Johnny Manziel calls for Marcel Reed to 'take care of business' against Texas

The Texas A&M Aggies stubbed their toe in 2024 when they went to host the Texas Longhorns. In a passionate rivalry, that wasn’t good enough, and now former Aggies quarterback Johnny Manziel made it clear that he wants to see a better performance next season.

As a quarterback in the SEC, Manziel never got his chance to play Texas. He would have loved that opportunity. Now, as Marcel Reed is going to have that chance, Manziel shared on Always College Football that he expects the young quarterback to take full advantage of the opportunity.

“It would have been huge,” Johnny Manziel said. “I think I got a chance my redshirt year was the last year we played Texas. We lose in a heartbreaking fashion. We were kind of peaking at the right time whenever I got there and Texas was kind of staying a little bit stagnant. I don’t think they were having their best year. So, I think we would have gotten the best of them those two years.”

While Manziel never had the chance to play the Longhorns, it was always an important game. That’s particularly true for fans who grew up in the state and graduated from one school or the other. With the game back, an Aggie like Manziel knows that the game is going to be massive.

“But I think being an Aggie and speaking for a lot of Aggies who are excited that the game is back,” Manziel said. “I know that a loss last year wasn’t exactly what we wanted. But the good news is we have them every year on our schedule and get a chance to bring back a great rivalry and a great rivalry for the state. I think everybody in the state of Texas wants to see this game happen. Hopefully, we can come out victorious. I need Marcel Reed to have a good year and come out and take care of business.”

Texas A&M would host the first game back in their rivalry last season. At the time, there was a lot on the line. Despite having lost two straight SEC games, the Aggies weren’t entirely out of the conference championship race. However, both offenses struggled, but Texas A&M never got out of first gear in a 17-7 loss that capped off a difficult stretch to end the regular season.

Earlier in the year, Marcel Reed had won the starting quarterback job from Conner Weigman. That came after Weigman battled injury issues. However, Reed struggled against Texas. He’d throw for just 146 yards and an interception. However, he did lead the Aggies in rushing with 60 yards.

The Lone Star Showdown is going to be played in the final week of the regular season. This year, Texas is set to host. Of course, both teams will want to focus on getting there with some momentum and with postseason implications on the line.