The Fightin' Texas A&M Aggies have entered the chat.
On a day when the No. 1, No. 4, No. 10 and No. 11-ranked teams in the AP Poll lost to unranked teams, it's what happened to the No. 9 team in the nation that is staying with me the next morning.
No. 9 Missouri got battered by the Aggies. Humiliated. Maimed.
Of course, the Tigers aren't really the No. 9 team in the country. That team has been skating on thin ice since the middle of September. But, molly-whopped by 4+ scores? Getting trucked 34-0 in the middle of the third quarter?
At some point, you have to take a look at the team that did the dirty work on the kittens and ... well ...
I'm not sure if you guys are aware of this, but Texas A&M is on the Texas schedule this season. It's a little byproduct of this new-fangled version of the SEC that the Longhorns have joined. The first meeting since 2011, apparently.
Since losing to Notre Dame in the opener, the Aggies just kind of meandered their way through the month of September, mostly with a back-up quarterback that threatened to take the job of college football's biggest fan of magic - Conner Weigman.
Well, Weigman was back on the field on Saturday and he kind of looked the part of a former 5-star prospect, posting a 187.2 game rating. Along with him, the Aggies looked the part of an outfit that came into this season with the sixth-best roster in college football in terms of super blue chips. The Aggies ran the ball well (236 yards). They passed it well (276 yards). They dominated the lines of scrimmage. They looked well-coached.
It might be time to take the Aggies somewhat seriously.
In fact, there's a very good chance that a place in the SEC Championship game could be on the line when Texas and Texas A&M meet up in College Station in late November. While the Longhorns might be No. 1 in both of the major polls, it's actually the Aggies that sit alone in first place in the SEC with a 3-0 record.
Take a look at A&M's final five games before the Longhorns come to town:
(10/19) at Mississippi State
(1026) vs. LSU
(11/2) at South Carolina
(11/16) vs. New Mexico State
(11/23) at Auburn
That's very manageable. While there seems like a strong chance that the Aggies might drop one of those games against LSU/South Carolina before they end the regular season with the Longhorns, doing so would still leave A&M with a 6-1 record when the two teams play.
Crazy as it might have sounded 48 hours ago, the game could very well have a place in the SEC title game on the line and playoff positioning to boot.
That game was always going to be borderline psychotic, but it might just have more on the line than any Longhorns/Aggies game since 1995.
I'm not telling anyone on Orangebloods that they need to live in fear of the Aggies. Not by a long shot. But, respectable awareness?
Yeah, maybe just a little.
No. 2 - Time to be great ...
As Quinn Ewers returns to the lineup this weekend, the talk of his long-term legacy has been much-discussed.
With a Big 12 Championship MVP, road wins at Alabama and Michigan, and a record 49-0 beatdown of Oklahoma already on his resume, you can already pencil him in as the No. 3 quarterback in the Texas program in the last 50 years. Hell, that's to say nothing of the team being ranked No. 1 in America as I'm writing this section.
Yet, with seven regular-season games left in his Texas career, there's still one thing this program needs from him before he leaves ... play at a nationally elite level ... consistently.
Did you know that in Ewers' 25-game career with the Longhorns that he never recorded a pass efficiency ranking of 170.0 or better in back-to-back games?
Did you know that in Ewers' 25-game career with the Longhorns that he only once recorded a pass efficiency ranking of 160.0 or better in three straight games, and it was in the first three games of his career?
By comparison, Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe has had a passer rating above 160 in 12 of his last 16 games and has posted a rating of better than 188.9 in four of his five games this season. Those numbers include a stretch of five consecutive games in 2023 where he posted efficiency ratings of 169.3 or better in five consecutive games.
I don't think anyone would have ever thought these words would be typed, but it's time for Ewers to start performing in the passing game a little like ... Milroe?
Yup.
The good news is that Ewers feels primed to do so. His 175.2 rating through three games hints that Ewers is knocking on the door. Now he just has to kick it in.
It starts on Saturday with the Sooners.
No. 3 - Scattershooting coming out of the bye week ...
... As Quinn Ewers returns to the lineup against the Sooners, his backup returns to the bench as one of only two quarterbacks in college football with a 200+ quarterback efficiency rating.
... This seems to be an unpopular opinion, but unless Jaydon Blue isn't close to 100 percent, he's my starting running back on Saturday against Oklahoma. Play your best players. The coaches have believed he's their best healthy back to such an extent that he was dominating all running back snaps since returning from injury. It's up to Tashard Choice to get him right. That's his job, right?
... I keep waiting for Silas Bolden to have a big game and it just hasn't happened ... yet.
... This week seems like a good time to get the nation's No. 8 player in yards per catch a few more targets.
... Take a look at the stats for safeties Michael Taaffe and Andrew Mukuba through five games. Very similar.
Taaffe: 21 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 2 pass break-ups, 1 quarterback hit and zero interceptions
Mukuba: 19 tackles, 1.0 tackles for loss, 2 pass break-ups, 0 quarterback hits and 1 interception.
... ESPN polled 20 NFL scouts and asked them each who the top quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft would be. The results are curious ...
