Seeds of opportunity: Morrison's Aggies now have chance to blossom
Buzzing bees help flowers bloom even brighter.
Of course, flowers can't bud unless somebody plants a seed.
For Jamie Morrison's budding Texas A&M program, the buzz is in full effect ahead of Friday's Southeastern Conference opener against No. 8 Texas.
“My wife was just at the post office, and they were talking about our match,” he said at Monday’s press conference. “She was at her gym right before that, and they were talking about it. I know there is a buzz around town. I know people will show up.”
There’s no doubt that people will show up.
As of Tuesday, all reserved seats had been sold, with only general admission tickets remaining.
As enthusiasm grows in College Station, there is a very real possibility that Friday’s match could surpass the program’s record crowd of 6,822 — set against Texas on Sept. 17, 2021.
The Aggies' 9-1 non-conference record brings plenty of reasons for optimism.
A renewal of the Lone Star Showdown magnifies that excitement.
“September 27 has been circled on the calendar for a long time for a lot of people,” the Aggie head coach said. “For me, it’s adding a lot more interest to what it is we’re doing and getting the people in the stands and getting them to fall in love with what we’re doing.
“It’s one of the best rivalries in sport. For our sport, if both teams are firing at a high level and we’re going after each other, I think it ups the ante for our sport.”
Indeed, Morrison is eager, if not anxious, to showcase just how much has been built since he arrived in College Station in December 2022.
He has worked tirelessly to transform an A&M program that missed five of the previous six NCAA Tournaments.
Signs of growth are already evident.
A year ago, his Aggies upset No. 4 Florida early in SEC play, and despite dropping five of their final six regular-season matches, they went dancing for the first time since 2019.
But in the first round, Morrison & Co. ran into a buzzsaw: the Texas Longhorns, who went on to win their second straight national title.
“Our team showed up to play,” he recalled. “I didn’t think the moment got to them.
“I think the level of play is going to be really, really high. … I think it’ll be a battle.”
An NCAA Tournament matchup in Austin was his first taste of the A&M-Texas rivalry.
Friday will be Morrison's second, this time on home soil.
However, the seeds of possibilities for the A&M program were planted long before that.
Ironically, it was a different A&M-Texas match with Morrison on the other side of the rivalry.
Unironically, the date was Sept. 17, 2021.
“It was actually the seed that got planted in the back of my head of ‘if this were to ever open up, this is a place you could build something special where people care about it,’” Morrison said. “Really, it was the birth and the beginning of me being here.”
While a record crowd poured into Reed Arena, the then-40-year-old Texas volunteer assistant felt the spirit of the 12th Man through the television.
Morrison spent a couple of years on Jerritt Elliott's staff in Austin.
He'd watch film. He'd game-plan Texas' opponents.
But most of all, he observed. He learned what a championship program looked like.
Now, that seed has grown significantly just 90 miles east.
“From a volleyball standpoint, we’re getting more physical and more skilled,” Morrison said. “We’re just getting better at playing volleyball. There’s these little touches that we continue to make. We’re getting to be a better all-around volleyball team.
“On the other side of you, you have to build a brand around your program. When I took over this, it was to try to make sure people think about this program when you say the word ‘volleyball’ in Texas. I think we’re getting there. … There is that overall feeling that something is building here, and that’s exactly what we want.”
The Aggies are 9-1 thus far. They're unbeaten (5-0) at home. All-SEC selections Logan Lednicky and Ifenna Cos-Opkalla anchor this upstart A&M squad.
Hopes of improving on last year’s 8-10 SEC record begin against a conference newcomer and a bitter rival.
Because of course it does.
“It ups the ante for the SEC,” Morrison said of the conference opener with Texas. “I think it’s an awesome — and I don’t know if it was planned — way to start SEC play to put this right at the forefront of it.”
With the allure of a historic rivalry on full display, Friday night’s lights might seem brighter.
And if his plan indeed comes into full bloom, it might be time to give Morrison his flowers.
Perhaps even in the form of Maroon bluebonnets in front of an Austin landmark.
