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Johnny Manziel lowering profile, pulling a 'Jimmy Carter'?

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Is Johnny Manziel lying low?

After last year's Manziel Halloween Spectacular, the absence of a social media storm documenting his 2013 Halloween costume -- if he even wore one -- suggests he is keeping things low-key.

A similar social-media flash catching Manziel at a recent Drake concert suggests perhaps not.

But former Texas A&M coach Jackie Sherrill had a first-hand experience with the Aggies' star on an elevator that has him convinced Manziel is indeed settling his reputation. In a radio discussion with CBS Sports' Tim Brando about the re-shaping of Manziel's reputation, Sherrill said he saw a Manziel wishing for anonymity.

"When he got on the elevator with all the people, he turned his back to all the people, put his head against the elevator door, and got off," Sherrill said. "... And as soon as he got off, people on the elevator were texting and taking shots on their iPhone. Until any of us are really in that situation, we really don't know what it's like. We'd like for the young man to get on the elevator and smile and say hello. I call that playing Jimmy Carter. He'd just smile and shake, and don't let anyone know what you're thinking."

If Manziel decides to leave college early for the NFL, his off-field decision-making will be a topic for NFL executives interviewing him at the NFL Scouting Combine. Sherrill sees a lower profile for Manziel as a wise and calculated move by the third-year sophomore.

"He himself probably wished he had done some things differently, but I don't know if he had the experience. I think he does (now) have the experience," Sherrill said. "You know, he's extremely intelligent. Why does he not talk to the media right now? I think he's probably very smart in knowing that the question (demanded would be) 'Is he coming back?'"

Manziel has until a mid-January deadline to officially declare for the NFL draft. In the meantime, Aggies fans are hopeful for a Manziel return.

*Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter **@ChaseGoodbread*.

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