Mugdown Lowdown: Aggie Football Preview 2020-2021

Overview: The Fightin’ Texas Aggie football team comes into the 2020 season with its highest expectations in months. Coach Jimbo Fisher is entering his third year at Texas A&M, which is the same amount of time he needed to turn Florida State from a scrappy underdog team with only two national championships and the 12th [Aggie Illuminati confirmed?] highest winning percentage in college football history into a perpetual title contender. This is good news for Aggie fans because it gives Fisher three more years to win a championship before he inevitably gives up trying and starts showing up to work to cash his checks.

Last year’s team delivered with Texas-sized disappointment by failing to beat a single ranked opponent, as well as failing to reach their wins total from Fisher’s first season at A&M. Even Coach Fisher himself upset fans by decreasing his referee tirades. The previous year’s chant of “JIM-BO, JIM-BO” was replaced by a new Aggie yell of “BOOOOOOOOO” every time A&M decided to send out their kicking unit on 4th and inches. Of course, new traditions here in Aggieland are meant to evolve over time, which is how the “BOOOOOOO” yell added a fun second and third verse going something like this: “Aggies don’t boo!” followed by “Shut the f*** up.”

A&M is returning more players from their 2019 roster than any other team in the country. It is also adding a second straight top 6 recruiting class, which is highlighted by 5-star WR Demond Demas, 5-star safety Jaylon Jones, and the state’s top-rated QB prospect/Prince Joffrey look-alike, Haynes King. It is tough to say whether these players will attract much attention from fans considering the three most popular football players in school history are a punter, the worst QB in CFL history, and a basketball player who Coach let stand on the sidelines.

Offense: The Aggies are returning eight starters on the offensive side of the ball, including fourth-year starter Kellen Mond. Despite putting up above average stats in the toughest division in football, outplaying Joe Burrow in Kyle Field, and being on pace to become the school’s all-time leader in both passing yards and touchdowns, Mond has failed to gain consistent support from the student body. Regardless of what is actually happening on the field or in the box score, you are bound to find numerous posts on Reddit, Texags, or your class Groupme calling for Mond to be replaced. Even former Aggie QB Nick Starkel is suggested as a potential replacement for Mond. What could Starkel [a player who lost his starting job to Mond] and unproven freshmen Zach Calzada and Haynes King have that Mond doesn’t? It is probably a similar trait to the one that makes frat boys on the third deck call Caleb Chapman the best receiver on the team despite the fact that he was sixth on the depth chart last year. Mond’s recent outspokenness on social issues is sure to reaffirm every frat boy’s belief that he just isn’t fit to lead the football team. But I swear, guys, it’s just about football.  The most notable departures from the offense were WRs Quartney Davis and Kendrick Rogers, as well as RB Jayshaun Corbin, who lost his starting job due to injury last year. The production lost by these players is sure to be replaced by increased touches for young players like Anias Smith and Isaiah Spiller and newcomers Demond Demas and Devon Archane. Freshman TE Baylore Cupp is also returning to the team after missing all of last season with a broken leg — that is, of course, if Cupp, a very outspoken conspiracy theorist and anti-vaxxer, can keep himself from getting expelled for violating school social distancing guidelines. Being able to play multiple tight ends as well as multiple running backs will finally remove the last restraints of the Sumlin era and allow Fisher’s offense to reach its final form, or at least that’s what boosters are hoping considering they are paying Fisher $10 million a year. The offensive line is returning ⅘ starters. While it is difficult to adjust to a new starting center, most fans on the 3rd deck will still blame Mond for getting sacked anyway.

