COLLEGE STATION, TX -- The Texas A&M football team was on the practice field Thursday night. The team has passed the halfway point of preseason camp. Following the team's practice Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin spoke about naming redshirt freshman Johnny Manziel as the team's starting quarterback. "Basically it gets down to this, he has played very well. Is he perfect? No. He is nowhere near where we want him to be but he has improved, he is doing what we need him to do. Our philosophy as I have said is really at two weeks we can't continue to get three quarterbacks the same amount of reps to get ready to play in a game."
The Aggies will have two practices tomorrow. The first workout will be at 9:30am, the second practice will be at 5:45pm. The Aggies will have a scrimmage Saturday morning at 11:30am at Kyle Field.
Texas A&M will open the 2012 season August 30 against Louisiana Tech in Shreveport. The game will kick-off at 6:30pm and will be televised on ESPNU.
Manziel will become the first redshirt freshman quarterback to ever start a season opener. Jeff Granger held the distinction of getting the earliest start as a redshirt freshman when he started the second game of the 1991 season against Tulsa.
Earliest freshman/redshirt quarterback starts at Texas A&M
2005—Stephen McGee, redshirt freshman, started final game of season against Texas.
2002—Reggie McNeal, true freshman, started next to last game of the season against Missouri.
1992—Corey Pullig, true freshman, started in game #9 against Louisville.
1991—Jeff Granger, redshirt freshman, started in game #2 at Tulsa.
1987—Bucky Richardson, true freshman, started in game #6 at Baylor.
1987—Lance Pavlas, redshirt freshman, started in game #3 at Southern Miss. (Brett Favre was USM starter).
1983—Kevin Murray, true freshman, started in game #5 against Houston.
1973—David Walker, true freshman, started the final six games of the 1973 season in relief of Mike Jay.
