Former Kerrville Tivy High School and Texas A&M University quarterback Johnny Manziel just put his “comebackszn” campaign into overdrive after a Tuesday afternoon tweet.
— Johnny Manziel (@JManziel2) January 25, 2018
Manziel, who threw for more than 3,000 yards and 40-plus touchdowns during his senior year at Tivy, passer has been out of football since the Cleveland Browns released him in March 2016.
On Thursday, WWE founder and chairman Vince McMahon announced the Xtreme Football League — an alternative football league that went out of business after its inaugural 2001 season — is set to return in 2020 under its old banner. The original XFL was the brainchild of McMahon and NBC Sports President Dick Ebersol.
Following NBC losing television rights of the NFL to Fox and CBS, Ebersol turned to his longtime friend to birth the XFL. Marketed as a smash-mouth alternative to the NFL, the XFL played only one full season.
After the championship game between the Los Angeles Xtreme and the San Francisco Demons, both the WWE (at the time labeled the World Wrestling Federation or WWF for short) and NBC reportedly lost upwards of $35 million dollars apiece on the project.
Photo courtesy Jessica Hill/Associated Press
“We are evaluating a player based on many things, including the quality of human being they are,” McMahon told ESPN. “If you have any sort of criminal record or commit a crime you aren’t playing in this league.”
Despite McMahon releasing statements he would “preclude players with criminal records” — possibly alluding to Manziel’s 2016 misdemeanor charge stemming from a domestic violence complaint that was later dismissed. At only 25 years old, the NCAA’s first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy might be the biggest draw for an organization that will have to go head-to-head with the $74.8 billion NFL.
Manziel, who was recently cleared to play with the XFL, currently has an offer from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. He has until Jan. 31 to make a decision.
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Marcus Matthews-Marion is the managing editor of TexasHSFootball, covering prep football throughout the Lone Star State and collegiate and professional football throughout the country. Follow him on Twitter, @TheMJMatthews, and read more of his content here.
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