Texas A&M Football

Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork had a message for Texas amid rumors the Longhorns want to join the SEC: This conference isn't big enough for the both of us.

The Houston Chronicle's Brent Zwerneman reported Texas and Oklahoma have had preliminary contact with the SEC about potentially aligning. The Aggies apparently aren't in favor of the idea.

"We want to be the only SEC program in the state of Texas," Bjork told reporters. "There's a reason why Texas A&M left the Big 12—to be stand-alone, to have our own identity."

According to Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman, Texas A&M isn't the only school expressing some resistance to the plan:

The Sooners and Longhorns flirted with leaving the Big 12 in 2010 before deciding to stay. Should a 12-team playoff become a reality, the benefits of moving to the SEC might be somewhat lessened as well.

Still, Zwerneman's report wouldn't have surfaced if there wasn't a possibility of this happening. And were it to come to fruition, Texas A&M might wind up being a bit of a loser from the deal.

The Aggies would get to reignite their rivalry with the Longhorns again, which would certainly make the fanbase happy.

But Bjork alluded to how playing in the SEC provides A&M with an advantage over Texas on the recruiting trail, especially in college football. Here's where the schools have finished over the last five years in 247Sports' composite team recruiting rankings:

• 2017: Texas A&M (13th); Texas (25th)

• 2018: Texas (3rd); Texas A&M (17th)

• 2019: Texas (3rd); Texas A&M (4th)

• 2020: Texas A&M (6th); Texas (8th)

• 2021: Texas A&M (8th); Texas (15th)

Suddenly, some of the progress head coach Jimbo Fisher has made could be undone. The Aggies wouldn't become a nonentity for recruits, but getting some of the top in-state talent to College Station would likely be a little tougher.

And that's to say nothing of the fact the level of competition in the SEC would raise. Oklahoma has made four appearances in the College Football Playoff, and the whole "Is Texas back?" discourse is emblematic of the wide belief the program has the infrastructure and prestige to be a top contender again.

As much as Bjork might be publicly against the idea, he might have to fall in line if the two Big 12 powers make a breakthrough with the SEC.

College athletes are cashing in on the NCAA's name, image and likeness policy, and a pair of Texas A&M football players are doing so via a creative route.

Per ESPN's Dave Wilson, Texas A&M running back Isaiah Spiller and safety Demani Richardson will be paid $10,000 each for "exclusive feature interviews" on TexAgs.com, which provided more background.

TexAgs is hosting an NIL event sponsored by GreenPrint Real Estate Group and featuring Texas A&M running back Isaiah Spiller and safety Demani Richardson.

Spiller and Richardson will earn $10,000 each as part of the deal sponsored by GreenPrint for exclusive feature interviews on TexAgs.com ahead of next week's SEC Media Days. The agreement is contracted under the new NIL regulations allowing college athletes to benefit from their name, image, and likeness.

TexAgs co-owner and executive editor Billy Liucci provided a few remarks.

"We're excited about the ways the NIL changes will allow us to feature Texas A&M athletes, continue to push into new areas of content creation for our subscribers, and expand our work with sponsors."

Spiller, a rising junior, had 1,229 total yards and nine touchdowns last year. Richardson, who is also a rising junior, has amassed 107 tackles, three pass breakups and two interceptions during his two-year Aggies career.

Interest is high for the Aggies' football program after the team finished 9-1 and earned the No. 4 spot in the final Associated Press poll. It should once again be a conference powerhouse as Texas A&M looks for its first SEC title and a College Football Playoff berth.

The Aggies could be targets for endorsement deals given their success and projection, and other SEC football players have gotten paid.

Of note, Arkansas wide receiver Trey Knox signed a deal with PetSmart, per Tera Talmadge of Pig Trail Nation.

Eric Jackson of the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported that incoming 247Sports 5-star quarterback Brock Vandagriff and four other University of Georgia athletes signed deals with Onward Reserve.

In addition, Alabama receiver Traeshon Holden inked an agreement with Yoke Gaming, per Nick Kelly of the Tuscaloosa News.

Endorsement deals should continue to be prevalent as the season rolls along and this year's big-name players and stars begin to take centerstage. The Division I-FBS college football season starts Saturday, Aug. 28.

Former Texas A&M R.C. Slocum has been diagnosed with a form of Hodgkin lymphoma.

The Aggies announced the news Tuesday and said he will begin chemotherapy in College Station, Texas:

Slocum wrote on Saturday on Facebook he was in the process of undergoing tests at MD Anderson Hospital in Houston.

"Not sure what all is going on but it is serious," he said. "I am meeting with my doctor Monday afternoon at MDA to find out. Please put me on your prayer list. I am a firm believer that God is in control and can still do miraculous things."

