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Well this was just a matter of time.
After getting traded from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to the Montreal Alouettes earlier this month, Johnny Manziel will make his first start in the Canadian Football League on Friday. To spice up the drama, Manziel’s first regular season snap will be against his former team.
The 25-year-old Heisman winner has been reunited with Alouettes coach Mike Sherman, who recruited Manziel to Texas A&M in 2012.
🚨Confirmed!🚨
Johnny Manziel will be the starting quarterback this Friday, August 3 against the @Ticats. #AlsMTL #ToujoursGame #JohnnyFootball #Number2 pic.twitter.com/Soy42t6IGx
— Alouettes de Montréal (@MTLAlouettes) July 31, 2018
Sherman told reporters Monday:
“We didn’t trade for Johnny to have him sit on the bench, so obviously, Johnny’s come over here to get reps and become the best player he can become, and we stated that process today. You probably all figured it out yourself, but when you have two players you wait till game time to make that announcement.”
“It doesn’t make sense to do it any sooner.”
Just last week, chants of “Johnny, Johnny, Johnny” and “We want Johnny” echoed through the Alouettes stadium, before the team’s loss dropped them to 1-5 on the season. Then starting quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. had a decent game in the loss: completing 15 of 28 passes for 217 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception, along with a team-high 72 rushing yards and one rushing score, MSN reports.
Suffice it to say, Adams Jr.’s feelings were hurt to hear fans calling for a substitution.
“Yes, it hurt me to hear that,” Alouettes quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. told La Presse, via a TSN translation. “I have nothing more to say or to give to the fans of Montreal. Never again. Their behavior was very disrespectful. It was not like I was playing badly. I do not want them to ask me for anything, not even a small piece of equipment.”
“I do not care what the situation is,” Adams continued. “It was a lack of respect and it affected me. I tried anyways to make plays on the field. But that’s fine. In the future, I’ll treat the fans as they treated me. That’s all.”
Will Johnny take full advantage of this shot at redemption?
[h/t MSN]