Key quotes from R.C. Slocum interview:
"Texas A&M is the best it has ever been. Kevin [Sumlin] has all the qualities to be a great head coach. I think he is as well qualified than anyone, anywhere."
"A lot of people don't realize that we are not as talented as we need to be. There are a lot of areas that are lacking in talent. But I am very confident in Kevin bringing the talent here."
"The best is yet to come [for Texas A&M.] It's a project... but a project with a great start."
"Kevin Sumlin has exceeded my expectations. We have to give a lot of credit to the boldness to the A&M administration to make the move to the SEC."
"What A&M did last year far exceeded my expectations. I thought we would be competitive and I thought we would have a winning season. But we got momentum going and no one could have imagined having a quarterback as good as Johnny was."
"A&M is lacking the real difference making players on defense. We can see what a guy like that does for your offense... look at Mike Evans, Johnny Manziel and Jake Matthews. We need to get those type of guys on defense."
"Johnny is, no question, the best I have ever seen at QB. He has it all."
"The truly great players, like John Elway and Johnny Manziel, who has the best ability I have ever seen, feels pressure but always sees what is going on. He has a great instinct to see great peripheral vision. He doesn't panic. He is confident."
"The great players always feel like they can get better... every game, every season."
"I love his effort on the field. I love his demeanor. He plays with great confidence, great poise. He looks like he loves playing football."
"I see him staying in the pocket more and letting things develop more than he did a year ago."
"The coaching staff that we have starting with the head coach, the facilities that we have... I think we have figured it out here at Texas A&M. We will give the coaches here every opportunity to get good players."
"In my mind, it doesn't matter what Texas does. I don't think they figure in to this argument [about recruiting.]"
"The best motivation is having your family up in those stands. That's a great selling point for local players playing at the highest level of competition in the SEC."
"In the pre-season, when you talk about the best teams in the country... A&M should be in that conversation."
"[The R.C. Slocum Nutrition Center for football] opens officially on Monday. It is a big honor for me to have my name on anything at Texas A&M. That's a personal thing that I am very proud of."
"It makes no sense to have the best weight room around and the best S&C coach around and not have the best nutrition center. It's like having a Ferrari and putting in the cheapest, sorriest gas in it. It just doesn't make sense."
"In the sport of football, the camaraderie of going out to practice and then coming in to sit down and eat together is a great, great addition to our facilities. It doesn't matter whose name is on it."
"The coaches are really excited. This is a huge improvement for Texas A&M football. I am so appreciative, as are the coaches for all the people who stepped up and donated."
"It has taken a long time to catch up. But once we realized the need, people have stepped up in giving."
"When a recruit comes to your campus and compares facilities to other places he has been, and good players have seen the best. he can make 2 assumptions and both are bad. 1) They don't care, it's not important or 2) maybe it's important, but they can't afford it. Both are bad."
""Texas A&M does care [about facilities]... and we do have the money. Now that is evident."
"Kevin Sumlin just grabs you... his smile and his personality."
"I stayed after him. I wouldn't take no for an answer and I finally got him down here and brought him in as assistant head coach and WR coach."
"I was very concerned about our offense. But I didn't know if it would be totally fair to make a change on offense after just one year. I was probably too fair. After 1 or 2 games without any changes on offense, I gave Kevin Sumlin full control of the offense. I told him 'You call the plays, it's your deal' and I expected everyone to support what he did."
"After I gave him full control, it was like a flipped switch from an anemic offense that was a struggle to put points on the board to just lighting it up on the field."
"I give credit to Kevin Sumlin for the success of the offense with Reggie McNeal and Terrence Murphy [beating #1 OU in 2002]."
"I have always told him that if I would've made that switch sooner, maybe I would still be coaching. At least I got it done. I was not surprised at all that he was successful at doing it."
"I saw that Kevin would be something special."
