Steve Greenberg
Sporting News
Houston was deep into November and undefeated when Kevin Sumlin
assessed his program relative to the non-BCS powers-that-be in college
football at the time.
“We’re a little bit behind in the process, probably 10 years behind where those guys are,” he said. “We’re in microwave society, and I don’t blame our fans for wanting to win now. But it’s a process.”
Kevin
Sumlin plans to let every player compete for a starting spot. He hasn't
watched tape of Texas A&M from 2011. (AP Photo)
“Those guys” were Boise State and TCU, by the way. Like Houston—and
Sumlin—they’ve since sprung from the non-BCS ranks, or at least have
determined where their new-money bread will be buttered.
For Sumlin, that’s College Station, Texas—which, as you know, is an old-money program. But do the Aggies have a lot of real wealth left in the coffers? They have the facilities, the fan base, the recruiting base, the tradition. But do they have a hope and a prayer?
Entering the SEC in 2012, Texas A&M has a total of two bowl victories since it appeared in—and lost—the Sugar Bowl in the first season of the BCS. It hasn’t been back to a BCS game since 1998. Hasn’t won a conference championship, either. Heck, hasn’t reached double figures in wins one stinkin’ time.
Its record in league play is five games under .500 since R.C. Slocum left after the 2002 season, and that has come, of course, against Big 12 competition. That conference happens to have been pretty darned good over that time period, but come on, we won’t kid you—it’s not the SEC.
So the question for Sumlin this week was: Will the Aggies enter the best conference in college football closer to the top or the bottom?
“I don’t know which it is,” Sumlin said. “If you look at the record in our last year in the Big 12 being 6-6, you can probably draw some conclusions from that. But if you look at the head-to-head game vs. Arkansas, being that close to winning the game (the Aggies lost 42-38) and beating the No. 5 team in the country on a neutral field (in Arlington, Texas), you can draw some conclusions from that, too.
“Until we get into that league and really have a feel for how things are going, I wouldn’t speculate either way.”
It’s not exactly a shouting-from-the-rooftops moment, but then such a thing would be nothing like the even-tempered 47-year-old who spent four seasons at Houston following a distinguished run as an assistant that included a stop at A&M in 2001-02.
These are some of the things he feels strongly about.
— It’s time for his new program to toughen up. “You look back at last season, at our six losses,” he said, “and in five we were ahead at halftime or in the second half. What that tells you is there’s ability and talent here. The problem was probably a little bit of approach and a little bit of conditioning. It’s something we’re going to have to address with our players mentally and physically.”
— Overhauling the Aggies defense from a 3-4 to a more SEC-like 4-3 is the right thing for coordinator Mark Snyder to do.
— If any unit is going to allow A&M to be competitive in league play this season, it’ll be the offensive line. “Without a doubt, it’s the strength of this football team right now,” Sumlin said, “which is interesting because right now there are no seniors in that group.”
— Not that it matters at all who’s in that, or any other, group. Sumlin is so intent on leaving all competitions for starting jobs open, he hasn’t watched video of any of the Aggies’ 2011 regular-season games (he was at the bowl win over Northwestern) and has no plans to. Any previous depth chart—or player performance—is next to meaningless now. “I want to have my own (in-person) evaluation in the spring,” he said.
The quarterback competition will be one of the most-watched in college football. Sophomore Jameill Showers, who was last season’s backup to Ryan Tannehill, is the only one with any game experience. Johnny Manziel and Matt Joeckel, who redshirted as freshmen, couldn’t be much more different from each other: Manziel is on the short side but a great runner (and was the biggest recruit of any of A&M’s QBs); Joeckel is a big, strong pocket passer. Sumlin recruited all three of them while at Houston.
“We’ve got four good, talented young players (including true freshman Matt Davis, an early enrollee). That’s why we practice. But you know me—I’m a glass-half-full guy. I think it’ll all work out.”
Comments
“We’re a little bit behind in the process, probably 10 years behind where those guys are,” he said. “We’re in microwave society, and I don’t blame our fans for wanting to win now. But it’s a process.”
Kevin
Sumlin plans to let every player compete for a starting spot. He hasn't
watched tape of Texas A&M from 2011. (AP Photo)For Sumlin, that’s College Station, Texas—which, as you know, is an old-money program. But do the Aggies have a lot of real wealth left in the coffers? They have the facilities, the fan base, the recruiting base, the tradition. But do they have a hope and a prayer?
Entering the SEC in 2012, Texas A&M has a total of two bowl victories since it appeared in—and lost—the Sugar Bowl in the first season of the BCS. It hasn’t been back to a BCS game since 1998. Hasn’t won a conference championship, either. Heck, hasn’t reached double figures in wins one stinkin’ time.
Its record in league play is five games under .500 since R.C. Slocum left after the 2002 season, and that has come, of course, against Big 12 competition. That conference happens to have been pretty darned good over that time period, but come on, we won’t kid you—it’s not the SEC.
So the question for Sumlin this week was: Will the Aggies enter the best conference in college football closer to the top or the bottom?
“I don’t know which it is,” Sumlin said. “If you look at the record in our last year in the Big 12 being 6-6, you can probably draw some conclusions from that. But if you look at the head-to-head game vs. Arkansas, being that close to winning the game (the Aggies lost 42-38) and beating the No. 5 team in the country on a neutral field (in Arlington, Texas), you can draw some conclusions from that, too.
“Until we get into that league and really have a feel for how things are going, I wouldn’t speculate either way.”
It’s not exactly a shouting-from-the-rooftops moment, but then such a thing would be nothing like the even-tempered 47-year-old who spent four seasons at Houston following a distinguished run as an assistant that included a stop at A&M in 2001-02.
These are some of the things he feels strongly about.
— It’s time for his new program to toughen up. “You look back at last season, at our six losses,” he said, “and in five we were ahead at halftime or in the second half. What that tells you is there’s ability and talent here. The problem was probably a little bit of approach and a little bit of conditioning. It’s something we’re going to have to address with our players mentally and physically.”
— Overhauling the Aggies defense from a 3-4 to a more SEC-like 4-3 is the right thing for coordinator Mark Snyder to do.
— If any unit is going to allow A&M to be competitive in league play this season, it’ll be the offensive line. “Without a doubt, it’s the strength of this football team right now,” Sumlin said, “which is interesting because right now there are no seniors in that group.”
— Not that it matters at all who’s in that, or any other, group. Sumlin is so intent on leaving all competitions for starting jobs open, he hasn’t watched video of any of the Aggies’ 2011 regular-season games (he was at the bowl win over Northwestern) and has no plans to. Any previous depth chart—or player performance—is next to meaningless now. “I want to have my own (in-person) evaluation in the spring,” he said.
The quarterback competition will be one of the most-watched in college football. Sophomore Jameill Showers, who was last season’s backup to Ryan Tannehill, is the only one with any game experience. Johnny Manziel and Matt Joeckel, who redshirted as freshmen, couldn’t be much more different from each other: Manziel is on the short side but a great runner (and was the biggest recruit of any of A&M’s QBs); Joeckel is a big, strong pocket passer. Sumlin recruited all three of them while at Houston.
“We’ve got four good, talented young players (including true freshman Matt Davis, an early enrollee). That’s why we practice. But you know me—I’m a glass-half-full guy. I think it’ll all work out.”
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