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I've got battered wife syndrome.
Posted on 9/24/12 at 11:27 pm
Posted on 9/24/12 at 11:27 pm
No matter how hard I try to reason, no matter how many stats and reviews and evidence I gather to support, I still have a lingering fear in the back of my mind that we will somehow frick up this arky game. Damn you Fran! Damn you every second half the last 4 years!
3
Posted on 9/25/12 at 4:09 am to Greg09Ag
You and every A&M fan who ever cared.
Posted on 9/25/12 at 6:56 am to LegacyAggie
I hope Smith doesn't take the logos off their helmets like Gary Barnett did in 2000...
Posted on 9/25/12 at 7:18 am to Greg09Ag
I was thinking the same thing.
Posted on 9/25/12 at 9:33 am to Greg09Ag
I really feel sorry for young Ags that don't remember the Jackie days or even the early RC days. There was a time when we played with confidence and swagger and you knew we would crush teams and we just didn't lose at Kyle. Sumlin is the most "Jackie like" coach we have had since the original, hopefully this is a return to that era.
BTW, what made Jackie different was he came in expecting to win and understood how far we needed to go to get there. He never backed down and he pushed everyone. He came in day 1 and told everyone that if we wanted to win we needed to get serious about football and have the best facilities, folks don't realize just how far ahead Netum Steed was at the time it was built. He was also visibly animated and you could feel the intensity and confidence from him. The feeling spread to the team and to the fans. It didn't happen in 1 year or even 2 but once he got everyone to buy into the swagger and BELIEVE that we could not only win but we not only could beat anybody but we should EXPECT to beat anybody the worm turned. I truly believe if the sips hadn't gotten the NCAA on us that Jackie would have won multiple NC's at A&M, he truly understood what we could be and was a true Bear Bryant disciple.
I don't know if Sumlin will be our next Jackie but I will say that he has more to work with than Jackie did to start. He doesn't have to convince the Administration to invest in the program, that buy in is already there and the pockets are deeper than ever. The transformation of our facilities in the next 4 years is going to be mind boggling. This Arkansas game is a test but it is an easy one compared to what is to come. He needs to get these guys ready to put Arkie out of their misery. Then he needs to show he can keep their killer instinct in tact for the next 2 games with road tests that are must wins. Then comes the real test with LSU coming to Kyle. He will not be expected to win that game. That is one where he will be the underdog playing the big dog. Still, if he can somehow, someway pull it off it moves up the "rebuild" of the program up schedule at least a year. The money, support, and publicity that would come off of that type of win would completely change the game. College football can change quickly.
Who knows what will happen. I like a lot of what we have seen but the real tests are coming now. Sumlin has shown he has confidence and swagger but the rubber is starting to meet the road. He's got to instill the killer instinct in these guys and the pride of never accepting failure as an option. I'm ready for Jackie 2.0.
BTW, what made Jackie different was he came in expecting to win and understood how far we needed to go to get there. He never backed down and he pushed everyone. He came in day 1 and told everyone that if we wanted to win we needed to get serious about football and have the best facilities, folks don't realize just how far ahead Netum Steed was at the time it was built. He was also visibly animated and you could feel the intensity and confidence from him. The feeling spread to the team and to the fans. It didn't happen in 1 year or even 2 but once he got everyone to buy into the swagger and BELIEVE that we could not only win but we not only could beat anybody but we should EXPECT to beat anybody the worm turned. I truly believe if the sips hadn't gotten the NCAA on us that Jackie would have won multiple NC's at A&M, he truly understood what we could be and was a true Bear Bryant disciple.
I don't know if Sumlin will be our next Jackie but I will say that he has more to work with than Jackie did to start. He doesn't have to convince the Administration to invest in the program, that buy in is already there and the pockets are deeper than ever. The transformation of our facilities in the next 4 years is going to be mind boggling. This Arkansas game is a test but it is an easy one compared to what is to come. He needs to get these guys ready to put Arkie out of their misery. Then he needs to show he can keep their killer instinct in tact for the next 2 games with road tests that are must wins. Then comes the real test with LSU coming to Kyle. He will not be expected to win that game. That is one where he will be the underdog playing the big dog. Still, if he can somehow, someway pull it off it moves up the "rebuild" of the program up schedule at least a year. The money, support, and publicity that would come off of that type of win would completely change the game. College football can change quickly.
Who knows what will happen. I like a lot of what we have seen but the real tests are coming now. Sumlin has shown he has confidence and swagger but the rubber is starting to meet the road. He's got to instill the killer instinct in these guys and the pride of never accepting failure as an option. I'm ready for Jackie 2.0.
Posted on 9/25/12 at 9:41 am to aggressor
^truth
Posted on 9/25/12 at 10:02 am to aggressor
quote:
I really feel sorry for young Ags that don't remember the Jackie days or even the early RC days. There was a time when we played with confidence and swagger and you knew we would crush teams and we just didn't lose at Kyle.
I dont even know what that might be like.
A&M football has almost always turned into an exercise in humility. I dont really get excited for it anymore. I just grimace and wait.
