Consistently, I have said in various places that it is sad to see the Longhorns fail, and I truly mean that. They have been the measuring stick against which much of college football, especially in the Southwest, has been compared to since the 1940s.
For example, if A&M is better than UT just because UT is down, is that really an accomplishment?
But that was in large part because UT had all of the advantages - the size of their alumni base (especially as it related to the Aggies while A&M remained a military-only school), the facilities, the revenue, the income. Clearly, if you have that many advantages, you should be the big dog. The same goes for teams like the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL and the New York Yankees in MLB. If those programs are not winning championships, they are doing something wrong.
But I think many Aggies would agree that we allowed ourselves to be the little brother and tied ourselves too closely to UT - and, frankly, their negative attitude about everyone but them. It was time for a change, even if it meant getting out teeth kicked in on a regular basis in the SEC.
And yet, most Aggies excited about the move to the SEC thought something along the lines of this: we can be more than we have been, and to do that, we need to be away from the abusive older brother and all the negativity around it.
And what do you know, but the move to the SEC has been fantastic. We are hated, surely, by other fan bases, but it is in most circumstances a hatred of respect, and they will defend us to others outside the conference. And that is the way it should be. It certainly should resonate with those with a military background, no?
And frankly, more often than not, it isn't really hatred - it is competitive fire of people who love to compete against the best, pushing each other to the pinnacle of the game. Ask yourself why the only real sounds of panic about the SEC not winning the National Championship the past two years comes from outside the conference? Because we know we are still the most competitive, aggressive, talented and overall best conference out there, and the process will take care of itself.
On top of that, the recruiting bonanza has been bountiful. Being the only Texas team in the SEC has given Sumlin - who already had a variety of advantages - an open invitation into every living room in Texas. We have in large part replaced UT as The First Option. We get who we want. Y'all can pick from the rest.
But here is where things get really exciting - A&M has been visionary in upgrading its facilities and soon we will unveil a Kyle Field that will be the envy of every program from Texas to Florida and every program in between.
And the final piece? The cherry on top? That is the most recent announcement of the adidas apparel deal that puts A&M behind no one in the SEC or the State of Texas.
So now, it is safe to say, our Texas A&M Aggies have supplanted the University of Texas at Austin as the program with the most pieces to the puzzle. Stadium? Check. Facilities? Check. Recruiting? Check with an asterisk. Revenue (especially with the SEC Network, adidas contract, etc.)? Big ol fat check.
So I ask you - is this the tipping point for our Texas Aggies? Is this the point in time where we went from being the little brother to being the big dog? Certainly in terms of resources at our disposal, the answer is hell yes.
So that leaves it to the execution, hence the asterisk with recruiting. And playing on the field. It is up to Coach Sumlin and the team to take those advantages and do something with them - otherwise we are no different than UT at Austin.
It is interesting - many of us laugh at UT for not having the balls to go to the SEC or play bigger opponents. (Sorry, but non conference games are important, Longhorns, but conference games are much more important and how can you take a conference seriously that has Iowa State and Kansas....) Yet now we are in their chair as the team with all the resources. The pressure is coming. Is the State of Texas better at football than Alabama, Ohio, Florida, etc.?
Time to put our heads down and find out.
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