No. 4 - Colin Simmons vs. his peers ...
A week ago, when I provided an update on how the top prospects from the state of Texas in the class of 2024 were doing as true freshmen, one of you remarked that you didn't care and only wanted to know how Texas freshman Colin Simmons (18 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, 1 forced fumble and 4 quarterback hits) compared to his peers.
While it wasn't the most uplifting comment of all time, it did serve as a decent idea for a section during the bye week. Therefore, to get an idea of just how impressive Simmons has been so far this season, here's a look at how he fares when compared to his peers at his position in the 2024 recruiting class.
As far as I can tell, Lightfoot hasn't played at all for the Hurricanes.
Stewart has 12 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 3 quarterback hits in 5 games.
Has 3 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss in 4 games of action.
Pickett has 1 tackle in 2 games played thus far this season.
Rushing has accumulated zero stats in one game played this season.
No. 5 - If I had a vote that mattered ...
1. Texas
2. Ohio State
3. Oregon
4. Alabama
5. Georgia
6. Miami
7. Penn State
8. Clemson
9. Tennessee
10. Ole Miss
Heisman Trophy
1. Ashton Jeanty (Boise State)
2. Jalen Milroe (Alabama)
3 Travis Hunter (Colorado)
4. Cam Ward (Miami)
5. Jaxson Dart (Ole Miss)
No. 6 - Former Horns Transfer Watch ...
Here are notable stat lines from former Longhorns across college football this weekend ...
QB - Hudson Card (Purdue): 11 of 21 for 111 yards, 0 TD and 0 INT (96.8 rating) in a 52-6 loss to Wisconsin.
QB - Maalik Murphy (Duke): 18 of 31 for 205 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT (128.5 rating) in a 24-14 loss to Georgia Tech.
RB - Ja'Quinden Jackson (Arkansas): 20 carries for 57 yards and 1 TD in a 19-14 win over Tennessee.
RB - Savion Red (Nevada): 9 carries for 62 yards in a 35-31 loss to San Jose State.
WR - Isaiah Neyor (Nebraska): Had zero catches in Nebraska's 14-7 win over Rutgers.
WR - Casey Cain (UNLV): Caught 1 pass for 7 yards in a 44-41 loss to Syracuse.
DB - Austin Jordan (TCU): Recorded 4 tackles and a tackle for loss in a 30-19 loss to TCU.
DB - Jerrin Thompson (Auburn): Recorded 5 tackles in a 31-13 loss to Georgia.
DB - Jalen Catalon (UNLV): Led the Rebels with 17 tackles, 0.6 tackles for loss and had one pass break-up in UNLV's 44-41 loss to Syracuse.
DB - Kitan Crawford (Nevada): Recorded 5 tackles and a pass break-up in Nevada's 35-31 loss to San Jose State.
No. 7 - UT Volleyball is starting to catch fire ...
A few weeks ago, the Texas Volleyball team was dealt a cold dose of reality in a sweep at the hands of Stanford. The Longhorns were 3-3 at that point in the season.
Students of Texas volleyball pointed out that the Longhorns lost two of their first four matches in 2023, including a sweep at the hands of Stanford, before catching fire and winning the national championship. Patience was the word of the moment.
It turns out that there wasn't anything bothering the Longhorns that a little SEC action couldn't fix. After sweeping No. 20 Baylor three days after the loss to the Cardinal, the Longhorns have won their first four matches in their new conference, highlighted by a sweep of No. 18 Florida in Gainesville on Sunday.
Up next? Maddie Skinner's return trip to No. 13 Kentucky, her first since transferring to Texas, with a place in first place in the SEC standings on the line.
No. 8 – BUY or SELL …
(Buy) Texas wins the SEC Championship Game.
(Buy) Sure. There's a solid shot that the second team in the SEC title game could have two losses.
(Sell) I had the Longhorns at 11-1 at the beginning of the season with a loss in one of those three games and I'll stick with it.
(Buy/Sell) The Aggies have better quarterback play, have better overall talent and might be better coached.
The ball comes out of hand like a starting NFL quarterback. Plus athlete. Starting to figure it out as a player. Has a 185 quarterback rating since the Georgia game. Does a good job pushing the ball down the field.
(Sell) He's not remotely that good, but the fact that you are asking this question speaks volumes.
(Buy) It's literally the photo that comes up when you google his name.
(Sell) Just a hunch.
(Sell) If he's not good enough to go pro after this season, the Longhorns are playing the wrong quarterback.
(Buy) Only three are left.
(Buy) Only the NFL has good officiating. Every other sport is full of f-ups.
(Sell) The Longhorns are kind of middle of the road in the punt game, but that's probably good enough to justify breaking in a freshman. I will say that Michael Kern hasn't been close to being good enough that he shouldn't have some competition next season. He's averaging 0.82 more yards per punt than Daniel Trejo averaged in 2022 and that was deemed not good enough.
(Buy) Yes, they'll cash in ... as they probably should.
(Buy) You know what Stone Cold would say...
(Sell) Mainly because one helped build a dynasty and the other won't come close to doing that.
