With the release of Netflix’s Untold documentary about Johnny Manziel, there has been a ton of reminiscing about the Johnny Manziel era of college football. Looking back, it’s crazy to think about just how much the NCAA has changed since Johnny Football wiped his balls all over SEC defenses. With NIL deals, conference realignment, and the transfer portal, it is almost like we are watching a different league today. After rewatching Johnny’s story, I pondered the question, “Was Johnny Manziel the start of all this change?”
It’s 2011 and the Texas A&M Aggies are leaving the Big XII and heading for the gauntlet that is SEC football. Nobody expected the Aggies to have any success during their first year in the SEC. At the same time however, nobody knew about Johnny Football. Manziel quickly made a name for himself, dicing up defenses and bringing Texas A&M to the forefront of college football. Texas A&M football quickly became “appointment television”, bringing in about $300 million in the process.
You can say that Manziel and the Aggies’ success their first two years in the SEC is a big reason why so many teams are eager to join bigger conferences today. Before A&M, there was a lot more of a fear to “upgrade” your conference. By leaving your conference you are leaving behind some school traditions, rivalries, and you run the risk of your school getting embarrassed year after year like Vanderbilt. Without Johnny Manziel I think it’s safe to say that A&M wouldn’t have become the staple in college football that they are known as today. It’s definitely hard for some other programs, like Texas and Oklahoma, to watch your little brother become more luxurious and relevant than you.
Fast forward to today, the Big XII and the PAC XII both lost the majority of their hallmark names. There’s also a number of ACC teams looking to join either the SEC or the B1G as well. Conference realignment affects all sports, not just football. Can you imagine Duke and UNC not playing each other every year in basketball? Or imagine the Oregon softball player that has to go to Rutgers in the middle of the week.
It’s also worth mentioning Johnny was amongst the first in college football to reach such a high level of celebrity status while still in school. A&M brought in countless dollars profiting off his NIL and Manziel was not allowed to have even the smallest sliver of it. His autograph business (that was in violation of NCAA regulations at the time), while still very profitable, did not come close to what he could have made if he was allowed to profit off his NIL like so many college athletes do today. I think his story was definitely taken into consideration when the NCAA was changing their policies on athletes getting paid.
It all comes back to Johnny Manziel in the end. Without him, does Texas A&M ever make the splash they did in the SEC? Would other teams be so inclined to jump ship from their respective conferences? Would Livvy Dunne make millions of dollars off high school boys watching her TikToks? Was Johnny Manziel the spark that changed college sports forever?
