First and 10: It's go time, Jimbo. Why Florida could be the beginning of end for Texas A&M coach
1. I don’t want to get on a soapbox, but …
If Alabama was the bar for Jimbo Fisher, Florida is the referendum.
At this point, it’s a binary choice: 3 years into a guaranteed $75 million coaching contract, is Texas A&M getting tangible dividends from its investment in Fisher?
“In this conference, every game is important, every game is big,” Fisher says.
In the SEC, one game can set in motion a chain of events that can unravel even the securest of coaching deals. That one game could be this weekend, when Texas A&M plays host to Florida – with The Jimbo Referendum staring in the face of those deep-pocket Aggies boosters.
Fisher and Gators coach Dan Mullen were hired at the same time, replacing coaches who couldn’t get it done amid huge expectations. While the jobs aren’t equal (Florida is clearly the premium job), their framework is nearly identical.
Unwavering financial support, top 3 geographical recruiting footprint, rabid fan bases that die a slow death with every loss.
The difference: Mullen has the Gators trending toward a huge year behind a Heisman Trophy candidate at quarterback (after back-to-back double-digit win seasons), and Fisher has the Aggies scrambling to find their footing with a shaky quarterback (after back-to-back unremarkable seasons).
The Alabama humiliation last weekend is one thing; everyone in the SEC is chasing the gold standard of the conference. Everyone bleeds when playing the Tide.
But losing at home this weekend to Florida, to a direct and unmistakable comparison of what happens when you hire the right coach, underscores some damaging realities for Fisher as an FBS coach.
Supporters will point to 3 quarterbacks developed by Fisher at Florida State who were first-round selections in the NFL Draft. They’ll talk about the slew of draft picks Fisher recruited at FSU, the 29-game winning streak, the 2013 national championship and a spot in the first College Football Playoff in 2014. But that’s old news.
Fisher’s Texas A&M teams are a shadow of what he had at FSU. He’s 18-10 in College Station, and 10-8 in SEC games. Sumlin, by comparison, was 15-13 in his last 18 games, and 8-10 in the SEC.
Fisher’s Aggies teams are 3-8 vs. ranked teams, 6-7 vs. the SEC West and 1-6 vs. West heavyweights Alabama, LSU and Auburn. The only win among that group was a 74-72 overtime gift over LSU (a game LSU should have won in regulation were it not for a terrible call).
More damning: without the two supernova seasons of Jameis Winston in 2013-14, Fisher’s FSU and Texas A&M teams are 29-21 vs. Power 5 teams. And this is a $75 million coach ($85 million when Sumlin’s buyout is factored in)?
God bless Jimmy Sexton, the greatest sports agent ever.
Meanwhile, we give you Mullen, who toiled for nearly a decade at Mississippi State before landing a Florida job at its lowest point since Steve Spurrier returned to his alma mater in 1990. Jim McElwain was such a bad hire in Gainesville, his team and roster was such a mess by Year 3, Florida used McElwain’s contrived story of “death threats” on social media to force him out midseason.
Mullen took a 4-8 team without a legitimate quarterback and won 21 games over the next 2 seasons. He’s 23-5 overall and 13-5 in SEC games. He 4-3 vs. AP ranked teams and 9-4 vs. the SEC East Division – admittedly a much easier division than what Fisher has dealt with over the past 2 seasons.
That’s what makes this game so important. It’s easy for Fisher to proclaim life in the West is more difficult than the East, but that argument fades with a loss to Florida. It’s easy to proclaim you’re headed in the right direction and those oil magnate boosters must be patient, but that cliché is less of a crutch if you can’t beat Florida and the guy who was hired the same season under the same circumstances.
2. The QB whisperer
Fisher built his reputation on recruiting and developing quarterbacks at LSU and Florida State.
As offensive coordinator at LSU, he got former minor league baseball player Matt Mauck to perform at an elite level and lead the Tigers to the 2003 national championship. At FSU, he developed 3 quarterbacks into first-round selections in the NFL Draft (Christian Ponder, EJ Manuel, Winston).
Yet since that run of elite quarterbacks at FSU ended after the 2014 season, the lineup is less than impressive: Everett Golson, Sean Maguire, Deondre Francois, James Blackman and now Kellen Mond.
