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Texas A&M Football

Missing the Mark: The truth about Texas A&M 'ducking' Texas Tech

December 9, 2015
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Our relationship was serviceable at best. Actually, it was dysfunctional. At times it even seemed toxic.

She became unreliable. She became psychotic. She was too difficult to deal with.

It was best to move on. She was fine with that. Well, that is until a more desirable partner took her place. Then, her psychosis went into overdrive.

First, she’d taunt me from afar. Eventually, though, she sought to arrange a couple of trysts. You know, just for old time’s sake.

When rejected, she got angry. She screamed loudly. Finally, she just accused me of being too scared to face her.

It’s amazing how much the psycho bi … er, young lady, is similar to the Big 12 Conference.

Perhaps you’ve seen the Texas Monthly article that suggests Texas A&M isn’t appearing in the Texas Bowl because the Aggies are ducking the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

Instead, Texas Tech will face LSU.

The article also pointed out that last year A&M did not play in the Texas Bowl, presumably, for fear of facing the Texas Longhorns.

That’s like saying Rosie O’Donnell won’t go to a restaurant for fear of getting fed.

TexAgs At the time of Texas A&M's departure from the Big 12, average Aggie teams were routinely routing Texas Tech — and on paper, the same would happen in 2015.
Why would any football team fear Texas Tech or Texas?

The article did give A&M at least a small benefit of the doubt. It suggested sending the Aggies to the Music City Bowl in Nashville was the Southeastern Conference trying to manipulate the bowl schedule to give its teams more favorable matchups.

But then, the SEC can’t decide the strength of the opponents.

The article ignored three key facts:

  • LSU wanted to be in the Texas Bowl.
  • Nashville is a more desirable destination for Aggies.
  • Louisville may be better than Texas Tech.

If any team was petitioning the SEC for a more advantageous bowl site, it may have been LSU.

Media members I know in Baton Rouge told me two weeks ago that LSU officials desired the Texas Bowl. Houston, the site of the Texas Bowl, is a prime recruiting area for LSU. It’s also an easy trip to a great stadium for LSU fans. Furthermore, LSU played in the Music City Bowl last year.

Everyone that follows college football knows that bowl games try to avoid having the same teams in consecutive years. Therefore, LSU wasn’t a candidate for the Music City Bowl and wanted to play in Houston.

Meanwhile, A&M opened its season against Arizona State at NRG Stadium. The Aggies weren’t thrilled about ending the season there.

True, A&M did play at Vanderbilt last month, so another trip there might not seem prudent. But remember, due to the SEC’s scheduling policy the Aggies won’t return to Vanderbilt for another decade. Meanwhile, Aggies can go to Houston any time.

Besides, A&M ducking Texas Tech would be like a lion ducking a zebra. The Aggies won their last three games against the Red Raiders by an average of 15 points.

Furthermore, A&M’s biggest issue this season has been scoring points. Texas Tech allows an average of 42.6 points per game to rank 125th in the nation in scoring defense. Louisville allows 24.3 points to rank 48th in the nation.

If you’re struggling to score points, which team would you rather face?

Suggesting A&M would duck Tech is as ludicrous as suggesting A&M ducked Texas last year. Remember, the Longhorns managed just 59 yards of total offense in a 31-7 loss to Arkansas, a team that A&M beat.

The psychotic ex was perplexed by facts. The Big 12 apparently is, too.

The reality is that since A&M joined the SEC the Aggies have twice faced Big 12 teams in bowl games. They’ve won both. They destroyed Oklahoma in the 2012 Cotton Bowl and handled West Virginia in last year’s Liberty Bowl. {"Module":"quote","Alignment":"left","Quote":"The reality is that since A\u0026M joined the SEC the Aggies have twice faced Big 12 teams in bowl games. They’ve won both. They destroyed Oklahoma in the 2012 Cotton Bowl and handled West Virginia in last year’s Liberty Bowl.","Author":""}
The fact is both Louisville and Texas Tech are 7-5. However, three of Louisville’s losses are to No. 1 Clemson and No. 18 Houston by three points apiece and to No. 9 Florida State.

Texas Tech lost three of its last five, was blown out in most of its losses and beat just one team with a winning record. That was 7-5 Arkansas, which A&M also beat.

Now, explain again the theory that A&M is ducking Texas Tech.

The reality is that since A&M joined the SEC the Aggies have twice faced Big 12 teams in bowl games. They’ve won both. They destroyed Oklahoma in the 2012 Cotton Bowl and handled West Virginia in last year’s Liberty Bowl.

When I started a new relationship all the previous dysfunction was discarded like garbage and left in the past.

Instead of looking back, I wanted to focus on the new, exciting and different experiences my new relationship offered.

Screaming, whining and delusional accusations from a psycho ex was not going to change that for me.