(Sell) D.J. Campbell needs to come back at this point.
(Sell) Is a head coach without any head coaching experience really what Florida needs?
(Buy) Ehlinger never had a season as good as the one that Pavia is having right now and Pavia is surrounded by players that couldn't get a Texas offer if they begged.
(Sell) In a year from now, probably, but not right now.
No. 9 – Scattershooting all over the place …
... I fell asleep on Saturday night with Cal leading Miami 35-10. I woke up in the middle of the night and checked my phone to see the result from the main event in UFC307 and saw that the Hurricanes had stormed back to win 39-38. Yup, it was some day in college football.
... SEC Scattershots: It turns out that Vandy's Diego Pavia is definitely the best quarterback that Texas will face the rest of the way. Alabama ran for 84 yards on 21 carries on Saturday against Vandy ... Tennessee had no business losing to an Arkansas team playing without its top quarterback or running back, while owning a 14-3 lead in the fourth quarter. Ok, Ole Miss, that's a little more like it.
... Consider me a fan of the uniforms that the Texans wore on Sunday. That helmet is sick.
... Justin Tucker got his swagger back on Sunday. That was a huge 56-yard field goal to keep the Ravens in the game.
... I gotta say, I'm not missing the stress that fantasy football brings on the weekends.
... The Phillies blowing one of the great pitching performances in Phillies history from Zach Wheeler (one hit allowed in 7 innings and 30 swing and misses) kind of ruined my Saturday. I hate bullpen pitchers.
... Attaboy, Nick Castellanos!!!
... Premier League Scattershots: I found myself rooting for Man United on Sunday because I want them to keep Erik ten Hag as manager. I'm not sure I've ever done that before for any team that I dislike. Yikes. The Big 2 all held serve. I'm not sure it's going to take 90 points this year. Maybe, but I'm not so certain. Are Spurs fans sure they love their coach? Really?
... The CM Punk/Drew McIntyre match from Bad Blood is being called the match of 2024, the best Hell in a Cell match of all-time and one of the best matches in the history of the WWE.
... I'm pretty sure I haven't been to the movies in a couple of months. I need a movie night.
No. 10 – The List: Kris Kristofferson
Rhodes Scholar, poet, oil rig worker, Army Ranger helicopter pilot, athlete, philosopher, firefighter, actor, singer/songwriter.
So many words describe the boy who was born in Brownsville and became one of the great multi-purpose talents our nation has ever known.
Personally, I think I first became aware of Kristofferson when I was nine years old and the first album from the Highwaymen came out in 1985. It felt like the song Highwayman played on the radio in Waco every 10 minutes.
From that moment on, it feels like he was in my life for the next 40 years, always asking me to ask questions that others weren't demanding to be asked. There's right and wrong, and it always seemed like he was on the side of right. We're a better world because he was in it.
Let's get on with it.
Honorable Mention: Don't Let the Bastards (Get You Down), To Beat The Devil, Desperados Waiting For a Train (The Highwaymen), Darby's Castle, Stranger, The Taker, They Killed Him, Feeling Mortal, This Old Road, Closer to the Bone, Nobody Wins and From The Bottle to the Bottom
Last 5 Out: Jody and the Kid, For The Good Times, Who's to Bless and Who's To Blame, The Silver Tongued Devil and I, Jesus Was a Capricorn
10. The Last Cowboy Song (The Highwaymen)
One of two songs from the super group Highwaymen that made the list. I hated to leave Jody and the Kid out of the top 10, but the truth is this waltz is a personal favorite and I just didn't want to leave it out.
9. Here Comes The Rainbow
Johnny Cash calls this one of the greatest songs ever written. Who am I to argue?
8. You Show Me Yours (And I'll Show You Mine)
Has there ever been a better start to a song than when Kristofferson says, “If you’re feeling salty, then I’m your tequila."
7. Loving Her Was Easier (Than Anything I'll Ever Do Again)
If you've never heard the version that he does with Rosanne Cash, do yourself a favor. There's something about the frailty of his voice that makes the 2023 version perhaps the best of them all.
6. Please Don't Tell Me How The Story Ends
As the BBC wrote, "Two lovers spend one last night together, clinging on to their memories (and to one another) in the hope the inevitable break-up never comes. Written in the early 1970s, Kristofferson initially gave it to Bobby Bare but later remade it with Rita Coolidge, just as their marriage was dissolving. Their duet is devastating."
5. Why Me
His only No. 1 song on the country charts in his entire career.
4. Help Me Make It Through The Night
Kristofferson once said that he was inspired by a Frank Sinatra in Esquire when he remarked that he believed in "Booze, broads, or a bible ... whatever helps me make it through the night."
3. Highwayman (The Highwaymen)
The best song the Highwaymen ever produced.
2. Me and Bobby McGee
Although he taught Janis Joplin to sing the song, he didn't know that she had recorded it until after her death.
1. Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down
The quintessential Kristofferson song. Legend has it that Kristofferson landed a helicopter in Johnny Cash's backyard in Tennessee in an effort to get the song in his hands.
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