You can’t put all of the Aggies’ problems on Mond, who has played hard (and not all that poorly) despite some shaky protection – but hasn’t been distinctively different, either.
His numbers under Fisher’s tutelage are solid (48 TDs, 19 INTs), but his completion percentage still is under 60 (58.3) 2 games into his 3rd season.
And the argument that Mond isn’t Fisher’s recruit doesn’t work. If Fisher didn’t think Mond was the best option to help him win games, any of his 3 quarterback recruits from 3 recruiting classes would have played (they haven’t).
Meanwhile, there is Mullen who has accomplished more as a developer of quarterbacks than Fisher, yet doesn’t get near the attention. He, too, developed a quarterback who was the first overall pick in the NFL Draft (Alex Smith), and 2 of his quarterbacks (Smith and Tim Tebow) were first-round picks, and Dak Prescott is one of the NFL’s elite quarterbacks.
He made an SEC quarterback out of Feleipe Franks in 2018 (when McElwain couldn’t), and then took Kyle Trask, who hadn’t started since 9th grade, and won 11 games in 2019. Trask now is an early Heisman favorite and a likely first-round selection.
“There’s a reason (Mullen) is one guy our personnel people keep talking about,” one NFL scout told me. “He knows the position, a fantastic teacher. Football is all about the quarterback – now more than ever. He’s doing it as well as anyone.”
3. The Jimbo Referendum, The epilogue
The lack of significant wins is one thing, taking control of the state of Texas is a completely different – but as important – piece of the puzzle.
At a time when Texas A&M could (and should) take control of the state of Texas in recruiting, Fisher is trading blows with bitter rival Texas on the recruiting trail – despite all of Texas’ problems.
The Longhorns haven’t been a significant factor in the national title chase for nearly a decade, yet Texas A&M hasn’t capitalized on it. Sumlin did briefly, and Fisher has had intermittent success beating the Longhorns for elite state recruits (2019 was a big haul; 2018 and 2020 were not).
According to 247sports.com, Texas A&M has only 3 commitments from the state’s top 25 in the 2021 recruiting class. The Aggies’ highest-ranked in-state commitment is No. 13 Reuben Fatheree, a 4-star tackle. (Alabama has commitments from the state’s top prospect, Tommy Brockermeyer, a 5-star tackle, and the top QB, 4-star dual-threat Jalen Milroe.)
Lose to Florida this weekend, and the areas outside the state that have helped Fisher land 2 top-10 classes (particularly, the southeast) will be impacted, too.
As important as last week’s game was for Texas A&M to show how far it is from Alabama, the Florida game is capable of pulling back the curtain on something much more revealing: Fisher may not get it done in College Station.
4. Big Orange attention
There’s no getting around what this week means to Tennessee. Playtime is over. Time to get serious.
“This is going to be big boy ball,” Tennessee quarterback Jarrett Guarantano said via zoom call. “The spotlight is going to be on us.”
Ignore the Vols’ 8-game winning streak. It means they’ve done what they should do.
Beating South Carolina (twice), Missouri (twice), UAB, Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Indiana isn’t exactly moving the needle. This weekend at Georgia is when it gets real for the Vols.
Tennessee hasn’t beaten Georgia since 2016 – and only after a Hail Mary on the last play of the game. Georgia is 8-2 vs. Tennessee in the past 10 games and is coming off a feel-good domination of Auburn.
The Bulldogs have found their quarterback (Stetson Bennett IV), and the defense is wicked.
“There are more Sunday guys on that defense than any other in college football,” an NFL scout told me after last weekend’s games.
This is the first of 3 prove-it games for Tennessee under coach Jeremy Pruitt. Tennessee has struggled mightily vs. its 3 major rivals, including 2 East Division rivals (a combined 3-17 in the past 20 games vs. Florida and Georgia). The Vols have lost 13 straight to Alabama.
How can this be different? One word: Guarantano.
The senior quarterback has gone from a liability Pruitt dressed down for a huge mistake in the middle of last year’s Alabama loss, to a smart, efficient manager who – and here’s the key – is staying out of trouble with poor decisions and is protecting the ball. A bonus: He’s developing a nice touch on the deep ball, something Tennessee desperately needs when those elite teams crowd the line of scrimmage to stop the run and force Guarantano to beat them.
