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INDIANAPOLIS -- Johnny Manziel shed the Hollywood image Friday -- maybe for good. The brash-talking, Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback from Texas A&M entered and exited the Lucas Oil Stadium media room through a back door. He ignored the television screens around him, monitors that provided live coverage of his media availability and that had been showing his college football highlights prior to his arrival. And it seemed Johnny Football had suddenly transformed himself into Johnny Business. "This is a job now. There are guys families, coaches families and jobs and all kinds of things on the line," he said in a stern, deliberate voice at the NFLs scouting combine. "For me, it wont be a hard thing to kick. Im extremely focused on whatever organization Ill be at and really pouring my heart out trying to be football 24-7 with that team." What he has to prove now is that he means every word. Since bursting onto the national stage in his Heisman-winning freshmen season, Manziel has been living large. Hes been courtside at NBA games, played golf at Pebble Beach, partied in Cabo and become a feature attraction for memorabilia hounds. Hes participated in dunk contests, publicly complained about life in College Station, Texas, developed a friendship with Tom Brady and never been shy about -- anything. But in Indianapolis, none of that stuff means a thing. Here, scouts and NFL front-office executives are treating Manziel as just another draft hopeful in the standard blue-and-green warm-up suit. Theyll see how he runs, how he tests and perhaps most important, how he answers questions. Most teams want to know whether this 21-year-old, fun-loving football star is mature enough to handle millions of dollars and live up to the tag of franchise quarterback. Fridays media availability may have been a good start. Rather than showcasing his bravado, Manziel, at times, sounded almost apologetic for some of the things hes said and done recently. "The main thing I wanted to portray that was more in the subplots of the article," he said, when asked about a story in which he seemed to warn Houston about bypassing him with the No. 1 overall pick, "was that whatever team I do end up with, whenever I do get to that team, whenever I am in that organization, each one of those guys is now my teammate, my brother and if Im on the field with those guys, Im going to try to be the best football player I can be." Other times, he sounded almost defiant. "I knew who I was meeting with, but Im not sure of his official title. Something along the lines of just a counselor," he said when pressed about reports he was being treated for alcoholism and anger management while at Texas A&M. When it became clear the 2012 Heisman winner measured in at 5-foot-11 3/4 inches, 207 pounds, shorter and lighter than his listed college measurements of 6-1 and 210, and shorter and lighter than many NFL teams seek in a starting quarterback, he wouldnt confirm the measurements. Instead, he explained that he more heart and passion for this sport than anyone in the draft. Not all the news was bad for Manziel. Though he stands about five inches shorter than Blake Bortles, another quarterback vying to wind up in Houston, Manziel came in with bigger hands -- a potentially big advantage on draft weekend. "I think it (hand size) is something that is highly underrated," said Arizona coach Bruce Arians, who has tutored Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger and Andrew Luck among others. "It depends on where you play. If you play in Lucas Oil, not too bad. Now, if you play in Green Bay and you struggle with controlling a football when its cold and wet, thats a problem. That goes into the evaluation process hard." Theres little doubt about Manziels skills. In 2012, he broke the SECs single-season record for total offense (5,116 yards), became the fifth player in FBS history to throw for 3,000 yards and rush for 1,000 in one season and then set an all-bowl rushing record for a quarterback (229 yards). After his jet-setting offseason and an NCAA investigation into autographs on memorabilia, critics contended a distracted Manziel regressed. But he actually threw for more yards (4,116), more touchdowns (37) and wound up with a better passing efficiency (172.9) in 2013 than he did in 2012. The Texas native believes he will only continue to get better on a bigger stage. But what scouts and team executives must determine between now and Mays draft is whether Johnny Football is for real or whether this personality change is just one more part of his ongoing act. "Im from a small town of Kerrville, Texas, 20,000 people. That gets lost when people make me out to be a big Hollywood guy," Manziel said. "Sometimes you get caught up in certain things, but at the same time its about continuing to learn and continuing to adapt to everything thats going on in my life. Im not saying its always easy, but continuing to be who Ive always been is a big thing for me." Ultra Boost Schweiz . Raonic, the mens No. 8 seed from Thornhill, Ont., needed more than three hours to overcome Frenchman Gilles Simon 4-6, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 and become the first Canadian man into the fourth round at Roland Garros. Lite Racer Schweiz . Lupul injured the hand in a fall at practice on Thursday. He will wear a cast for a minimum of 10 days before he can put a glove back on it and get some mobility back, said Carlyle, who added the winger wont go on the teams upcoming road trip. http://www.nmdschweizkaufen.ch/eqt-outlet.html. "Youre not really spending time to sit back and analyze what your competitions doing and things like that," Anthopoulos said. "Youre so focused on what were trying to get done." Ultimately, while the landscape around them changed with trades both major and minor, the Blue Jays did nothing before Thursdays non-waiver deadline. Adidas Nmd Outlet . It was a loss. But