AJ McCarron could not avoid the question. The Alabama quarterback was roommates with Johnny Manziel when the two attended the Manning Passing Academy last weekend, so naturally every reporter wanted to know the truth behind the Heisman winner's mysterious dismissal. Was McCarron supposed to wake him up? Did McCarron know if Manziel had been drinking? The Crimson Tide quarterback opted to stay cool under pressure and avoid the question altogether.
"I can't answer on Johnny Manziel's part. My name's AJ," McCarron told media at SEC Media Days. "Everything that has to do with him, he's his own man. I'm not going to speak on another man's business. That's how I was raised-if it doesn't have anything to do with you, don't speak of it."
Manziel claimed to have overslept causing his tardiness and ultimate dismissal. The Texas A&M quarterback took the fault for the incident, claiming McCarron had nothing to do with the situation. As the quarterbacks of two rival SEC teams, the media immediately jumped on a possible feud brewing between the two, something McCarron was quick to squash.
Friday morning, McCarron posted a quick tweet to all the media claiming he has it out for Manziel. The quarterback wrote, "People have lost their mind if they think I dissed JM in any way. I said I wouldn't comment on another mans life. I told them I was AJ. Then I told them how I act and how I live my life. Never said anything on JM and how he should live his life. Y'all can't believe all u hear."
Manziel and McCarron have said multiple times that off the football field, they are very close. The two have vacationed together and often talk on the phone. It would be easy to see why the press would want to pin them against one another. Alabama's lone loss last season came to Texas A&M, much in part because of Manziel. Both quarterbacks are projected Heisman candidates and will likely enter the NFL draft at the same time.
The drama will only heat up as college football season approaches. The Texas A&M-Alabama football game has already sold out as the two teams are set to meet the third week of the season. However, while the two teams might be division rivals, Manziel and McCarron are not.
