It seems the overwhelming question being asked now that Jimbo Fisher has been fired as the Texas A&M football head coach is whether the Aggies job is one worth wanting. Or, better said, is it one of the premier jobs in college football?
Most now look at the landscape within college football and judge that if you're not Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, or even Clemson, you probably shouldn't even attempt to vie for a national championship, as those are only reserved for those teams, maybe a few more. And really, it's hard to argue, looking at how the sport has played out over the last 10-15 years where only a small crop of teams has either vied for or won the national championship. But for Texas A&M, the judgment against them concerning their premier status seems to run much deeper.
Texas A&M football isn't a traditionally winning program
It certainly starts with their trophy case, or really, the lack thereof. In sports, it's all about what have you done for me lately, and lately hasn't been lately at all with the Aggies football program as far as any type of championships are concerned.
As traditionally and even ritually infused as Texas A&M football is, they haven't won a national championship since World War II (1939). And if you're looking for conference championships, they haven't done so well there either. Their last conference championship was when they were still in the Big 12 back in 1998. They did win the Big 12 South Division in 1997 and 2010 but not the conference overall. They've never won their side of the SEC since coming to the conference in 2012, thus have never made the conference title game.
You'd have to go all the way back to the days of the Southwest Conference to find any sort of dominance, where they won a total of 17 SWC championships, and at least one in every decade before joining the Big 12. And as far as top-5 finishes, they have two in the past 67 years, according to The Athletic's Bruce Feldman. One during Kevin Sumlin's tenure in his first season and Fisher's third year, which was during the pandemic.
Texas A&M football has all the resources to become an elite program
So, yeah, what makes these crazy Aggies believe they are a premier program? It's pretty simple, really: money.
Money is what pried Fisher away from Florida State back in 2017. His original deal was 10 years, $75 million, but then renewed in September 2021, extended through 2031 for almost $95 million. Money is what put together the highest-rated recruiting class in college football history a season ago, to the tune of $25-30 million in NIL deals.
Money is what furnished all the new upgrades to Kyle Field over the last several years, along with all the other renovations and added amenities around the athletic program that modern-day college football programs seemingly need to compete. If you're looking for a university that has everything to offer to make a winning program, there isn't too many better than Texas A&M football.
Finding the right hire is pivotal for Texas A&M football
Just because the trophy case isn't littered with national championships shouldn't deter anyone from believing that Texas A&M football can easily find itself among the rest of the elite in college football should it find the right coach. Texas A&M's largest problem right now is that to fill that empty trophy case, their next hire has to be the next great hire in the sport. Not just the university itself.
Of course, that's easier said than done. Before Nick Saban, Alabama had suffered for years. And just ask Clemson how they were before Dabo Swinney. Texas A&M feels a lot like Clemson before Swinney, in fact. Granted, the Tigers had won a national championship back in 1981, but before that, not much else persisted out of Clemson besides tradition and hope. They had to bide their time until it all finally clicked.
But where is that right hire at? No one ever really knows. A lot of teams have been looking for their next great hire. Just ask teams like Nebraska, Miami, Tennessee, and Auburn how hard it is to find the right guy.
Honestly, Texas A&M is a sleeping giant waiting to be awoken by the right staff in place. That's the only thing missing from the program. That's one thing that money can buy; it just has to be found first. Texas A&M football can't be faulted for the lack of trying, at least. What will money get them for their next hire? That's the question.
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