5. The Weekly Five
Five picks against the spread.
- Mississippi State at Kentucky (-3)
- Tennessee at Georgia (-14)
- Alabama at Ole Miss (+24.5)
- Florida at Texas A&M (+6)
- Arkansas (+18) at Auburn
Last week: 3-2
Season: 6-4
6. Your tape is your résumé
An NFL scout breaks down a draft-eligible player. This week: Alabama RB Najee Harris.
“I love him as a football player, and that’s important because he has some negatives. He’s tall, and he runs high. He’s not one of those guys that’s going to sneak and find a crease and hit it. He has good speed, but nothing electrifying. No suddenness. He’s not going to move the pile consistently. He’s a lot like T.J Yeldon in that sense. I’ve seen him take some big hits because of the way he runs. He’s tough, he grinds. He may not do that one thing better than anyone else, but he does a lot of things really well.
“He’ll be a very dependable back in this league. And he’s as high quality a guy as you’re going to get. He’ll be a great presence in the locker room. More and more these days, personnel folks are looking for the high character guys. Easier to deal with, and most of them have high football IQs. I love those guys; the true football players. Those guys are the glue of your team.”
7. Powered Up
This week’s SEC Power Poll — and one big thing.
1. Alabama: Hello, old friend. Good to see you’re back humiliating opponents. That new QB? A winner.
2. Georgia: This defense might be better than any Alabama defense Nick Saban and Kirby Smart ever had. Auburn averaged 1.8 ypc., and Bo Nix averaged 4.4 yards per attempt. Just, wow.
3. Florida: One’s an anomaly, two’s a trend. This Florida defense has a long way to go. They don’t cover well, and can’t get to the quarterback. A bad combination that will get exposed (again) this weekend.
4. Texas A&M: Mond is 3-10 vs. ranked teams as a starting QB, and his completion percentage has to move into the high 60s (currently 58.3) for the Aggies to upset Florida.
5. Tennessee: The run game has been building since the second half of last season. The line is stronger, and sophomore TB Eric Gray has developed into a dynamic runner.
6. Auburn: That might have been Bo Nix’s worst effort in 15 career games. Most of it was Auburn’s inability to protect, some of it was Nix’s penchant of bailing on his progressions too soon.
7. Mississippi State: This is what you get from Mike Leach: He’s so confident in what he does, he refuses to change – even when his first-year (in his offense) quarterback is staring at 8 defensive backs and making poor decisions.
8. LSU: The defense played smarter, the offense built consistency. One more week of improvement (vs. Missouri) before a critical game at Florida.
9. Ole Miss: Lane Kiffin never gets enough credit for his teaching: QB Matt Corral has gone from a loose cannon to a smart, efficient thrower. From 59% of passes completed, to 77.
10. Kentucky: Wildcats could easily be 2-0, and at the very least 1-1. These are the small problems (mistakes) Mark Stoops thought he had ironed out of his program. They’ve crept back in.
11. South Carolina: Another team that deserves better than 0-2. But at some point, we must go from talking about Will Muschamp not getting a break (at Florida and South Carolina) to his teams being better prepared to deal with adversity.
12. Missouri: Stop fooling around with QB Shawn Robinson. Connor Bazelak is the better option, even with his freshman mistakes. The upside looks tremendous.
13. Arkansas: One of the top coordinator hires in all of CFB: Hogs DC Barry Odom. Will be a head coach again soon, but until then, watch how much better the Arkansas defense becomes.
14. Vanderbilt: I don’t know how (or where) this team will score points. All season. There’s no one on the outside that scares defenses, and freshman QB Ken Seals is going to take a beating from a line that struggles to protect.
8. Ask and you shall receive
Matt: You media boys never get it. Always saying “this is the year” Alabama gives up the SEC to someone else, and every time it’s the same thing. Get used to it, baby!
Fredrick Joiner
Montgomery, Ala.
