I've had two days to think about this and here are my thoughts.

I've been on Texags since the early days. I attended A&M when RC was still coach. I joined Texags right around when RC got fired and then the dreaded Fran years. There have been ebbs and flows over that time, and I've spent a lot of time on Texags, more than I should have lol.

There are a lot of good things about Texags. The basketball board is great. I spend a fair amount of time there every March. A lot of smart, knowledge, and passionate fans. I only have good things to say about that board. Same with the baseball board.

I enjoy the non sports boards too. The fitness board, the home improvement board, the travel board, the DFW board, etc. all good content and quality interactions.

But in terms of football, Elko is right. Talking football on Texags is a fools errand. The football board is the biggest collection of group think that I've ever seen (not just in sports, in general). I come here for comedic value, and I must admit that it is entertaining at times. Sure there are some good posters on here, but in general it's a collection of people who have obviously never played sports before, yet they have a lot of ideas.

Now that said, our performance on the field has been embarrassing. Taking a shot at Texags was uncalled for. Even if he was being factually true, it served no purpose to better the program. I'd like to see Elko turn this around, but if he's not the guy he's not the guy. I really hope he spends more time focusing on football and less time on the message boards.

There is nothing said on this board that isn't said on every football fan message board, everywhere. I'd say TexAgs moderates better than most, if not all, other fan sites out there. And yet I haven't heard any other coaches complaining about their respective message boards...

And I say this not as a defense of the negativity here, but to point our the immaturity of a coach who would stoop that low. It's very concerning

If you want an analysis as to why here it is:
1. Social media (short form) will naturally become more cynical and negative. So yes there will generally be a strong negative bias and why moderation is needed.
2. People dont know how to set reasonable expectations and be pleased. If we won the SEC Championahip but lost second round of the playoffs people will be disappointed. Because it will feel more like a missed opportunity than a successful season. The pitfall of being closer to success feeling more like failure.
3. Aggie football isnt about the community anymore. The traditions are phased out. The players arent students. The coaches dont care for the fans. The games are 4 hours long and at the heat of the day. There is less and less intrinsic value outside of winning to be positive about A&M.
4. The distance between reasonable expectations and performance is too wide. This is the case this season.

5. A&M treats fans like a money source they can squeeze. Yeah fans are going to feel owed something when they have to pay $20 to be able to walk a mile to the stadium. When ticket prices keep rising. Concession prices are through the roof and the quality is poor. At some point people feel like they are abused. And well to an extent I dont think you can blame them.

I've been here longer than you. It's worse in a lot of ways but that's true for society in general. There was a time when you could follow the game thread for updates when you didn't have access to the game. The game thread lives at the very bottom of the cesspool. Unreadable with all the negativity.

Why are coaches and players reading message boards? Watch more film read less posts.

All sorts of things are said on this board that I think (or at least hope) people wouldn't say to your face. I think usually alcohol is involved.

That having been said, the same is true for most of the Internet.

I think Elko was trying to take some of the heat from his players, but he came across as pitifully thin-skinned.

Quote:

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Why are coaches and players reading message boards? Watch more film read less posts.

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I get the idea that the average age for a poster on TA is about 50. I really don't think players are reading this forum. Starting to wonder about the coaches though...

Cesspool: Elko :: Deplorable: Hillary