SAN DIEGO, CA - OCTOBER 04: Quarterback Johnny Manziel #2 of the Cleveland Browns looks on from the sideline against the San Diego Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium on October 4, 2015 in San Diego, California. The Chargers defeated the Browns 30-27. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

More mature Johnny Manziel eyes a completely new career path once his NFL days are over

Manziel has plenty of personal experience from which to draw.

The idea of saying Johnny Manziel's name and "discipline" in the same sentence has seemed highly questionable ever since his 2012 Heisman season at Texas A&M.

Adding "a lack of" to it might have made it a little more believable.

But when the former first-round draft pick spoke with ESPN at the International Football Betting Conference in Costa Rica, he was sporting a different tone and a fresh outlook.

That newfound perspective has led Manziel to the conclusion that, once his playing days are officially over, he'd like to travel down a new path as a college football coach.

"I'd do something involved with sports. I can't get away from it," Manziel said. "I've had to ask myself that a little bit as of late over the past year, but at the same time I'd want to be involved in sports in some way, whether it's coaching, whether it's doing something like that. So I think that'd be my route."

After the way Manziel departed from the Cleveland Browns, many believed the chances for a return to the NFL were bleak. However, a "get to know you" meeting with the New Orleans Saints in March has slightly opened a door we once thought was dead bolted shut.

And even while Johnny Football has tossed around the idea of playing in the CFL, it appears his mind has been preoccupied with how his college career ended in College Station.

"I look back right now and think about how big of just a kid I was. And a lot of regrets I have, especially with my second year in college, not treating it kind of the way [I did] my first year," he said.

If Manziel does trade in his pads for a whistle one day, it's not hard to imagine the effect he could have with the players.

After all, (Coach) Manziel has plenty of personal experience from which to draw.