Fred: LSU took the SEC from Alabama in 2019. Since we’re clear on that, don’t jump in the deep end just yet on Alabama moving away from the pack in 2020. There were holes in the Tide defense against Texas A&M that the Aggies couldn’t take advantage of. There are offenses that could stress the Tide defense, and believe it or not, it might begin this weekend against Ole Miss. The Rebels aren’t going to beat Alabama, but my guess is we’ll be talking about some issues in the secondary for Alabama this time next week. Matt Corral can throw on time and with anticipation, and the Rebels have 2 NFL-ready receivers (Elijah Moore, Jonathan Mingo) and an NFL-ready tight end (Kenny Yeboah).
9. Numbers game: 3.4
Ed Orgeron said over and over this offseason that the strength of this LSU team is its running backs. John Emery Jr. and Tyrion Davis-Price lead a group of backs that currently average 3.4 yards per carry.
So how does LSU fix that problem? Run more. That’s right, more.
Orgeron says LSU might be focused too much on the passing game (83 of 153 total plays in w games have been pass plays), and that Emery and Davis-Price need more touches. They each have 19 carries this season.
That doesn’t mean a return to the crawl ball days of Les Miles, but it does mean Orgeron wants more of a 50-50 split in run-pass play calls.
They’ve been far off that mark through 2 games. One LSU staffer says the Orgeron mandate isn’t about limiting QB Myles Brennan’s throws; it’s about setting up higher percentage throws with a strong running game.
10. Quote to note
South Carolina cornerback Jaycee Horn: “We’ve played two tough teams. We can’t let those two games define us. We have eight games left. If we don’t keep fighting, it could get ugly.”
Matt, you are on point for a lot of these teams after 2 games. The SEC will sober you up in a hurry and expose what needs to be fixed. Good job on your overview. I for one enjoyed this read. Very accurate.
You, for one, enjoyed it; I, for two, enjoyed it.
Jimbo won his Natty by being in the weak ACC and by beating Gus “we’re gonna be butter (that’s how he pronounces it) next year” Malzahn. Enough said.
That FSU roster was one of the greatest top to bottom rosters of all time. he just didn’t keep it up in recruiting and developing. Got a little fat and lazy and bailed before it got really ugly. He’s not a great coach, any ol sunbelt coach could have put on the headset on that sideline in 2013 and won a natty and played their way into tens of millions of dollars.
I enjoyed the butter joke.
Lol. I stopped reading when I saw Arkansas lower than mizzou. Hilarious. One is 1-1 against top 20 teams. The other has spent two weeks as a beating stick. The last two seasons do NOT apply to this years power rankings. Arkansas may fall sure.. but as of now they should be much higher than mizzou.
Yes. Missouri is hire because the writer is saying Missouri is still better than Arkansas. You beat State! Everyone know State was beatable. So you think your team will win more games than Missouri? That is going to be interesting. We will wait and see at the end of the year. I still think Missouri will win against Arkansas.
Hire and hiiiiire, baby, it’s a living thing. It’s a dangerous thing to lose. It’s a given thing. What a terrible thing to lose.
-ELO-
Thank you for beating me to that lol.
My Gators are going to have their hands full with a Texas A&M team that has its back to the wall and something to prove.
I dunno about that. I’m not sure if TAMU or anyone in the country has anyone that is going to stop Kyle Pitts. I’m a little concerned about the Florida defense stopping anyone but they seem poised with Pitts and a healthy Toney to be able to win a shootout with anyone.
I hate to agree with you here bro but I don’t see TAMU outscoring Florida. We have more firepower than just Pitts & Toney so if someone can stop Pitts it will at the expense of somebody else being open and Trask has no problem finding the open guy
Florida’s defense isn’t a world beater but neither is Vandy’s and TAMU had a hard time showing anything against them. I expect the Florida Offense to do something similar to what Alabama did. TAMU doesn’t have the elite defense to stop them, nor the elite offense to keep up.
You are assuming Trask is going to continue to have all day to go thru his progressions, CO palley. Don’t know if you took your blinders off long enough to notice, but I saw your vaunted offense have two late game 3 and outs when the Coots got in his face…
Come on man not everyone can be as elusive as Stetson The Legend Bennet that performs at such a high level with or without pressure
I hope to lose all these games so that it can be a bat swing to the head for everyone in College Station and bring about an overturning change to either the starting roster or coaching staff. I’d rather want Jimbo to start more of these young players he recruited that ended up being top 10 recruits and start giving them field experience. Every loss then will be worth something.
