Overview
- ESPN made a last-minute switch about an hour before the on-air picks, with host Rece Davis introducing former Aggies guard Alex Caruso as the guest picker.
- Manziel was in Miami the night before at the Anthony Joshua–Jake Paul fight and also missed a separate Bleacher Report pregame commitment he had promoted.
- Neither ESPN nor Manziel initially provided a reason for the absence, and the network has not publicly explained the change.
- Manziel posted an apology Sunday saying the situation was out of his control, adding he is recovering and felt "about a 3/10," and he promised to share more details later.
- Some outlets cited a report that he became acutely ill with norovirus, but that claim has not been confirmed by ESPN or Manziel’s representatives, as social-media criticism and speculation continued.