It won’t change that for Aggies, either.
Discussion from...

Missing the Mark: The truth about Texas A&M 'ducking' Texas Tech

68,382 Views | 64 Replies | Last: 8 yr ago by TBrooster87
la_guns
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LSU will be a tougher opponent against Tech than A&M would have been.
Joe Exotic
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AG
quote:
LSU will be a tougher opponent against Tech than A&M would have been.

Both would be horrible matchups for Tech.
fightinag
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As much as I hate to say it ..... Kliff would rip A&M pass defense a new one....while A&M would be be running till Easter against the tech defense.Would be a 64-63 game
NEXT YEAR IS HERE.......again
Leap Day William
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quote:
As much as I hate to say it ..... Kliff would rip A&M pass defense a new one....while A&M would be be running till Easter against the tech defense.Would be a 64-63 game

No he wouldn't.

They have not faced a pass defense as good as what we have. Spaz's offense has also not faced a defense as terrible as their defense is.

quote:
LSU will be a tougher opponent against Tech than A&M would have been.

They are actually going to be able to score against lsu much more than they would have scored against A&M. If lsu does something stupid other than running the ball down tech's terrible defense throat, they will find themselves in much more of game than anyone expected.

lsu's defense has regressed from last year and steele is terrible against spread offenses. Do not let the A&M game fool you. Anyone with any ability to scheme or good talent can shut down Spav.

txagssweetie2014
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There is no upside for Sumlin to play Kingsbury. There is only downside risk.
94Aggie95
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AG
Nice article Olin! We are done with the little 12!
ATXredraider
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DISCLAIMER: Although I bleed Red and Black I hold no animosity for the Aggies-

Having read Texs Monthly and other sources' negative articles about Texas A&M & the SEC over Bowl Game match ups, I thought it fair and interesting to hear from the other side.

I could not get past the sexist, degrading, allegedly clever comparison of The Big 12 to a "psycho bi er, young lady."

Literally. I stopped reading after "That's like saying Rosie O'Donnell won't go to a restaurant for fear of getting fed."

So I still don't know an opinion from a Aggie point of view. But I know I'm glad TxAgs doesn't represent my university (officially or unofficially, I'm not sure).

Seriously, if you have to resort to such low-brow garbage to start off your article...er, well, ya just ain't worth wastin' my time. Managed to degrade women and fat shame in one article.
Shame on you. And sympathy to the females or plus size folks in your world.
Three Step Drop
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Simply stating "LSU was the superior team and the SEC allowed them to pick before A&M. LSU chose the better bowl game". Would have been sufficient, everyone would have agreed with your point and moved on.

Claiming that Texas A&M is a "lion" to Texas Tech's "zebra" makes Olin look petty and clueless.

Texas Tech earned the better bowl game, will earn more money for their conference, and face off against a much better opponent.
John T White
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Olin made some good points but he missed some things. First, of course LSU wants to play in Houston. They want to play in Texas as much as possible to help them with Texas recruits. Perhaps Olin's best point that perhaps LSU had priority, but I am not sure about that.
Consider the stories lines for a A&M-Tech matchup. Sumlin's offense has never been quite the same since Kingsberry left for Tech. I think the freakish natural ability of Manziel had a lot to do with that, but Kingsberry did not hurt. How embarrassing if Tech piled up a bunch of yards on another [remember Arkansas] SEC defense?
Secondly, Tech and A&M are still old rivals. Tech would love to beat us.
Now consider the game from our perspective. It would be very sweet to beat Tech, for just the opposite reasons stated above. Sumlin sticks it to his old protg. The Raiders could sulk on the South Plains.
Billy said a few weeks ago on the Zone that if Tech wound up losing to Vanderbilt and/or LSU and wound up playing a Big Twelve team and lost...that it would be a disaster. Me thinks too many folks felt the same way.
Why not go for the gusto and have taken the chance? Who is to say that we would be in a better position to whip a Big Twelve team in a bowl next year? If we wound up in the top 10 and played a Big Twelve team in a better bowl than the Belk or Texas, the Big Twelve team will be better too. But we will play one sooner or later.
This just smells and looks like we ducked Tech, regardless of the good points that Olin made.
Lateralus Ag
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AG
If we were winning more games than we were losing in the SEC no one would be writing any of these articles.

Clown Question
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quote:

I could not get past the sexist, degrading, allegedly clever comparison of The Big 12 to a "psycho bi er, young lady."

It is absolutely true. When we left, all the big12 wanted to do is talk about how they would not play us.

We were fine with that because we wanted a change of scenery. We got tired of playing the same two bit state schools every year and playing bowls in Texas almost every year.