You are of course entitled to feel however you wish about your team, but man, I don’t think I ever in the darkest days of Muschamp or McElwain wished for losses.
What?
lol I’m just sick of seeing Mond man. I’ve seen him for 3+ years and he’s the same guy I saw when he subbed for Nick Starkel. Jimbo will no matter what stick with Mond and if he decides to come back again next year, oh man other sec teams are in for a treat!
It’s going to be an awkward conversation in coach’s office when Mond lets Jimbo know he’s coming back next year to try to get him fired.
These are really funny to come back and read.
I’m getting a bad feeling about the game.
Texas A&M has talent. Jimbo and Elko know X’s and O’s.
Jimbo’s no doubt feeling the heat. Florida hasn’t had to pay for concerning issues on defense in all areas (pass rush, pass coverage, stopping the run).
I could easily see this being a “salvage the season” game for A&M.
Slightly reassuring: Ole Miss offense had another big day against a well-coached Kentucky team; Muschamp is still one of the conference’s top defensive minds.
But I worry if A&M is able to control the clock and keep the Florida offense off the field.
I think it’ll be a good, close game. A&M played a bit better vs Alabama than the score indicated. I can see them scoring on most of their offensive possessions. Trask also forced a few throws vs SC which could have been picked off. If Jimbo thinks the season rides on this game and goes for broke on 3rd and 4th downs, this game will be difficult, we’ve had trouble with them for years it seems like.
Maybe if you bring your gator out East might help get your team the win?
Good Read
How is Texas A&M fourth in the conference? They barely beat Vandy and got blown out by Alabama.
It doesn’t make a whole lotta sense. You’d think even just the common opponent thing with Vandy should kinda tell you where they are in comparison to LSU. Now I expected them to get blown out by Bama but they haven’t looked like the number 4 team in either game.
Who knows. I could easily see them finishing last in the West. Arkansas is a lot better, Mississippi St is better, and Ole Miss is better. All the bottom feeders getting better means someone has to drop off considerably. Based on these first two weeks, its a complete crapshoot in the West behind Alabama.
Arkansas beats Miss State but stays at 13 below mizzou? Dont let your bias ruin a good article.
LOL… welcome back hawg fans! Been many many years since you guys have been able to be chippy! Pittman Odom rock…
Your team beat State! That team should have won but gave the game away! Not easy to say your team is really the better team. Just like LSU lost to State doesn’t mean your team will beat LSU. LOL
I’m trying to envision a scenario in my mind where Atlanta can get Najee Harris somehow. The dude is a weapon. That catch he made on the wheel route looked like a body-control play most WRs would be envious of.
It’s not that hard to see him being available when the Falcons are drafting.
I just don’t wanna use a top 5 pick on a RB. RBs slip inot the 2nd round sometimes but he’s on the top of my list and I’m sure some team will scoop him up in the 1st.
Yep, RB just isn’t a good value pick for the top 10 anymore. I mean, if you just won the SB and somehow you’ve got a top 10 pick and you literally don’t need to fill any holes then take the best player. But for a team who’s in the top 10 for a reason it’s just not money well spent in that slot.
Until Atlanta gets a new coaching staff, no amount of talent will help that program. I say this as a Falcons fan.
Just might be fun to watch lol. They really need a CB, LB, DE, DT, OG, C, TE, RB.
100%
And LSU should have hired Odom, obviously.
Odom turned the job down!
Gitmo has at least 2 turnovers against the Dawgs, likely more, and the calls for Mauer or someone else will begin anew.
Nothing has changed. Just like Felipe Franks, Gitmo is who he is. He’s not the guy who can beat the good teams. And Jim Chaney is who he is. He’s not the OC that can beat the teams with the better defense.
Dawgs roll. 41-10.
Bailey is gonna get in there to start a new era before they retread Mauer.
The o line play was awful. Nix didn’t trust them all night which is why he would get out of the pocket too early when he did get “decent” protection (which was rare). Gotta fix the O line.
Unless the OL gets a WHOLE lot better, Auburn is going to have a similar struggle against LSU, Bama, and UT. It’s kind of hard to fix this recurring issue when they can’t seem to land any blue chip players on the line.