Slocum has more wins (123) than any coach in A&M history. The Aggies also went to 11 bowl games during his 14 years in charge. 

The high-water mark came in 1992, when the team finished 12-0 in the regular season and suffered its only defeat to Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl. Texas A&M also claimed a Big 12 title in 1998 after upsetting No. 2 Kansas State in the conference championship.

Slocum's time with the school extended well beyond his head-coaching tenure. He was an assistant from 1972-80 and then again from 1982-88. A sign of his continued connection to A&M, he took over as the interim athletic director in April 2019 prior to the arrival of Ross Bjork.

The 76-year-old was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2012 and is a member of the College Football Playoff selection committee.

Johnny Manziel admitted to making at least $33,000 for signing autographs during his time at Texas A&M in a recent interview with Barstool Sports.

The 2012 Heisman winner admitted to being paid for two different autograph sessions, one that paid him $3,000 and another where he earned $30,000.

"So, this guy's pretty much, 'All right, go to this room at the Fontainebleau. All this stuff will be in there laid out. When you're done, just send me a picture of all of it. I'll give you the code to the safe, the money will be in there,'" Manziel told the Bussin' With the Boys podcast.

The NCAA investigated Manziel over claims he received money for autographs in 2013 but found no evidence. Texas A&M and the NCAA agreed to suspend him for one half of a game for using his likeness for commercial purposes.

Manziel said he continued to sign autographs for money throughout 2013, which would have led to him being ineligible. 

"We went 9-4 the next year, so if the NCAA wants to take my f--king 9-4 season away, my Chick-Fil-A Bowl against Duke, f--king blow me," Manziel said. "I never took a dollar until after I won the Heisman, and I think my statute of limitations are up. So, you can blow me again."

Of course, the attitudes regarding collegiate players receiving money for use of their name and likeness have shifted over the last eight years. The NCAA is preparing to adopt an NIL rule that will allow players to make money for the first time this year. 

It's possible, if not likely, that Manziel could have been a multimillionaire by the time he left Texas A&M under the new proposals. He was the first freshman in NCAA history to win the Heisman trophy and one of the most famous athletes on the planet in 2012 and 2013; the money he could have ranked in on endorsement deals would have been staggering.

So it's of little surprise that Manziel regrets nothing about making a few thousand dollars here or there for signing his name. 

The only thing that kept Texas A&M out of the College Football Playoff last season was a blowout loss to Alabama, and it is clear, even in jest, that head coach Jimbo Fisher knows the Aggies will have to get past the Crimson Tide to accomplish their goals.

"We're going to beat his ass when he's there, don't worry," he joked to the crowd at the Houston Touchdown Club on Wednesday when talking about Nick Saban, per the Houston Chronicle (h/t Alex Scarborough of ESPN).

Scarborough noted Fisher also made a point of saying how much he respects the college football legend, whom he worked for at LSU from 2000-04.

Fisher is 0-3 against Saban's powerhouse Crimson Tide since taking over at Texas A&M and lost 52-24 in last season's showdown. It was the team's only loss, but that was enough to keep it outside of the four-team playoff.

Even though he was joking, the Aggies head coach may have given Alabama some bulletin board material it frankly doesn't need for the 2021 matchup.

Former Texas A&M quarterback Kellen Mond did his best to prove he is worth a selection in the 2021 NFL draft during Tuesday's pro day.

Mond showcased his athleticism with a 40-yard dash time of 4.57 seconds, per Billy Liucci of TexAgs.com.

His arm strength was also on display:

Though the event wasn't as heavily attended as those for bigger names like Justin Fields or Mac Jones on the same day, several coaches were on hand to see the passer:

Mond noted after the event that he has been in touch with the Chicago Bears, per Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times.

The dual-threat quarterback produced impressive numbers throughout his career with the Aggies, totaling 9,661 passing yards and 71 touchdowns to go with 1,609 rushing yards and 22 scores on the ground. He improved his efficiency as a senior in 2020 with 19 touchdown passes and just three interceptions, also setting career highs with a 63.3 completion percentage and 7.7 yards per attempt. 

Head coach Jimbo Fisher praised the quarterback after his pro day performance.

"I've had a lot of people asking about Mond at the next level. We see the physical skills, but I think the mental skills and the drive and fortitude to be successful at his position is big," Fisher told reporters. "Kellen loves the process that goes into football as much as football."

Mond is unlikely to be taken on Day 1 of the draft, but he will try to be a steal as a mid-round selection.

Johnny Manziel believes his arrest prior to the start of the 2012 season helped him win the Heisman Trophy that year. 

