FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Whup-de-freakin-do, we beat Nebraska in Lincoln.  Tell me that 5, maybe 10 years ago, and I would have accused you of smoking crack.  We won.  So what.  We are bowl eligible (if we use the win over FCS Montana State, which can only be done once every 5 years).  My cell rang constantly with Ags lamenting the win thinking that it might help Fran keep his job.  But, sitting around the Sunday Morning pow-wow, did I read the stats right?

McGee 35 rush attempts for 167 yards

Goodson 8 attempts for 32 yards

Lane 15 attempts for 130 yards

The QB, the stud passer from the small Texas high school (passed 13 of 22, 100 yards; gotta love those almost 8 yard pass plays) ran more times for more yards than the !!2!! stud RBs, combined.  Fran explained the lack of Lane carries against Miami as a reaction of the zone option vs the Miami D.  Is this another case, or is there something else at play?

Stephen McGee has been one of the most vocal defenders of Fran.  Is he relying on his own ability to save Fran?  The few people I know in the football business laugh at us.  We run the option, at a major university who thinks they should compete for the conference and national championships.  Only Service Academies and "Nerd" schools like Rice run the option.  If executed properly with a good defense (which we don't have), it can keep the game close until the 4th Quarter, where it is anybody's ball game.  I would rather have a 3rd Quarter Blowout, saving our 1st teamers some licks while getting our younger guys some experience, than slugging out a 300 yard rushing game.  What's worse, the academies and the nerd schools are changing to more wide open offenses.

You will have troubles recruiting to the option.  RBs, yeah no problem, but a pro-style QB will not come to A&M, and the best of the spread option guys, well, if Florida and Urban Meyer came knocking and Fran at A&M, we might lose that one.  And don't get me started on WRs.  The speed skill guys from Cali, Texas, and Florida, will go anywhere else than A&M.  Slocum slowly evolved his offense, although not near enough, and we put Bethel Johnson and Robert Ferguson and others in the NFL.  Fran but a WR in the NFL too, QB Reggie McNeil.  If I was a speed guy from SoCal, I won't be lacing them up in College Station.  Heck, what looks to be the best receiver in the state was a QB from Dallas Carter (Crabtree), and he went to Lubbock.  So our recruiting will never rise to the level of the nation's elite while we run the option...

Without the recruits, we must develop our players.  How are we doing in that arena?  No Aggies selected in the 2007 draft.  None.  Zip. 

So we don't have the recruits and we are not honing diamonds in the rough...

Other blogs have chronicled the future of the A&M coaching position.  Maybe I will throw some names out at a later date.  I just know that the status quo is not working.  And it may be too late to turn the A&M Titanic from the immediate oncoming iceberg.   But something needs to be done.  Stop calling the option and open up the passing game.  If not, spread the wealth a little better with the ball.  If the QB is on the trainer's table for hours after each game, the cumulative effects will hamper him later in the season, when our games mean the most (OU and tu).  McGee is sacrificing the future for the now.  If we were undefeated and talking of championships, I might, MIGHT, make that sacrifice.  But we are not.  We lost to the Tech Tards AGAIN.  And we have KU this week, undefeated KU.  Then a tough Mizzou team that throttled the team that throttled us.We might finish with a 6-6 record and need that FCS win...

Or we can decline, like Slocum's final season, and work on the new coach.  My 2 cents, even if it is a cruddy bowl, the extra month of practice and the travel can only help our team and we should take whatever scraps are thrown our way.  Heck, maybe we can win a bowl game in Fran's tenure, his last, and bring our bowl victories to 4 from the past 2 regimes...

wally