Defense: The defense is returning 7 of its 11 starters from last year’s squad with the most notable departure being star DT Justin Madubuike. This year’s defense should add a good mix of experience from returners as well as talent from top recruits like Jaylon Jones and Donell Harris. The Aggies are slated to have one of the best front 7s and a top of the line secondary; however, this is likely to be forgotten by fans when Alabama inevitably puts 45 points on them again. Fan-favorite safety Leon O’Neal is poised to have a breakout year this season after taking to Twitter two offseasons in a row to declare himself the best player at his position in the country (not to mention announcing his decision to enter the transfer portal and then scolding fans for suggesting he’d leave the program). Luckily, he has to come through on these promises because Aggies do not lie. Unfortunately, an Aggies’ inability to steal may hurt his interception numbers.

Schedule: 

Weak 1: Vanderbilt A&M opens the season with its annual athletic department charity event where they pay an FCS school millions of dollars to give their student-athletes severe brain damage. Oh, wait, scratch that, Vanderbilt is actually technically considered a member of the South East Conference and is eligible to compete in the bowl subdivision. All the same, the result should be similar to a case where this game would have been against the originally scheduled Abilene Christian.

Prediction: A&M 60 Vandy 17

Week 2: @ Alabama The good news: the Aggies only win over Alabama since joining the SEC took place in Tuscaloosa. Additionally, Alabama will still be finding their rhythm with a team that has many new faces, while A&M is one of the most experienced teams in the country. The bad news: A&M will have to face Alabama in football. Without QB Tua Tagavolai and WRs Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs, the Crimson Tide should lack much of the offensive firepower that overwhelmed the Aggies last season. Also, there is no way A&M can give up 128 punt return yards again, right? This is sure to be a season of surprises, so what better surprise could we get than for Kellen Mond to put on his best Johnny Manziel impression and pull off this upset? If all else fails, maybe all the talk of delaying the season will make Alabama coach Nick Saban so angry he just decides to retire before the season starts.

Prediction: A&M 31 Bama 21

Week 3: Florida Look, guys, I get it. All of us think that the SEC cheated us by adding Florida and Tennessee to our schedule while Alabama picked up Kentucky and Missouri. However, if A&M wants to be considered a top tier football school, then that means that they have to beat other top teams.  The last time A&M and Florida played in football was in the Aggies’ inaugural SEC season with the Gators coming out with a 20-17 victory. This is the Aggies’ chance to avenge Johnny Football and the last great Aggie football team. The game also metaphorically represents the battle between Texas and Florida to be the state that does the worst job of dealing with COVID-19. There is no reason A&M’s defense shouldn’t be able to shut down Kyle Trask, a guy who couldn’t win the starting job at his high school, or Jamarcus Russel clone Feleipe Franks.

Prediction: A&M 24 Florida 13

Week 4: @ Mississippi St. The Bulldogs have added a new head coach this season, conspiracy theorist and pirate aficionado Mike Leach. Leach is 7-2 in his career vs. A&M and has never lost at home when coaching against the Aggies. However, Leach is taking over an MSU team that lacks many of the players that he usually needs to succeed. Additionally, rising racial tensions in the state crossed with Leach’s, um, questionable political affiliation might create some minor issues for Mississippi State.

Prediction: A&M 48 MSU 24

Week 5: Arkansas Since joining the SEC in 2012, the Aggies are undefeated against longtime rival Arkansas. This year’s Southwest Classic is sure to field similar results. Though Arkansas fired coach Chad Morris and replaced him with the closest human embodiment of an actual Razorback in Sam “Pitboss” Pitman, they lack the talent to beat A&M. However, it is worth noting that this game is being played on Halloween, which raises the chances of chaos. In the spirit of the rivalry, this is still sure to be a competitive game that leaves Aggie fans wondering “Oh God, why are we ranked in the top 15?”

Prediction: A&M 41 Arkansas 35

Week 6: @ South Carolina The rivalry that no one understands returns to Columbia, South Carolina this year as the Aggies come to town to play the Gamecocks. Despite being 6-0 in the series, I have never actually seen A&M be presented with the Bonham trophy. That’s because, in this rivalry, the trophy goes to the governor of the winning state. That’s right, the tea-sip governor Greg Abbott gets to keep the only proof that exists that A&M and South Carolina are rivals.

