Meet Ryan Tannehill, A&M quarterback.
We're like one, big dysfunctional family.
On paper it doesn't look good.
"They can beat you in a lot of ways," middle linebacker Emmanuel Acho said. "They've showed they have the ability to run the ball and the ability to pass the ball. The focus is going to be on stopping the run. That's where it all starts. It always starts there."
That means stopping running back Cyrus Gray, who has filled in quite nicely for injured running back Christine Michael.
Gray has gained 810 yards while starting five games.
The junior looks just like Michael did and has the ability to beat the Longhorns with speed and power.
Maybe advice from dad isn't such a good thing.
"My dad told me he threw six in a game once," Gilbert said, noting that his father, Gale, went on to have a successful career as a college quarterback (California) and in the NFL, where he played for five Super Bowl teams. "That helped a little bit. But not much....Losing is painful."
Cyrus Gray keeps Will Muschamp up at night.
Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp talks about how it's not offenses that keep him up at night, it's players. This week, a lot of Texas A&M players are on Muschamp's mind, but it's running back Cyrus Gray who's at the forefront.
"This guy does a great job of spinning on contact," Muschamp said. "He's a lower body guy, so you have a harder time getting a shot at him. He does a great job running behind his pads and he's always twisting and turning and driving for extra yards."
The football gods hate Texas.
Could there be a shift in the Big 12-2 power structure?
It isn’t for some, who are seeing a grander meaning in the game, a potential changing of the guard in the state and maybe the Big 12.
Texas A&M is already poised to finish ahead of Texas in the Big 12 South for just the second time since Mack Brown came to Austin. Could this be the start of something new?
The good news?
The Aggies are favored but typically don't fare well in Austin. A&M is just 11-46-1 there. ... A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill is 4-0 since taking over as starter. The last Aggies quarterback to win his first four starts was Corey Pullig in 1992 ... Even if they win and become eligible for a bowl, Texas cannot finish better than last in the Big 12 South.
Put down the sharp objects and take a deep breath before you watch this.
Yes, we love Bevo. So?
There isn't a fan base more proud of its school or more in love with its mascot than the faithful from the University of Texas. Longhorn fans stay true to their school by traveling en masse to road games, decking themselves from head to toe in burnt orange and obsessively lashing the "Hook 'em Horns."
And they show their affection for the live longhorn mascot, Bevo, with endless merchandise that ranges from golf head covers to Halloween costumes, as well as a student group, the Silver Spurs, whose sole purpose is the care and transport of the 2,000-pound steer. These days, he's treated like royalty while taking in games from the field.
Did you know Reveille is a General?. Some 2%ers didn't follow the barking rule.
Mike Sherman, drama queen.
The Aggies have a pretty good o-line.
"Those kids have really come into their own," said coach Mike Sherman, whose surging Aggies (8-3, 5-2 Big 12) plays at rival Texas (5-6, 2-5) on Thanksgiving night in the regular-season finale. "I don't think of them as freshmen anymore. I used to worry about them out there."
A&M AD Bill Byrne has our best interests at heart:
I think the game in Austin Thursday night is a potential trapgame for us. Our friends are having a season where they have nothing to lose and much to gain by beating us.
One of my fellow ADs in the Big 12 sent me a note after we beat OU and said it's hard to be away from friends and family during the holidays. He said if I do my job, then we can allow Texas to stay home to be with their friends and family for the holidays. Sounds like a good idea to me.
Does it take much? The Aggies continue to amaze Bill Bryne.
The Texas A&M student body, better known as the 12th Man, has applied for a new Guinness World Record with officially 30,467 students scanning to enter the Nov. 20 football game against the University of Nebraska. The Aggies won the game, 9-6, before an overall and record crowd of 90,079 at Kyle Field in College Station. A national record 31,005 students pulled tickets for the event.
"The 12th Man continues to amaze me," Director of Athletics Bill Byrne said. "I have been around collegiate athletics for more years than I care to mention. There has never been an atmosphere that can compare to that magical night at Kyle Field. The energy inside the stadium was unbelievable and the support was crucial for our football team. We know the student crowd was the best in college football history and I am certain they were the loudest."
Do the Aggies get free ice cream?
Since it was first opened in 1978, Olsen Field has been the home to Texas A&M's "boys of spring and summer." Now, thanks to the generosity of two brothers and a well-known ice cream company that was named for a Texas wildflower that blooms in the summer, Olsen Field is on the verge of becoming one of college baseball's ultimate "sweet spots."
One of the best Aggie jokes of all.