This post was edited on 9/25/12 at 10:03 am
Posted on 9/25/12 at 10:46 am to aggressor
A&M's record at Kyle while I was a student: 21-3
Freshman year: 3-3
Sophomore-Senior years: 18-0
This included ending Nebraska's 35(?)-game regular season winning streak, the overtime Halloween thriller against Oklahoma State, a stretch in which we went 10 quarters without scoring an offensive touchdown, and the Bonfire game.
Freshman year: 3-3
Sophomore-Senior years: 18-0
This included ending Nebraska's 35(?)-game regular season winning streak, the overtime Halloween thriller against Oklahoma State, a stretch in which we went 10 quarters without scoring an offensive touchdown, and the Bonfire game.
Posted on 9/25/12 at 11:00 am to aggressor
aggressor
Posted on 9/25/12 at 11:45 am to LegacyAggie
It can and will happen again.
I remember as a kid when we moved back to Texas to stay and my Dad bought season tickets in '83 (he has only missed 1 home game since btw) and we started going to games. That year we had a team that had some young talent but a lot of holes. They played with fire and Kevin Murray won SWC Offensive Newcomer of the year. Then I went to my first Texas game and they came in undefeated and ranked #2. I remember A&M going out to a quick 13-0 lead in the first quarter but then Texas simply out talenting us the rest of the game and we lost 45-13. It just felt like A&M had a lot of spirit but we just weren't ever going to be on that level. We hadn't won a SWC Championship since '67, before I was born. The next year we were hopeful but Murray went down in the 3rd game with a broken ankle and we were 5-5 going into the Texas game in Austin. Then we shocked the world and beat them like a drum 37-12 highlighted by a block field goal that was almost run back for a score. Still, we were a 6-5 team and didn't know if it was a fluke.
Then came 1985 and everything changed. We started off a bit slow but optimistic at 4-2 with a loss on the road at Bama and a loss at Baylor (which was still a very good team back then). Then we won a tight one with SMU at Kyle followed by another tight one with Arkansas around pastings of Rice and TCU. Low and behold we were tied with Texas and they were coming back to Kyle for all the marbles. It was Thanksgiving Night, Jackie's birthday, and whomever won got the SWC Title and a trip to the Cotton Bowl which was a huge deal. Realize they still had a parade back then and the Cotton Bowl was the largest event in D/FW on an annual basis ahead of the RRS and Cowboys games.
I remember walking in to the stadium with my Dad, I was 14 at the time. He bought me a "Thinkin' Cotton" sweatshirt on our way in as it was a cold night. The electricity that was there was still something I have never experienced to this day. There was so much angst and anxiety and excitement all at once. Could this really be happening? Could we actually not only beat Texas but go to the Cotton Bowl? The game was insanely loud from start to finish and after a slow start we crushed the sips 42-10. The highlight and still one of the greatest moments in Kyle Field history imo when Stafford famously pouted until the crowd would quiet only to have it explode at the snap and to watch him go down for a huge sack. It was pandemonium after that. Cotton started flying everywhere like snow. The stadium was physically moving beneath our feet and I was on the former student side. We BELIEVED from then on and when we played Bo Jackson and Auburn in the Cotton Bowl there was no doubt we would beat them no matter what the analysts said. Then we came in and crushed them 36-16 and famously stuffed Bo on 4 straight downs at the goal line. Then the streak continued on.
I want so badly for that feeling again. The feeling of KNOWING we were going to crush other teams. The feeling that WE ARE TEXAS A&M and to hell with the rest of you, we are going to kick your arse, hide the women and children and whatever you do don't piss off Jackie because he will run it up on you. Jim Wacker was stupid enough to try to down talk Jackie and he put up 53-6 on them in Fort Worth and went for an onside kick after the last TD. Then he 74-10 hung on them the next year at Kyle. That is who we are guys and we shouldn't settle for less. Our rightful place is at the top, we just need to believe in it and not accept mediocrity. It won't all happen overnight but if we believe and invest it will happen and sooner than you young Aggies can imagine.
If it makes you feel better I can say without question the satisfaction of winning in '85 was by far the sweetest of them all, and we only lost 1 game at Kyle and won the SWC twice when I was in school. It was sweet because we had struggled so long to get there and no one believed in us but ourselves. That feeling is coming once again. I don't know if it will be this year or next, but it is coming. Believe Ags. It's fine to realize our shortcomings and where we need to improve but never let someone get in your head that being an Aggie is anything but being the best.
I remember as a kid when we moved back to Texas to stay and my Dad bought season tickets in '83 (he has only missed 1 home game since btw) and we started going to games. That year we had a team that had some young talent but a lot of holes. They played with fire and Kevin Murray won SWC Offensive Newcomer of the year. Then I went to my first Texas game and they came in undefeated and ranked #2. I remember A&M going out to a quick 13-0 lead in the first quarter but then Texas simply out talenting us the rest of the game and we lost 45-13. It just felt like A&M had a lot of spirit but we just weren't ever going to be on that level. We hadn't won a SWC Championship since '67, before I was born. The next year we were hopeful but Murray went down in the 3rd game with a broken ankle and we were 5-5 going into the Texas game in Austin. Then we shocked the world and beat them like a drum 37-12 highlighted by a block field goal that was almost run back for a score. Still, we were a 6-5 team and didn't know if it was a fluke.