Top 25 matchup and we get the coveted noon kickoff for the 3rd straight time. FLA might not have a single night game all year as a current top 5 team. LSU and UGA games already scheduled for 330.
Would you rather have your team being bad or have a loss this season at this point than playing at night?
T A&M vs. Florida, with these defenses I’ll take the over of 57.5.
I’d smash that over and I’d expect Florida to be responsible for the bulk of it.
Georgia’s defense looks better than Alabama’s, primarily because of the experienced secondary. But Alabama’s still looks really good. And the defenses don’t play each other.
Texas A&M is a very talented team but it’s hard to see how a 58% CMP quarterback is going to keep up with the Florida offense, which was not crisp in the fourth quarter and should come into the game determined to sustain its effort for the entire game this week.
Jimbo is a very good play caller but a terrible program manager. His culture at FSU was awful, even during that winning streak, and FSU is still dealing with the fallout. Jimbo at TAMU is just another really bad marriage made possible by oil money.
Can Tennessee slow the game down enough with its running game to make it competitive this Saturday against Georgia? Probably not, but it’s going to be fun to watch.
Ole Miss has an elite guy at quarterback, who was Florida’s marquee commitment before McElwain got fired. With Kiffin coaching him and calling the plays, they are going to win a few more they maybe won’t be favored in.
Completely agree on Barry Odom being a fantastic hire. He was part of the long tradition of Missouri developing great defensive linemen and if you look at the 247 talent composite, Arkansas has about the same talent level as Kentucky and miles better than Missouri.
Can’t help think about Matt Corral and why Mullen let him go in favor of E Jones. I get Corral is a pro style & Jones fits Mullen’s system much better but dang can Corral sling it around
He can run a little bit too. Doesn’t have the size to take a beating like Franks or Trask but he’s a bit fleet footed.
Mullen didn’t just let him go. He and Johnson flew out to California to have an in home visit and Corral even tweeted a pic of them saying thanks for the visit I will see you this weekend in the Swamp, but committed to Ole Miss a few days later and cancelled his official. Maybe pursuing Jones turned him off, who knows, or maybe he just didn’t think he’d be a good fit in Mullen’s offense. The most shocking thing is the fact that Corral committed to playing for Mac.
Maybe he just didn’t like cousin eddie…probably wasn’t a Vacation movie fan…
Shocking indeed and not only him but Jamar Chase as well
Chase is a Louisiana kid and was always at risk to flip anyway.
What is Jimbo’s buyout? TAMU cant waste too much time, everybody knows in the SEC just keeping up is falling behind. Thats why we love it so much!
VOLS got a tough one this week, agree with others if can keep it close in 4th like the Big Orange’s chances.
There is no buyout, the $75 million is fully guaranteed. If they fired him after this season, then they would still owe him $52.5 million. What’s even worse is if he leaves to take another job, not only do they still owe him what’s left on the contract, but the new school hiring him would owe A&M nothing. It’s by far the most ridiculous contract in the history of college football for a guy that other than a 2 year run with a generational QB at FSU, has shown year after year that he severely underperforms with the talent he has.
If they fire him, they have to buyout the contract. IT’s still a buyout. Buyouts tend to be lower than the actual remainder on most contracts, but in this case he gets the remainder of his contract regardless….it’s still a buyout though.
Tomato tomahto
Joe Marks is simply wrong. He must keep coaching at A&M for the remaining term of the contract to continue getting the remaining portion of the contract. He can be fired “for cause” and not be paid. Walking away from the job would be “cause”.
Yes indeed. Not sure what Joe is talking about.
At the end of this season Jimbo’s buyout would be over $52M, with no hope of reducing that under any circumstances. Well, maybe if he’s caught in the school chapel with a hooker doing lines of coke, but Jimmy Sexton would probably win that battle.
As well-endowed as A&M is, that’s still a LOT of resources to toss away. If Jameis Winston’s favorite coach is 7-3 or 6-4 when the season is over, and recruiting against UT still blows, what happens? Bite the financial bullet with an all-in move, and try to lure Urban with an even bigger iron-clad contract? Give Jimbo more time while seeing Bama, LSU and UGA get a quick turnaround on their coaching investments?
