Tired of hearing about Johnny Manziel?
Join AJ McCarron.
The Alabama quarterback's eight-minute interview with reporters Monday came off like eight minutes in a dentist chair for the fifth-year senior. He was asked about Alabama's loss to the Aggies last season, and a few other lines of questioning that fierce competitors like McCarron don't usually take especially well. To be clear, McCarron generally doesn't engage much with reporters, anyway, so it's not uncommon for him to come across as though he'd rather be anywhere else. But it was the questions McCarron took about his friend and Texas A&M quarterback Manziel that drew the shortest answers of all. It's game week at Alabama, and the Crimson Tide's signal-caller is clearly tired of the talk. See the video at al.com. Here are McCarron's responses, short and, in one case, non-verbal, to Manziel queries:
1:12 mark
Q: Have you communicated with Johnny this week, or will you?
McCarron: [Shakes head no].
2:18 mark
Q: When is the last time you talked to Johnny?
McCarron: "Around (SEC) Media Days, I think."
Q: What was the tone of the conversation?
McCarron: "We're just friends, guys. Y'all make this thing to be a lot bigger than it needs to be."
3:47 mark
Q: Manziel made a lot of news this offseason for things off the field. How do you personally handle the spotlight and everything that comes with being a star quarterback in the SEC?
McCarron: "Just be myself, really. I've never been one to be in the spotlight. Everybody lives their lifestyle different. People criticize him for being himself. Everybody's got their opinion on something. That's what y'all get paid for, opinions."
Q: Did you text him or anything when he was going through all this scrutiny?
McCarron: "I think that's between me and him. I think that's the best (answer) for all that."
Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter @ChaseGoodbread.
