch-- and he’s only a freshman! Regardless of his age, this kid is one of the most dynamic players in college football today. He is a legitimate Heisman contender.

After proving that to the world last weekend when he led the Aggies to a 29-24 win over then-No. 1 Alabama the school decided that it was finally time to show the young star some love and help him out. The university recently created a website and made the following video (and posted it to YouTube):

The school has received a little flack for not promoting Manziel earlier than this. In all fairness, how in the world could they have known that he was going to be good let alone a Heisman candidate? He’d never played a college game!

Had the Aggies won against LSU I could see an argument being made that the school should have stepped up sooner. To be honest, I though LSU adjusted well at the half in that game and controlled him enough to win the game. While I still saw him as one of the greatest players in the game I saw him being a better candidate next season.

However, should he lead the team to victory over Alabama then the award should be his to lose.

Should he lose it this year you better believe that the university will be promoting the heck out of him next season!