Three years is long enough nowadays at a P5 school to get a solid feel for how a HC is performing, especially if the cupboard was reasonably well-stocked upon arrival. The comparison to Mullen at Florida is totally apt, and the game this Saturday could be positively Richt-ian if A&M is truly serious about a damm-the-torpedos football program.
Never heard about Urban being associated with A&M. Now if Corch would replace the “USC” with “A&M” and the “2020”with “2021” in his name then we would all know something is brewing
Tongue-in-cheek, sorta. Longhorn fans are making noises about dumping Herman and wooing Urban out of retirement. The best way A&M could keep that from happening would be to snatch up Urban themselves.
Urban doesn’t want to coach in the sec west. Not as long as Saban is still there.
Looks like another 93000 fan game in Athens. Just kidding. We were able to pressure nix but TN has better o line and running backs. I hope TN tries to run on us on early downs because it could result in lot of three and outs.
Neutral on Jimbo. I don’t follow Acc but I do know he talks faster than a teenage girl. Him and Herbie should have an annoyance contest. See which is more. Talking fast or never shutting up.
I can see Ole Miss winning a few games they shouldn’t this year.
LSU should run the ball more. Coach O knows what he is doing.
Barry Odom is difference maker for Ark. Sam is players coach and will recruit well.
Miss State…..idk
Ky seems to have let expectations get in Thier heads.
Sc. Muschamp should be DC. Not a HC.
Auburn…Perpetual turmoil regarding Gus. He needs a big win( like he always seems to get) just don’t know against who.
Fla….A DC away from being unstoppable.
Vandy…no hope.
Mizzou….the 2 east titles seem like 20 years ago.
Good call on Jimbo. He ain’t going to make it. He lost control at FSU and never figured out how to get it back. No discipline, no team.
Najee Harris is a good college back. Hope he gets a good education while there.
Must have used all his brain power on his article because his power rankings are all jacked up. After showing Jimbo’s ineptitude in his article, barely getting by Vandy and getting dog poo kicked out of them by Bama he keeps them at 4?!?! He has some other probs too but it’s early, it will shake out
“One’s an anomaly, two’s a trend. This Florida defense has a long way to go. They don’t cover well, and can’t get to the quarterback. A bad combination that will get exposed (again) this weekend.”
I think everyone is overreacting a tad on our defense. Agreed, game one was a horrible showing. But from game one to game two was day and night. If a couple of turnovers do not happen and we are not as apathetic in that 4th quarter, then we play a pretty solid game defensively.
Keep in mind we are down our best defensive linemen and some other starters on defense.
Also, after getting up three scores Dan Mullen as well as Granthem were playing some odd zone coverages, packages and also playing some young guys. I think the goal was to motivate the older players who were not playing with enough juice.
We are showing signs of a very good defense and pass rush at times. I think we have some motivation issues and a lot of guys taking plays off.
I look for a big jump from this week to the next. I say we hold A&M to 14 points and we role. It is the beginning of the end for Jimbo.
I hope we have Campbell back so we can get a better push. I also hope Granthem earns that paycheck this week. If not, his seat may be getting hot.
Well, well, well… too funny looking back.
Great article. And I’d add that a huge part of Jimbo’s recruiting success at FSU was Tim Brewster… who now works for Dan Mullen as TE coach. Go Gators.
How so, Did Brewster buy Jameis some crablegs? I thought Winston signed in 2012, Brewster wasn’t there then
Gather round, children, and you shall hear the tale of Dalvin Cook…
Dawg-blocking reply goes here
Didn’t realize Dalvin was on that Natty winning team, my bad
Desperation and the inability to maintain perspective during a coaching search hampers the ability to spot con artists.
Comparing Fla amd Texas Am last 3 yrs is not close.
Let Mullin play Clemson twice and Bama 3 times.
Fisher still played Lsu and Georgia.
10 of Am loses have been to teams ranked 1 or 2 .
7 of the 10 loses ha e been to teams ranked 1 or 2.
We don’t really need to compare anything. They’re getting ready to play. We can judge them on that.
You want to compare 2019?
Both teams played Auburn, one of them won. Both teams played the champs, one of them had a lead in the third and the other got blown out of the water, both teams played UGA. UF lost by 7 TAMU lost by 6. Ok that was a fun comparison. Did we learn anything?
