Texas Longhorns’ Arch Manning started the hype train, but Texas A&M Aggies’ Marcel Reed is finishing the season in the Heisman spotlight. However, the universe chose to throw a curve. Trouble struck early in the Texas A&M-Texas showdown, as Reed got injured. Suddenly, the spotlight was all pain, no glory.

On November 28, WFAA sports anchor Joe Trahan tweeted, “Marcel Reed goes down with a non-contact injury as he was making a cut. And all of Aggie nation is holding their collective breath. Reed would later limp off on his own power and head to the tent.”

Yahoo Sports posted a shot of Reed down on the field, grimacing in obvious pain. With the QB out, Miles O’Neil has taken over the reins. Now the mystery looms: what kind of injury knocked Reed out?

Texas A&M’s sophomore gunslinger went down with a lower-left-leg blow early in the first quarter. On a second-and-15 scramble, his ankle seemed to twist the wrong way with about three minutes left in the opening frame. 

No contact, no warning, Reed just crumpled as his left ankle rolled, leaving him flat on the turf and in obvious agony until A&M’s trainers hurried out to him. However, there is good news in Elko’s camp.

After about a minute, Reed rose to his feet and jogged off without any help. Soon, he was sprinting up and down the sideline, testing that ankle. He’d already thrown for 47 yards on 4-of-9 passing and added 29 rushing yards, and he was back under center for the next A&M possession.

As Texas A&M beat writer, Travis L.Brown tweeted, “Texas A&M QB Marcel Reed is out of the training tent and moving around on the sideline.”

Aggies fans have been through this panic before. In that 48-0 thrashing of the Samford Bulldogs, the hype died fast when Reed disappeared after dropping three touchdowns in the first quarter. Social media instantly lit up with injury chatter. After the game, Elko denied injury rumors.

As the finish line approaches, the pressure only tightens around Reed. Meanwhile, the Heisman chase is officially in scorch-mode. Julian Sayin lit up Penn State Nittany Lions, pushing himself to the front of the pack. But one past Heisman champ thinks Marcel Reed’s got a hidden edge.

“Yeah, I’m really looking at Marcel Reed. He does get that moment,” said Johnny Manziel. “If Texas plays the way they did today, you go into the last game of the season. You take care of business in Missouri next week. You go beat Samford, and get Texas day after Thanksgiving on the road.”

This is Reed’s cue to hit superstar mode. His next few steps are lined with massive opportunities.

Analysts join the Marcel Reed fan club

Only three teams are still perfect, and Ryan Day’s bunch is one of them. But Josh Pate says Marcel Reed has the juice to shake that confidence. During his chat on the Colin Cowherd Podcast, Pate went straight to the point: in the playoff chaos, Reed is the one player who could seriously rattle Ohio State Buckeyes.

“I’m really interested how Marcel Reed would play against them,” Pate said. “We’re coming off the worst half of football we’ll ever see him play in his life, followed by like one of the best.”

Not just Pate. Even the Ohio State legend, Kirk Herbstreit, signed up for Team Reed. Discussing how for the Texas vs Texas A&M face-off, things look highly favored for Elko’s boy, Joey Galloway, shared how he is a big fan of Reed. 

The College GameDay host doubled down saying, “I think I’m with you, and it makes me nervous. But I think the spread is all over it. I mean, this one’s going to be good. I think it’s a three-point win for whoever wins.”

Reed might’ve entered the year as a dark horse, but he’s been putting up straight video-game stats: 2,752 yards in the air, 25 scores, eight interceptions, plus 395 rushing yards and six touchdowns with his legs.

Next on the agenda? Snapping Texas A&M’s 14-year road drought against Texas. And if they get that done, Marcel Reed could be leading the Aggies into their first-ever SEC title shot versus a juggernaut like Alabama, Georgia, or Ole Miss. Can he pull that off?