Then came 1985 and everything changed. We started off a bit slow but optimistic at 4-2 with a loss on the road at Bama and a loss at Baylor (which was still a very good team back then). Then we won a tight one with SMU at Kyle followed by another tight one with Arkansas around pastings of Rice and TCU. Low and behold we were tied with Texas and they were coming back to Kyle for all the marbles. It was Thanksgiving Night, Jackie's birthday, and whomever won got the SWC Title and a trip to the Cotton Bowl which was a huge deal. Realize they still had a parade back then and the Cotton Bowl was the largest event in D/FW on an annual basis ahead of the RRS and Cowboys games.
I remember walking in to the stadium with my Dad, I was 14 at the time. He bought me a "Thinkin' Cotton" sweatshirt on our way in as it was a cold night. The electricity that was there was still something I have never experienced to this day. There was so much angst and anxiety and excitement all at once. Could this really be happening? Could we actually not only beat Texas but go to the Cotton Bowl? The game was insanely loud from start to finish and after a slow start we crushed the sips 42-10. The highlight and still one of the greatest moments in Kyle Field history imo when Stafford famously pouted until the crowd would quiet only to have it explode at the snap and to watch him go down for a huge sack. It was pandemonium after that. Cotton started flying everywhere like snow. The stadium was physically moving beneath our feet and I was on the former student side. We BELIEVED from then on and when we played Bo Jackson and Auburn in the Cotton Bowl there was no doubt we would beat them no matter what the analysts said. Then we came in and crushed them 36-16 and famously stuffed Bo on 4 straight downs at the goal line. Then the streak continued on.
I want so badly for that feeling again. The feeling of KNOWING we were going to crush other teams. The feeling that WE ARE TEXAS A&M and to hell with the rest of you, we are going to kick your arse, hide the women and children and whatever you do don't piss off Jackie because he will run it up on you. Jim Wacker was stupid enough to try to down talk Jackie and he put up 53-6 on them in Fort Worth and went for an onside kick after the last TD. Then he 74-10 hung on them the next year at Kyle. That is who we are guys and we shouldn't settle for less. Our rightful place is at the top, we just need to believe in it and not accept mediocrity. It won't all happen overnight but if we believe and invest it will happen and sooner than you young Aggies can imagine.
If it makes you feel better I can say without question the satisfaction of winning in '85 was by far the sweetest of them all, and we only lost 1 game at Kyle and won the SWC twice when I was in school. It was sweet because we had struggled so long to get there and no one believed in us but ourselves. That feeling is coming once again. I don't know if it will be this year or next, but it is coming. Believe Ags. It's fine to realize our shortcomings and where we need to improve but never let someone get in your head that being an Aggie is anything but being the best.
Posted on 9/25/12 at 11:52 am to aggressor
quote:
aggressor
Posted on 9/25/12 at 12:23 pm to aggressor
quote:
aggressor
Feel like I'm listening to my dad talk about the glory days
Posted on 9/25/12 at 1:15 pm to TbirdSpur2010
There is a fine line between being an optimist and being a sunshine pumper.
Posted on 9/25/12 at 1:34 pm to LegacyAggie
quote:
You and every A&M fan who ever cared.
Posted on 9/27/12 at 10:39 am to aggressor
Aggressor- thanks for the stories, seriously. My dad (class of '68) is kind of a bastard when it comes to sharing his memories of A&M. Although it was a different time, it would be nice to hear something. Haha
But yes, it is kind of sad that us younger guys don't know any better.. I am extremely confident though and i can feel the change. I am loving the attitude of the coaches and the team right now.
But yes, it is kind of sad that us younger guys don't know any better.. I am extremely confident though and i can feel the change. I am loving the attitude of the coaches and the team right now.
Posted on 9/27/12 at 6:46 pm to LegacyAggie
Salute to that statement. I do remember the Jackie & RC days. They were good. They ended and it's been a while. I'll start getting confident after a couple games against conference foes where we play 4 quarters.
Here's to hope.
Here's to hope.
Posted on 9/28/12 at 10:29 am to fishwhistler
quote:
Here's to hope.
Here, here
Posted on 9/30/12 at 9:00 am to TbirdSpur2010
Sherman would have lost this game 31-27.
Posted on 9/30/12 at 9:06 am to CGSC Lobotomy
Good chance.
Just before the half when the Ags tried to go back down the field and ended up giving it back to Arkansas... I was thinking that Sherman would have been happy just to run the ball 3 times and take the 17 point lead at halftime.
I REALLY liked the fact that Sumlin tried to push forward. It sends a huge message to the team even though we didn't score.
I like the change in attitude.
GIGEM.
Just before the half when the Ags tried to go back down the field and ended up giving it back to Arkansas... I was thinking that Sherman would have been happy just to run the ball 3 times and take the 17 point lead at halftime.
I REALLY liked the fact that Sumlin tried to push forward. It sends a huge message to the team even though we didn't score.
I like the change in attitude.
GIGEM.
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