If Kevin Sumlin leaves Texas A&M, it won’t be because the administration asked him to go.
Texas A&M athletics direction Eric Hyman received some tough questions in an interview with SportsDay on Monday, and some of his answers about the football program were very informative.
DallasNews.com’s Kate Hairopoulos transcribed some of Hyman’s interview.
Here are a couple of snippets from that transcription:
On if there had been any consideration of removing Sumlin from the job:
“In response to your question, at no time have we ever thought about it and discussed it. That’s about as clear as you can be. We’ve got to be realistic here – if you look at what Kevin has accomplished in the four years he’s been here from a historical standpoint, it’s at the top. This is a brutal league. It’s a 12-round boxing match every time you go out on a Saturday. It’s good news-bad news. Good news it’s the best league in the country. Bad news it’s the best league in the country.”
On if Sumlin has been involved and engaged in the decision making surrounding the program, presumably including the letting go of offensive coordinator Jake Spavital:
“Gosh almighty, of course he is. Yes, I think he’s more than fully engaged.”
On dealing with concerns about the perception of the program:
“If I had a dollar for every rumor in this business I’d be retired a long time ago. That’s 20-plus years I’ve been an athletic director. I can’t get caught up in all the rumors and innuendo. It’s gotten more difficult because of social media. …Coach Sumlin is our coach; we’re looking forward to the future. He has done not only from a competitive standpoint but an academic standpoint all the principles that we think Texas A&M represents he represents.”
Nick Cole is a former print journalist with several years of experience covering the SEC. Born and raised in SEC country, he has taken in the game-day experience at all 14 stadiums.
