Manziel to sit out First Half of Season Opener

In what has been both a bizarre and comic twist to the Johnny Manziel "sign-for-pay" saga, Texas A&M and the NCAA has suspended the Heisman winner for the first half of its season opener, a Saturday game against in-state rival Rice.

The NCAA investigated Manziel on Sunday amidst reports that the 20-year-old sophomore received money from a memorabilia dealer in exchange for autographs. However, while the NCAA has not found any evidence of money changing hands, Manziel was found culpable of an "inadvertent violation" related to signing. Both Texas A&M and NCAA said that student-athletes should be aware that autographed items may be sold for profit, especially if the items are signed en masse in one sitting.

The penalty, as funny as it may seem, was proposed by the school and accepted by the governing body. Manziel is also set to talk to his team about lessons learned from the experience as part of the penalties.

Texas A&M, rankeed seventh in the pre-season, has been practicing with the assumption that Manziel will start, but the Rice Owls could spring a surprise early on if the penalty holds. The Owls went on to the 2012 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl, where they defeated Air Force 33-14.

In the meantime, the unitentional humor arising from the sanctions has gone viral on Twitter.

Johnny Manziel has been selling autographs since he was a kid pic.twitter.com/uKHGIho95G
— Aggie Humor (@AggieHumor) August 29, 2013

Johnny Manziel signs countless items for cash, NCAA grounds him for half-game. I don't eat all of my vegetables, Mom grounds me for a week. — Play 60 Kid (@NatePlay60) August 29, 2013