Prediction: A&M 45 SC 10

Week 7: @ Tennessee Despite my strong disdain for Alabama and their fanbase, I have to agree with them on one thing –– I wholeheartedly despise Tennessee. Their colors and names are just like t.u. but worse. Their team is dirty and full of criminals (junior defensive back Bryce Thompson was arrested for domestic assault and only suspended one game). And their head coach, Jeremy Pruitt, has been given credit for being a defensive mastermind as a coordinator despite the fact that all of his teams have been overflowing with NFL talent (including Jimbo Fisher’s 2013 National Championship team at Florida State). Luckily for me, despite what the nostalgia-driven media says, Tennessee is not good. Last year’s team managed an 8-5 record in the SEC’s easier division. This is coming off the back of consecutive losing seasons in 2017 and 2018. Much like Nebraska and Texas, Tennessee is given the benefit of the doubt year after year just because they were historically contenders. I don’t care if this game is played at Neyland Stadium or in another country –– the Aggies aren’t losing.

Prediction: A&M 41 Vols 24

Week 8: Ole Miss The Rebels are another team that added a new coach this offseason, with Lane Kiffin AKA Joey Freshwater coming to Oxford. Kiffin has a long and storied coaching career despite being only 45 years old. Kiffin is one of the more fun characters in college football. He has continued to fail upwards, being given head coaching jobs at USC, Tennessee, and even the Oakland Raiders, despite the fact that he has had next to no success at any of these stops. More interesting though are the rumors surrounding Kiffin, namely that he attempted to pick up co-eds at a Boca Raton bar under the alias Joey Freshwater while he was the head coach at Florida Atlantic and that he slept with Nick Saban’s daughter while at Alabama. With that being said, it seems likely that sorority houses across the country closing down this fall should be enough to slow down Kiffin’s mojo.

Prediction: A&M 52 Ole Miss 20

Week 9: LSU One of the best things about A&M football is how big a single regular-season win can feel. The LSU Tigers beat A&M seven straight times before the Aggies pulled off their remarkable 74-72 seven overtime spectacular. This win was so important to A&M that they sold commemorative cups at every home game the following season and displayed the winning score at the Reveille gravesite for nearly 9 months. It is a game that will certainly be remembered by Aggies for decades to come. Hopefully, though, the story of last year’s 50-7 throttling will quickly be forgotten. Luckily for the Aggies, LSU lost 15 starters from last year’s championship team, so there should be no talks about Aggies having less talent. Additionally, this is exactly the type of game that Jimbo Fisher is being paid to win. By the time this game is played, College Station will have already devolved into maskless chaos, meaning the full power of the 12th man will be in the stands at Kyle Field.

Prediction: A&M 45 LSU 20

Week 10: @ Auburn The Aggies’ final test of the season comes when they travel to Jordan Hare Stadium to take on the Auburn Tigers. Since joining the SEC, A&M is 3-1 at Jordan Hare, including an upset of #3 Auburn in 2014. However, Jimbo Fisher is 0-2 so far against Auburn and has yet to prove that A&M can compete with the best teams in the SEC West. Luckily for the Aggies, Auburn Quarterback Bo Nix isn’t good. He just isn’t good at all. Yeah, sure he is good at running read options and other trick plays Gus Malzahn is known for drawing up, but he just flat out can’t throw the ball. On top of that, Auburn has lost a good amount of its starters on the offensive line and the defensive front seven. This game looks primed to be the win that convinces a national audience that A&M is a legit contender and didn’t just get lucky against Alabama and LSU… or it will be the game that makes me put a beer can through my TV.  

Prediction: A&M 31 Auburn 20

Week COVID-19: Unfortunately, despite being the clear favorites to win both the SEC and even the National Championship, it’s unlikely this team will actually be able to play this season. In a twist of cruel irony, football will get canceled the one year that was actually OUR year.

Prediction: A&M 0 COVID-19 47

— Kushing Library