Some of you might enjoy this article from the Houston Chronicle:
COLLEGE STATION — An Internet meme has made the rounds this fall among Texas A&M fans (and others) of the elderly Rose in the movie “Titanic” recalling to relative youngsters hanging on her every word, “It’s been 84 years …”
Old Aggies (and others) know the feeling. It’s been 84 years since A&M won its lone national title to cap the 1939 season, and as of this week it’s been a quarter-century since the Aggies have won a conference title under then-coach R.C. Slocum.
A&M won its only Big 12 title on Dec. 5, 1998, and hasn’t played in a league title game since. The Aggies in the summer of 2012 exited the Big 12 and entered the Southeastern Conference, and since parting ways with Slocum 21 years ago, four coaches have failed in their mission to return A&M to its pre-World War II prominence.
A&M fired the fourth, Jimbo Fisher, on Nov. 12 and turned to the fifth coach since Slocum, Mike Elko, to try and become the next Homer Norton, the Aggies’ coach from 1934-47.
“It’s easy to take pride in making big plays on Saturday in front of 110,000 people,” said Elko, a former A&M defensive coordinator under Fisher who was hired after two seasons as Duke’s head coach. “Are we willing to do the things that we need to do when no one is looking, so we can have the results that we want (in) the fall?”
Elko, who was 16-9 over the past two years with the Blue Devils after they were 5-18 the two previous seasons under David Cutcliffe, has been busy recruiting and assembling a staff at A&M, although he must still make the two most important hires to his future: offensive and defensive coordinator.
Elko this week has brought on board what amounts to a general manager in Derek Miller, who served in the same role at Duke, defensive line coach Sean Spencer (who was fired as Florida’s co-defensive coordinator in late November), offensive line coach Adam Cushing and defensive backs coach Ishmael Aristide, according to multiple program insiders.
Cushing and Aristide, the latter a former A&M defensive analyst with a knack for exceptional recruiting, were also with Elko at Duke the past two years.
The current Aggies (7-5) are beginning to prepare for the TaxAct Texas Bowl on Dec. 27 against Oklahoma State (9-4) in NRG Stadium. They’re still led by interim coach Elijah Robinson, A&M’s former defensive line coach who’s set to become Syracuse’s defensive coordinator under new Orange coach Fran Brown, a longtime friend of Robinson’s.
“When (A&M) asked me to step into this role, to be the interim coach, I (said) that I was going to do everything possible, as long as I could, to support this team and support this program, and do right by this team,” Robinson said Tuesday. “I’m honored to still be able to finish this race out, and represent this university and represent this team in the bowl game. I’m looking forward to it.”
Tight ends coach James Coley and offensive analyst Jim Chaney, who both have experience calling plays on offense at other programs, are expected to handle the offensive side of things against Oklahoma State.
Robinson added that he’s encouraged his players at A&M, especially the defensive linemen he recruited to College Station, to give Elko and Spencer every chance to “build a relationship” if the players were considering leaving the program with the coaching change.
The Cowboys are coming off a 49-21 loss to No. 3 Texas in the Big 12 title game Saturday in Arlington. OSU coach Mike Gundy said while Fisher is gone, the one consistency for A&M in the bowl game should be a solid defensive front seven.
“I know they’re very, very talented, particularly on defense,” Gundy said. “I heard somebody down the hallway (on the offensive staff) say, ‘This defense looks like Texas did last week.’ So I turned around and went the other way. I didn’t want to hear it.”
The Longhorns (12-1) are competing in their first four-team College Football Playoff, and face No. 2 Washington (13-0) on Jan. 1 in New Orleans for the right to play in the national title game Jan. 8 at NRG Stadium.
Robinson said despite all the bowl obstacles that come with an overturned coaching staff, it’s still worth it for a program to compete in a bowl that doesn’t lead to a national title.
“Anytime you earn the right to play in an extra game … it’s not fair to the guys that busted their tails all year long to advance to these games — you give these guys the opportunity to play,” he said.