Now that we have that, the big12 trash is whining about it. Go away.
quote:

If we were winning more games than we were losing in the SEC no one would be writing any of these articles.
That is stupid because it is not like tech is tearing up the big12. Overall we have won more games than we have lost in the SEC. This year we went 4-4 in conference play. We have won more games in the SEC over the last four years than tech has in the big12 and they get the advantage of isu and ku every year plus an extra conference game.
quote:

This just smells and looks like we ducked Tech, regardless of the good points that Olin made.
It smells like we have some self-loathing Ag with BAS. We do not owe tech anything. We do not owe it to them to make or not make their day. tech and louisville are interchangeable except louisville finished with a better conference record in an equally ****ty conference. But we did not play louisville for decades. We played in Nashville once this year but it was for the first time in decades (if ever). We play every home game 90 miles from Houston.

coupland boy
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AG
After reading some of the posts in this and other threads I'm convinced we're our own worst enemy.
hc3onthediamond
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AG
No way is Louisville better than Tech.
Leap Day William
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quote:
No way is Louisville better than Tech.


louisville has much better defense than anything tech has faced all season. Both their conferences suck but louisville won more conference games.

tech gives up over 40 points a game. Petrino has had his struggles on offense but he would destroy that defense.
coupland boy
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AG
quote:
No way is Louisville better than Tech.


Oh wow. Welcome rookie.
Cochandl
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Yeah, no. Not buying it. These are some pretty weak rationalizations. For one thing, this whole "we beat Oklahoma in a bowl game one time" doesn't really fly. After all, the next season, Oklahoma beat an Alabama team that absolutely annihilated A&M that year. This is college football. It's almost impossible to predict how teams match up based on performance from previous years. Do you not know that?

You truly have to twist logic to convince yourself that Nashville is a more logical place for A&M fans than Houston. Also, the whole pretzel you tied trying to explain how one previously played location is preferable to another is laughable. C'mon, just admit you're cheating off the university talking points.

The truth is, A&M has once again settled into being a lower-middle contender in a gutted SEC that maybe has two legitimately strong teams. Tech most likely would have caused the Aggie defense to disintegrate, but we'll never know, will we? Because somehow one school managed to conjure a handful of thin excuses.

It's funny, A&M claims to run Texas, but all I see is them running away from Texas schools every chance they get. Poor, sad kids.

Oh, also, you do realize that the Big 12 doesn't publish Texas Monthly, right? So using an article published by a neutral party as a springboard to calling the Big 12 needy is wrongheaded at best. Re-read the article and try to come up with something better. You'll get there someday!
Leap Day William
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quote:
After all, the next season, Oklahoma beat an Alabama team that absolutely annihilated A&M that year.


No they didn't. They barely beat A&M at Kyle, you stupid piece of big12 trash. The fact that you are here trying to talk smack proves the psycho ***** theory we talk about.

You are trash. Your school is trash. Your conference is trash. That is the truth.

quote:
You'll get there someday!

Maybe someday your POS school will be important enough that insecure twats from other schools come to your boards to talk trash. I doubt it because your POS ass is here now showing how much A&M owns real estate in your head.
Humorous Username
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AG
quote:
Yeah, no. Not buying it. These are some pretty weak rationalizations. For one thing, this whole "we beat Oklahoma in a bowl game one time" doesn't really fly. After all, the next season, Oklahoma beat an Alabama team that absolutely annihilated A&M that year. This is college football. It's almost impossible to predict how teams match up based on performance from previous years. Do you not know that?

You truly have to twist logic to convince yourself that Nashville is a more logical place for A&M fans than Houston. Also, the whole pretzel you tied trying to explain how one previously played location is preferable to another is laughable. C'mon, just admit you're cheating off the university talking points.

The truth is, A&M has once again settled into being a lower-middle contender in a gutted SEC that maybe has two legitimately strong teams. Tech most likely would have caused the Aggie defense to disintegrate, but we'll never know, will we? Because somehow one school managed to conjure a handful of thin excuses.

It's funny, A&M claims to run Texas, but all I see is them running away from Texas schools every chance they get. Poor, sad kids.

Oh, also, you do realize that the Big 12 doesn't publish Texas Monthly, right? So using an article published by a neutral party as a springboard to calling the Big 12 needy is wrongheaded at best. Re-read the article and try to come up with something better. You'll get there someday!


A magazine staffed by texas graduates, attendees, and not-so-secret fans, that caters to a state with four BDF teams, hardly counts as a neutral party.

Nice try, rook. You'll get there someday!
rockylarues
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quote:
They have not faced a pass defense as good as what we have. Spaz's offense has also not faced a defense as terrible as their defense is.
And A&M didn't play any passing offenses as good as Tech's in the SEC. I bet Arkansas would agree.
Leap Day William
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quote:
And A&M didn't play any passing offenses as good as Tech's in the SEC. I bet Arkansas would agree.


