Rece Davis takes apparent jab at Johnny Manziel for missing College GameDay appearance

Johnny Manziel was set to be live on ESPN College GameDay for one of the biggest days in Texas A&M history. Right after the show wrapped up, a College Football Playoff game took place inside Kyle Field against Miami. Manziel had an opportunity to be the guest picker, only for Alex Caruso to fill in at the last moment.

Now a couple of days later, Rece Davis possibly took a jab at Manziel for missing his appearance. He questioned the legitimacy of a “bad breakfast,” wondering if it’s code for something else. Although Rece did not directly name Manziel, putting two and two together is not too difficult.

“Jake Paul… Anthony Joshua,” Davis said via the College GameDay Podcast. “When you go to a fight like that, you’ve got to be very careful about where you eat breakfast the next morning. Because it can leave you ill and give you difficulty in reaching the locals where you are scheduled to be. But I digress… I just wondered. Is that what the kids are calling it these days? A ‘bad breakfast?’ Anyway, wouldn’t cast dispersion anywhere. For those that follow closely, you’ll be able to read between the lines there. You have to follow a little closely.”

Manziel has featured on the show once before and not too long ago. Texas A&M played host to Notre Dame in the 2024 season opener, a game the Aggies wound up losing. But overall, not too bad a showing from the program’s legendary quarterback due to a 4-3 record.

Saturday provided a chance to improve the record, picking at least three CFP games. Instead, Manziel did not sit at the desk with Davis and other members of the show. He released a statement on the situation via Instagram, saying things were out of his control.

“I will have plenty more to say about what transpired yesterday,” Manziel wrote on his Instagram story. “There is almost nothing on this earth that would have made me miss that game. To all the people that genuinely reached out and checked in on me, I cannot thank you enough. To ESPN, Pat (McAfee), Coach (Nick Saban), Desmond (Howard) and the entire crew on GameDay, I apologize, it was out of my control. To the Aggies and A&M fanbase, I’m sorry. I will continue to let everyone out there run with a fake narrative and at the end of the day, perception always wins over reality. I love all of you who genuinely support me through good and bad like you’ve done for years.

“I have no doubt Texas A&M and the Aggie football program will be in that position. I’m recovering and feeling about a 3/10, going to rest up and try and get back to normal. Much love.”