COLLEGE STATION — An Internet meme has made the rounds this fall among Texas A&M fans (and others) of the elderly Rose in the movie “Titanic” recalling to relative youngsters hanging on her every word, “It’s been 84 years …”
Old Aggies (and others) know the feeling. It’s been 84 years since A&M won its lone national title to cap the 1939 season, and as of this week it’s been a quarter-century since the Aggies have won a conference title under then-coach R.C. Slocum.
A&M won its only Big 12 title on Dec. 5, 1998, and hasn’t played in a league title game since. The Aggies in the summer of 2012 exited the Big 12 and entered the Southeastern Conference, and since parting ways with Slocum 21 years ago, four coaches have failed in their mission to return A&M to its pre-World War II prominence.
A&M fired the fourth, Jimbo Fisher, on Nov. 12 and turned to the fifth coach since Slocum, Mike Elko, to try and become the next Homer Norton, the Aggies’ coach from 1934-47.
“It’s easy to take pride in making big plays on Saturday in front of 110,000 people,” said Elko, a former A&M defensive coordinator under Fisher who was hired after two seasons as Duke’s head coach. “Are we willing to do the things that we need to do when no one is looking, so we can have the results that we want (in) the fall?”
Elko, who was 16-9 over the past two years with the Blue Devils after they were 5-18 the two previous seasons under David Cutcliffe, has been busy recruiting and assembling a staff at A&M, although he must still make the two most important hires to his future: offensive and defensive coordinator.
Elko this week has brought on board what amounts to a general manager in Derek Miller, who served in the same role at Duke, defensive line coach Sean Spencer (who was fired as Florida’s co-defensive coordinator in late November), offensive line coach Adam Cushing and defensive backs coach Ishmael Aristide, according to multiple program insiders.
Cushing and Aristide, the latter a former A&M defensive analyst with a knack for exceptional recruiting, were also with Elko at Duke the past two years.
The current Aggies (7-5) are beginning to prepare for the TaxAct Texas Bowl on Dec. 27 against Oklahoma State (9-4) in NRG Stadium. They’re still led by interim coach Elijah Robinson, A&M’s former defensive line coach who’s set to become Syracuse’s defensive coordinator under new Orange coach Fran Brown, a longtime friend of Robinson’s.
“When (A&M) asked me to step into this role, to be the interim coach, I (said) that I was going to do everything possible, as long as I could, to support this team and support this program, and do right by this team,” Robinson said Tuesday. “I’m honored to still be able to finish this race out, and represent this university and represent this team in the bowl game. I’m looking forward to it.”
Tight ends coach James Coley and offensive analyst Jim Chaney, who both have experience calling plays on offense at other programs, are expected to handle the offensive side of things against Oklahoma State.
Robinson added that he’s encouraged his players at A&M, especially the defensive linemen he recruited to College Station, to give Elko and Spencer every chance to “build a relationship” if the players were considering leaving the program with the coaching change.
The Cowboys are coming off a 49-21 loss to No. 3 Texas in the Big 12 title game Saturday in Arlington. OSU coach Mike Gundy said while Fisher is gone, the one consistency for A&M in the bowl game should be a solid defensive front seven.
“I know they’re very, very talented, particularly on defense,” Gundy said. “I heard somebody down the hallway (on the offensive staff) say, ‘This defense looks like Texas did last week.’ So I turned around and went the other way. I didn’t want to hear it.”
The Longhorns (12-1) are competing in their first four-team College Football Playoff, and face No. 2 Washington (13-0) on Jan. 1 in New Orleans for the right to play in the national title game Jan. 8 at NRG Stadium.
Robinson said despite all the bowl obstacles that come with an overturned coaching staff, it’s still worth it for a program to compete in a bowl that doesn’t lead to a national title.
“Anytime you earn the right to play in an extra game … it’s not fair to the guys that busted their tails all year long to advance to these games — you give these guys the opportunity to play,” he said.