Unless he does something to make me think otherwise, Leach is showing signs of the ailment that got Moorehead’s job. Lack of the ability to change when faced with something which isn’t working. I don’t have the wrods to express how I felt after the game with Ark. Disappointment isn’t adequate. What they needed to do was iron out the mistakes from last week but instead, they ceased to do the good things and began to look like a Moorehead team trying to drive a square peg into a round hole. On the upside, I have watched MSU pull defeat from the jaws of victory for so many years I now find myself not caring as much. This lack of caring was a surprise, but I find myself caring less and less if MSU wins or not. I mean, THEY don’t care, so why should I. With their death-grip on on lack of success and corresponding hold on mediocrity, MSU should just hire the least expensive coach they can and put the rest of the SEC money into education where it will do some good. Think what you will of me for this, it’s how I feel.
It was against Arkansas! So don’t feel too bad about that. Your team should bounce back.
Malzahn and Fisher are two peas in a pod. The difference Fisher’s QB made the last play in the game. Neither has won since and both are 8 and 5 coaches who need three out of conference cupcakes to get the 8.
Go back up and read Mr2bits post. Guys taking plays off….not playing with juice…..best guy hurt…….if no turnovers…..lack of motivation…and then saying everyone over reacting. I hope I never have to say that about any part of my team.
“Meanwhile, we give you Mullen, who toiled for nearly a decade at Mississippi State before landing a Florida job at its lowest point since Steve Spurrier returned to his alma mater in 1990.”
I’d say Mullen took over Florida at its lowest point since 1979 when the Gators were winless. The ’89 squad was better than the ’18 squad by a mile.
This writer Matt Hayes is a University of Florida grad. Just google “matt hayes sports writer linkedin” and you’ll see for yourself. He writes an article about Jimbo Fisher but it’s basiscally just an excuse to pump Mullen. Hayes does this all the time on SDS. He’s just a UF pimp writer. I’m calling out the editors of SDS to stop this kind of obviously biased drivel.
Oh I forgot to add self-promoting.
Well I just googled the editor Chris Wright and I don’t see in his LinkedIn where he went to school but he’s based out of Florida as well. Hmm.
Anybody considered that perhaps Jimbo’s issues at A&M demonstrate two things
How easy it was to win in the ACC when all you have to deal with is Clemson? And for most of Jimbo’s tenure, Clemson was building a beast not the beast they are now.
And his pro set style offense is not a good recruiting tool when nearly every high school in Texas runs a spread or Air Raid.
Top 5 Power rankings after this weekend should and probably will be:
1) Florida-Beat a top 25 team
2) Bama-Destroyed a decent team
3) Tennessee-Beat a top 5 team
4) LSU-Also destroyed their opponent (see #2)
5) Georgia-Just because there’s really no one else to put there.
Besides, their fanbase would have a total mental meltdown and would probably start some kind of snowflake revolution and get a lot of themselves and others hurt if they were to be ranked any lower.
Thanks, and have a good night.
What top 25 team has Florida beat?
1) Why is Texas A&M even ranked? They narrowly beat the worst team in the conference and got blown out by Alabama. Backs against the wall or not, I don’t see them beating an offensively superior Florida team.
2) Bama may destroy Ole Miss, but I think Ole Miss will put up a lot of offensive yards.
3) Tennessee is overrated and will come back to Earth after the loss to Georgia. Georgia will beat the spread.
4) LSU is also playing an inferior opponent, but have yet to show they are anything but a shell of last year’s team. I don’t think they will have a great year.
5) See response to #3.
Final thought: Every year TN fans proclaim that this is the year they come back to the forefront of the SEC East. Jarrett Guarantano will never take them to that promised land….never.
Can you imagine how insane WDE clan would be if Arkansas were to go to the barn and beat Auburn? I’m not betting that the Hogs could do that, but if they could, oh man, the plains would definitely be smoking.
South Carolina says if they can beat Auburn, Arkansas can too. If you can get Bo Nix out of the pocket, he will force throws and give you a few picks. He will, of course, also pick up first downs with his feet from time to time.
Aggies win. Now, tell me why Florida is “clearly” the premium job compared to A&M. You can’t do it. Sure, Florida has had more recent success than A&M, but that means squat. The truth is, A&M is at least equal, if not a better job.