Johnny Manziel reportedly is being investigated by the NCAA for allegedly accepting a five-figure payment from an autograph broker to sign memorabilia while in Florida for the BCS National Championship Game in January. Now, ESPN reports that a second autograph broker says Manziel wanted to be compensated to sign autographs.
ESPN’s Joe Schad reports that Manziel signed autographs for a broker for no charge on two occasions in November. The sessions reportedly occurred the night before the Texas A&M vs. Alabama game in November, and a few days after the game. Manziel reportedly signed about 50 items in the first session and about 200 in the second. The broker tells ESPN that at a later date, Manziel would no longer sign for free, and that the quarterback’s personal assistant, Nathan Finch, said they would need money to sign items.
Schad says he received this photo from the second broker as proof that Manziel signed autographs for him:
Alleged Johnny Manziel autograph "proof picture" broker claims he shot pic.twitter.com/RR7oExSp4o
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) August 5, 2013
Even if Manziel was paid to sign autographs — which would be a violation of NCAA rules — the Texas A&M quarterback might not have to worry about his eligibility being stripped. The NCAA would likely have a difficult time proving that Manziel accepted payment for the autographs, especially considering that the broker reportedly is not assisting NCAA investigators.
