Here are some quick thoughts on Texas A&M’s 27-21 loss to Louisville on Wednesday at the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl in Nashville.

What it means: When your top two quarterbacks transfer and you’re left with a third-stringer to make his first career start in the bowl game, expectations have to be dialed back a bit. So, while you never want to end the season with a bowl loss, not much meaning can be put into Wednesday’s setback other than to look at a disappointing 8-5 finish. It’s obvious the Aggies will have to go back to the drawing board over the offseason and develop the quarterback position and get ready to come back strong in 2016.

What I liked:

  • Aggies QB Jake Hubenak, making his first career start, showed the poise of a veteran. He wasn’t on target a lot of the time and he made some questionable decisions a first-time starter is expected to make. But he didn’t lose his composure despite being chased from the pocket on many occasions. Hubenak directed an impressive eight-play, 97-yard drive just before halftime to get the Aggies back in the game. He was 5-for-5 passing for 60 yards in the drive, including a 4-yard touchdown toss to Ricky Seals-Jones. He never gave up, driving the Aggies 86 yards in 8 plays with a 29-yard touchdown pass to Christian Kirk to make it a one-score game with just under 5 minutes remaining.
  • Aggies P Drew Kaser turned in one final outstanding game, averaging 43.7 yards on seven punts. The senior drove the Cardinals back with long punts, forcing Louisville to earn its way down the field. Unfortunately, a 31-yard punt just before halftime prevented Kaser from the NCAA all-time record for punting average.
  • The Aggies defense bowed its neck midway through the third quarter when Hubenak was sacked and fumbled the ball away near midfield. It could have been a turning point in the game, but the Aggies held and forced a turnover on downs, keeping the game within reach.
  • A&M had a great chance late to win but a reception by Christian Kirk at the 6-yard line was overturned on replay. Down six in the final two minutes, the Aggies would have had four shots from there had Kirk been able to hang on.

What I didn’t like:

  • Louisville freshman QB Lamar Jackson took advantage of Texas A&M’s overaggressive sack-master DEs Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall, keeping the ball on the read-option and racing around end for big gains. Jackson ran for two scores, including a 61-yard dash, and threw for another as the Cardinals’ scored on three of their first four possessions to take an early 20-7 lead. Jackson rushed and passed for 325 yards in the first half alone.
  • The Aggies’ offensive line play left a lot to be desired, especially early on. There was no run game to speak of until the Aggies fell behind and Hubenak was chased from the pocket more often than not on pass plays.
  • Tackling was a problem early on for the Aggies. A combination of overaggressive play and lethargic efforts in attempted tackles allowed Louisville to build a two-touchdown lead early and the Aggies played from behind the rest of the game.

Who’s the man: Unfortunately for Texas A&M, the man of the hour wore red. Jackson put the Cardinals on his back. The freshman rushed for 226 yards and two touchdowns and threw for 227 yards and two more scores. He accounted for 453 of the Cardinals’ 535 total yards of offense and is just the third quarterback in history (Vince Young, Johnny Manziel) to rush and pass for more than 200 yards each in a bowl game.

Key play: With the game still in doubt at the 5-minute mark of the third quarter, Jackson raced 37 yards to the Aggies’ 29-yard line, putting the Cardinals in position to drive for a touchdown that effectively put the game out of reach against a team whose quarterback was making his first career start.

Final thoughts: The Aggies offense, not surprising, is in disarray after the recent transfers of Kyle Allen and Kyler Murray at quarterback. Texas A&M limped to an 8-5 season, equaling last year’s mark. Progress must be made in 2016 or patience will run thin in regards to Sumlin’s future at the school. A lot of work must be done to rebuild an offense that had Aggies fans excited upon Sumlin’s arrival.