it was also a learning experience. Deron Williams and Joe Johnson had 24 points each to lift Brooklyn to a 94-87 win over the Raptors, making their first playoff appearance since 08. "I thought we played a little bit as expected as it is our first playoff game," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. Nmd Schweiz Outlet . As if he had been rehearsing it, Vasquez looked around with a grimacing stare as he clinched two fists and flexed his muscles. What do you think of DeMar DeRozans face after he hits a big shot, he was asked moments earlier.TORONTO -- A smiling Jon (Bones) Jones walked on to a makeshift stage Thursday to confront underdog challenger Alexander (The Mauler) Gustafsson. Always thinking of a new angle, Jones was wielding a smartphone in front of him. His view of the square-off would soon be posted on Instagram, the UFC light-heavyweight champion told the media in front of him. Jones (18-1) took to social media soon after, managing to squeeze a biblical verse, Nike and Gatorade into the same tweet. "There is nothing special about me, I just work extremely hard," he wrote. "Anything can happen." A picture below showed a smiling Jones, a Nike swoosh prominent on his hoodie, pointing to a bottle of Gatorade -- his latest sponsor. To further make his point, he added Phillipians 4:13 and the hashtags for both companies. Fighter, man of faith and six-foot-four, 205-pound billboard, Jones is currently the brightest star in mixed martial arts. "His life doesnt suck, right," UFC president Dana White said dryly. "Hes got a lot to be happy about." A victory at UFC 165 Saturday and Jones will set the record for most consecutive title defences (six) in UFC light-heavyweight history. He already holds the record for most submissions (five) by a light-heavyweight and is tied for most finishes (nine). A former junior college wrestling champion with an 84.5-inch reach, Jones size and length make him hard to penetrate and tough to defend. At 6-5, Gustafsson (15-1) is one inch taller and has good striking skills. But while the 26-year-old Swede has won his last six fights, he hasnt faced the kind of opposition that Jones has. The bookies have made Jones anywhere from a 9-1 to 20-1 favourite to beat Gustafsson. White usually dismisses such odds. But he was slightly more circumspect Thursday. "I think that theyre making lines that they dont want a lot of money going on Jones because they think Jones is going to win. Thats the way the book works," said White, no stranger to the betting window. "Jones is good, really good." About the only people who believe Gustafsson can win are those in the challengers camp, although most pundits are quick to cover themselves by saying its a sport where anything can happen. Gustafsson, a lanky likable Swede with battered ears, doesnt think he is being disrespected. "Not at all. I dont takes anything personally. I dont read too much. I dont think too much. Im going to go in there and shock the world on Saturday," he said. "Im more than prepared," he added. "I cant wait to get in there. Im just living the dream right now. Ive got a one in a lifetime shot and Im going to do the best of it." Jones, 26, believes this defence will go the way of all the others. "I think I have a lot more tools in this fight to win the fight," he said.dddddddddddd. "Im going to do all kinds of unpredictable spinning elbows, flying knees, shots, fake shots, all types of stuff," he added. "He really needs to be on his game." Jones seemed less than impressed by Gustafssons striking, saying hes not fighting a world boxing champion. "Im fighting a guy who throws punches," he said. "Alexanders boxing defence, Ive said it a lot of times now, is not that good ... Hes a good puncher, he has pretty good footwork. Not a great boxer." When the Swede stood next to Jones in front of photographers, he couldnt resist putting his arm behind the champion so he could touch the shiny championship belt slung over his shoulder. A smiling Jones pulled away. "Thats as close as youre going to get," he said. Jones joins welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre under the Gatorade flag. The Montreal MMA star has blazed the way with blue-chip sponsorships including Under Armour. Its a long way from fighters advertising the local gun shop. Jones can be forgiven for Thursdays blatant plug in that his deal with Gatorade had only been announced hours before. Jones will wear the Gatorade logo on his shorts when he walks into the cage Saturday night against the Swede. Chances are he will wear a Nike T-shirt on his walk through the Air Canada Centre. Jones, who signed with Nike in August 2012, wore a "Bones Knows" Nike shirt at UFC 152 in Toronto last fall. As for Phillippians 4:13, Jones always wears that. It is tattooed on his chest. It references the verse "I can do all this through him who gives me strength." Gustafssons ink is all about winning. He adds a sharks tooth tattoo on his arm for every win. Jones was the picture of calm Thursday as media swarmed around him. White says he has adjusted to life as champion, pulling back from going down the wrong path in the wake of a DUI charge after a May 2012 incident that saw him crash his Bentley in upstate New York. "Everything changes when youre the champion," White said. "Obviously the attention, the money, everybodys gunning after you. Theres a lot of pressure. "Jon Jones has really turned around and changed his life in the last year. Hes a young guy, he got that belt, you saw what happens when fame and money and all that stuff starts to come together. Im really happy with the way hes turned around." Jones, who meditates the day of his fight, does seems comfortable in his own skin as champion. "Its a great honour. To be the best in the world at something, and to travel to different countries and know that youre the champion of the world, its one of the coolest feelings that a man can ask for." ' ' '
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