But every defense they played was better than tech's.
Meximan
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quote:
Great article and explanation by OB...the problem is that only TexAgs readers will see it, whereas TM
is read by a lot of people.
If by a lot you mean fewer people than read Texags on a daily basis.

When I worked at the Chronicle, they got most of their circulation by paying us to include their magazine in the Sunday paper. Paid to get circulation.
Meximan
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quote:
Managed to degrade women and fat shame in one article.
Shame on you. And sympathy to the females or plus size folks in your world.
If by women and fat shame you mean legitimately psychotic women, then yes.

And they do exist. I know a number of them personally. They don't deserve respect any more than your average man who also happens to be a bonafide, unrepentant a**hole. Oh wait, I just degraded all men, too, by targeting a single demographic and having someone apply my narrow generalization to all men... I must be a bad person.

A rusted nail is a rusted nail no matter how much you clean it up.
Meximan
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Furthermore, claiming that Olin's narrow generalization of psychotic ex-girlfriends somehow applies to all women in general probably does more damage than Olin's statements; you just blatantly decreed that all women are psychotic b*tches. There's a lot of women here who might punch you for that.
headshrinker
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AG
The grandiosity that some of my fellow Aggies have is incomprehensible. Sadly, many of the power brokers who share this identity will keep Sumlin on board for another year, but they really have no choice since the number of vacancies relative to the talent pool of proven coaches is not favorable to replace him this year. He is clearly over his head. Thank God we are not playing TT with Allen leaving because a loss to that bunch would have been devastating. Whereas with Louisville, with whom we are not in recruiting competition will be more tolerable, though still painful. Live and learn. However, we have been living through this crap for years, but have not learned a thing. The culture that Sumlin has foster is one of unfettered, undisciplined individualism, which is the antithesis of everything A&M stands for.
ATXredraider
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YOUR RESPONSE MISSES THE POINT ENTIRELY. or to quote the article title... your response "misses the mark."

The writer lost credibility for the argument through the use of degrading comparisons using sexist and fat shaming language.
This is the year 2015. Women participate in collegiate sports, both as spectators and participants. The degrading portrayal of a FEMALE ex as crazy, etc. is not a great way to garner our support for.

Writer and editors need to leave the "cave-man mentality" back in the past where it belongs.
(degrading comparison on purpose here to make the point!!)
ATXredraider
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quote:
quote:
Managed to degrade women and fat shame in one article.
Shame on you. And sympathy to the females or plus size folks in your world.
If by women and fat shame you mean legitimately psychotic women, then yes.

And they do exist. I know a number of them personally. They don't deserve respect any more than your average man who also happens to be a bonafide, unrepentant a**hole. Oh wait, I just degraded all men, too, by targeting a single demographic and having someone apply my narrow generalization to all men... I must be a bad person.

A rusted nail is a rusted nail no matter how much you clean it up.
Please understand the concepts of generalizations and micro-aggression before you make a sarcastic reply to a legitimately written concern. The writer's use of the comparison perpetuates a stereotype. I would have found it equally disturbing if the comparison targeted a generalization of males that painted a broad picture of the ex-boyfriend with a stereotype that was degrading.
Cowtown Raider
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Whether the author's right or wrong, A&M forever loses its ability to whine, "UT is afraid of us and won't play us! ! They are cowards." This game that could've been will forever be thrown back in y'all's faces.


Cowtown

Filthy Beast
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2 Timothy 4:3-4 (NIV)

BamafaninTX
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It's a good article overall but the author probably should have focused more on how Bowl Games and conferences don't like to have their teams go to the same games consecutively. What led the SEC office to change it's tie-ins and bowl selection process what the numerous comlaints from both the bowls and the teams. In fact, when Slive initially announced the change, he specifically referenced requests from both the Sugar Bowl and Florida about their team going so many times in a row. Attendance and merchandizing goes down each year a team goes back to the same destination. The Rose Bowl just came out and said the same thing about Wisconsin when they were basically letting the world know they would not take Ohio State over Iowa if given the choice.

Texas Tech, the Big 12 etc can scream all they want about ducking opponents but the data shows that bowls don't fare as well when they had the same teams in consecutive years.
TBrooster87
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AG
Nice choice for the Ags...Already played in NRG stadium against Arizona State...packed the house...going to Nashville for second time should be a more exciting trip for the team. Just getting away from Texas and H-Town. Been threr and done that.....And Louisville is a really good team, not to be under rated....I'm ready to see Sumlin's offense take off...with a dual threat QB...receivers got to catch the balls!!! And Chavis's defense get after the ball!!....BTHOL!!!....GOAGS!

I hope TT beats LSU.....Go Red Raiders!!! But.....not so fast.....TT's defense is a lot better this year than last. I'd like to see how TT plays offense against LSU...This game could be a great game to watch if TT figures out how to beat the corners on 2nd layer of LSU....
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