Thoughts Too Short and Scattered for Anything Other than an E-mail Thread

Every so often, Scott will attempt to channel his inner Bill Simmons and begin an email conversation with me. Most of the topics we cover in this email thread couldn’t be fully developed into a blog post, so we wrapped it all together and now deliver it to you as an early Christmas gift. (Note: some of these were written before Kevin Sumlin was hired.)

Scott: I am so thankful for the technology we constantly have at our fingertips.  What I am not thankful for? The entire Texas A&M football program.  I was thoroughly excited/hopeful when I found out we would be obtaining a new football coach.  A couple weeks later... where are we? In the exact same standstill.  For goodness sakes, hire somebody.  Recruits are wavering, fans are panicked.  This is almost worse than the season itself (extreme dramatization).  What are we waiting for?  Back up the money truck to an up-and-coming coach who wants to be here, and boom, we will have one.  Am I crazy for being frustrated/disgusted?

Ben: Anyone that wears Reebok zig zags (like you) is at least a little crazy. But as for being frustrated or disgusted with how this hiring process has shaken out, you are very, very normal. No one is going to fault you for being an anxious Aggie. We all are. Even after the news came down yesterday that Kevin Sumlin would be the new head coach, my panic meter is a solid 8 on a scale of 1 to 10. This will not be an easy job for Sumlin. The pressure is on. I'm sure we will get to that later.

In semi-related news, what are your thoughts on RG3 winning the Heisman? Who would have thought that Baylor would get a Heisman Trophy?

Scott:  How convenient, A&M finally got their act together and hired a coach, right in the middle of our email thread.  I honestly wonder how Sumlin feels about the entire process.  It began with him being the clear frontrunner, then slowly morphed into a chaotic rumor mill.  My concern is that if A&M wanted Sumlin all along (since it is clear Sumlin wanted to be at A&M) why didn't they just hire him immediately, avoid the rumors, and get back out on the recruiting trail.  This leads me to believe we had some hesitancy and potentially viewed other coaches as the better fit.  Meaning we likely didn't get number one on our list. Enough negativity though, now we have a coach so lets move forward.  Bring on that positive energy, Sumlin!

I am not pleased with RG III winning the Heisman.  I don't like anything about Baylor, and I don't wish any success upon them.  It is important to me that they consciously understand that they are always below us on the national totem pole.  And I don't like all chatter about RG III being the greatest, most wholesome man in all of the land.  I think he is the king of the humble brag... and that doesn't make you awesome.  

Ben, please tell me something to feel good about in regards to college football... anything... 

Ben: A&M is moving to the SEC!!!!!!!!!!! That's good, right?

Baylor is the definition of spare. How cute of the Baylor fans to publicly show their affection for RG3 on twitter and Facebook, yet they never saw him play in person. They might sell 50% of their tickets, week in and week out. I am writing a letter to the Downtown Athletic Club and asking them to ban all future candidates that come from schools that can't fill their own stadium. 

My brain is telling me to be cautious on Sumlin, but my heart is telling me to get fired up. I don't know how to feel either way. All I know is that he better succeed. We need it.

Scott: I was all aboard the Sumlin train at the beginning of the torturous hiring process, but after the rumor mill got ahold of me, I fell for the dreams of Chris Peterson, and the intrigue of Fedora.  But now we have our man, might as well start our typical Aggie optimism – it’s the only way to get through those dark, cold nights.

Here is a bold statement for you.  I do not like nor care about the Heisman.  It isn't always the best football player in the country... it is instead a stat-driven race to the best quarterback or running back on a semi-meaningful team (used to think it was a meaningful team, until a Baylor Bear won it).  The only candidate that would have gained my attention was the Honey Badger.  Now he was a game changer.  Can A&M trade for the Honey Badger? I want to be in his fan club! The Honey Badger takes what he wants!!!!!

Ben: Here is a bold statement... The Honey Badger isn't that great. Boom. I think he is a good player that is made much, much better by a dominant front seven and lockdown corners. Because of the guys around him he can literally roam the field with no abandon. But I do love the nickname and watching him play.

If you had the choice of any of the Heisman finalists to build a college team around, who would it be? 

Scott:  Eh, when you phrase it like that you definitely have to choose a quarterback. He is the most important guy on the field.  Therefore I go with Andrew Luck.  Maybe I am just looking for a well-publicized defensive award for people like the Honey Badger. Or why not give some dominant offensive lineman their rightful recognition. I know there are awards out there for those guys, but it isn't the same.  

On this topic I have a great question for you, dig into your depth chart (and your crystal ball) and tell me who will be the next Aggie to win a national award? Can be a kicker, interior lineman, receiver, anything.

Ben: Honestly, I think it would have to be one of our offensive linemen. I am going to say Luke Joeckel. He was first team All-Big 12 this year, and is a mammoth. 

What game are you looking forward to the most for next year?

Scott:  Whoa, slow down with the questions! I did not get to express my opinion for future Aggie award winner.  Choosing Joeckel was a great pick, but I am going to roll with a long shot and then a super long shot.  Sean Porter for the Butkus Trophy next year... I mean somebody has to play defense and accumulate stats for us, and he played great this year.  And my super long shot is Bralon Addison for the Biletnikoff, I hear he is an electric athlete and I am hoping he can become a more consistent version of Jeff Fuller in the extended future. 

As far as games next year... That's easy! Hello Ole Miss! Hello win column! 

Ben:  Speaking of Ole Miss, I might be most excited about visiting Oxford. Great little town. It feels like time hasn’t moved in that town for half a century.

As far as the games go, I gotta say LSU. Baton Rouge is close enough for fans of both teams to travel, and it will renew an old rivalry. (I am choosing to disregard the fact that we will lose by 35 points.)

Scott: I agree with the LSU game. I am hoping to develop a meaningful rivalry with them solely based on proximity, despite the early lumps and bruises we will undoubtedly take. On the topic of opponents and rivalries… what are your thoughts on Arkansas? Will that be our most notable rivalry? Would you like to keep the game at Jerry World?

You know what we have failed to discuss recently (and rightfully so, since this season isn't even over yet)? Who in the world is going to be our quarterback next year.  That is quite the massive elephant in the room right now.  We obviously can't think the job is Jameil Showers' to lose.  What about Matt Davis?  Or the "gamer" Johny Manziel?  This could be an issue.

Ben: The Arkansas game at Jerry World is one of my favorite weekends of the year. The chance to drink $9 Miller Lites is truly special. All kidding aside, I do love playing Arkansas in Dallas. Recruits have to like the opportunity to play in an NFL stadium once a year. Seeing how superior Aggies are to Razorbacks as humans in general is also one of my highlights from that weekend. They wear hog heads. C’mon, man!

QB next year… Well, if we go on past trends, it has to be one of our wide receivers right? First Jerrod, then Tannehill, next year – Ryan Swope, quarterback? 2012 will be interesting, my friend. I can’t wait.