In the first episode of his Ball Don't Lie podcast (h/t TMZ Sports), Manziel explained why his June 2012 arrest impacted his redshirt freshman year at Texas A&M:

"In 11 days, I won the (starting) job doing these sprints, doing the whole thing. At the end of the year, I rushed for 1,500 yards. I outrushed Todd Gurley in the SEC. Nuts. My redshirt freshman year, the year I won the Heisman.

"I believe all that was directly correlated to me running those sprints at the beginning of the year and being in the dumbest shape on the team. ... Without a doubt. I got punished and I won a Heisman for it. It's crazy. The bad doesn't always turn out so bad down the line."

Going into the 2012 season, Manziel was one of the quarterbacks vying to replace Ryan Tannehill as the Aggies starting quarterback. Tannehill was a first-round pick by the Miami Dolphins after two years of running Texas A&M's offense. 

In June 2012, Manziel was arrested and jailed for getting into a fight and having a fake ID card. He was charged with three misdemeanors, including disorderly conduct, failure to identity and possessing a false identification card. 

Manziel reached a plea deal in July 2013 in which he pleaded guilty to failing to identify himself. He received a $2,000 fine and had to pay court costs but had his other two charges dropped. 

Head coach Kevin Sumlin named Manziel his starting quarterback for the 2012 season. The freshman led the Aggies to an 11-2 record and became the second player in school history to win the Heisman after throwing for 3,706 yards, running for 1,410 yards and accounting for 47 touchdowns. 

Texas A&M wide receiver Demond Demas was arrested in Brazos County, Texas, on suspicion of marijuana possession on Tuesday, according to the Houston Chronicle's Brent Zwerneman. 

Demas allegedly had less than two ounces of marijuana at the time and was released from custody after posting a $2,000 bond.

The 6'3" pass-catcher made four appearances as a freshman in 2020. He arrived as the No. 25 player overall and third-best receiver in the 2020 recruiting class, per 247Sports' composite rankings.

Demas missed Texas A&M's victories over LSU on No. 28 and Auburn on Dec. 5. On both occasions, head coach Jimbo Fisher told reporters he had been "unavailable" and didn't provide any information beyond that.

The Aggies' top four players in receiving yards (Ainias Smith, Jalen Wydermyer, Chase Lane and Caleb Chapman) are all slated to return in 2021. Shadrach Banks, the No. 18 receiver in 247Sports' composite rankings for 2021, has already enrolled as well.

Following a disappointing first year in College Station, carving out a role in the passing game could be equally difficult for Demas as a sophomore.

Highly touted running back prospect LJ Johnson committed to Texas A&M on Wednesday, according to Sam Spiegelman of Rivals.com.

The Cypress, Texas, native listed LSU, Oklahoma and Texas as his other finalists but decided on the Aggies. The 4-star recruit will enroll in the school in May.

Johnson is considered the No. 4 running back prospect in the 2021 class and the No. 45 overall recruit in the country, per 247Sports' composite rankings. He also becomes the third top-10 prospect from Texas to sign with Texas A&M this cycle, while Texas landed just one in the state's top 25.

The 5'10", 204-pound player is an excellent athlete who ran a 40-yard dash in 4.42 seconds last offseason to go with a 34.2-inch vertical jump.

He was also extremely productive during his high school career, rushing for more than 4,000 yards over the past three seasons with 82 total touchdowns. He topped 1,000 rushing yards in each of the last three years and was named the District 17-6A Offensive MVP in the last two seasons.

With his size, speed and natural traits to find open spaces on the field, Johnson has a chance to be a star at the next level.

It could further help Texas A&M as it tries to compete with the top teams in the SEC and make the next step toward national title contention after finishing 9-1 in 2020.

Isaiah Spiller should return for the Aggies after leading the team in rushing in each of the last two seasons, while Ainias Smith and Devon Achane have showed upside in limited action. Johnson still has a chance to be in the mix for carries early in his career and could be a focal point of the offense within a few years.

A lesson from Jimbo Fisher: Coaches, just take the Gatorade bath.

The Texas A&M coach tried to escape his sports drink shower after the Aggies' 41-27 win over North Carolina in the Orange Bowl and wound up with a pulled hamstring for his efforts.

"I pulled my hamstring. Somebody in there's gonna pay for that. I hadn't ran that fast in 25 years," Fisher said during his on-field interview after the game.

While it appeared he may have been joking at the time, Fisher later confirmed to ESPN's Scott Van Pelt that he did suffer a slight injury to his hammy.

"That thing is cold," Fisher told Van Pelt. "I love it, but I had to go out there and do that post-game and do that bowl thing. That’s freezing cold. I don’t mind it if they get me, but if they don’t, I ain’t getting it. " 

Fisher may want to eliminate any fast-twitch movements from his coaching repertoire. He previously injured his hamstring in 2014 while chasing a kick return down the sideline during the 2014 BCS National Championship Game during his tenure at Florida State.