Is Texas A&M A Top-Tier College Football Job?
Jeff Traylor, Mike Elko, and Glenn Schumann.
They might not be household names among college football casual fans, but one of the three could be the right hire to bring Texas A&M to the College Football Playoff.
Or maybe it's Ole Miss' Lane Kiffin?
Or perhaps it's Oregon State's Jonathan Smith, who single-handily turned the Beavers into America's favorite underdog story.
Or it could be a coach currently on no one's radar. Remember when Brian Kelly shocked the world and headed to Baton Rouge as LSU's next head coach?
What's even crazier is that it was only the second-most unimaginable thing to happen before conference championship week. Mere hours before Kelly said see-ya to South Bend, Lincoln Riley tried to recreate Kiffin's chaos in Knoxville when he left Norman, Oklahoma, in the middle of the night to take the USC opening.
College football runs on money, and A&M has plenty of it. It's why, regardless of conference championships, playoff appearances, and national titles, the Aggies' open position is a top-notch job in the sport.
Elite? Maybe not that far, but about as close to the border as possible.
And don't use the "when was the last time A&M won a title" mantra. Georgia had sums of cash for four decades after Vince Dooley brought Athens a title back in the 1980s.
Jimbo Fisher, who A&M fired before the end of his sixth season, raved about the resources found in Aggieland. From the weight room facility to the nutrition system to a state-of-the-art new indoor football complex — all there to build an empire.
Instead, Fisher built a small village that was taken over by other SEC tyrants on a regular basis, which ultimately factored into Ross Bjork's decision to make a change at the top following a Week 9 loss to Ole Miss in Oxford.
“Our program is stuck in neutral,” Bjork said Sunday evening following Fisher's dismissal. “We should be relevant on the national scene. Something is not clicking. Something is not working, and therefore, something had to give in order for Aggie football to reach our full potential.”
A&M is paying nearly $77 million for Fisher not to coach on Saturdays anymore. How much will boosters and alumni be willing to pay the next coach if he's the right fit?
No one up for the position should expect a lucrative 10-year deal, but the program has deep enough pockets to make their top option an offer he can't refuse. Even those who've already denied interest in the opening would at least take a second glance at the contract.
The next coach must convince countless players to stick around in 2024, but the Aggies (6-4, 4-3 SEC) have a roster ready to compete. Young, old, and up-and-comers alike, A&M is built to win titles now under the right leader.
Elijah Robinson, who hopes to remain with the program under the next head coach, has built a defense on the recruiting trail with unyielding potential. A healthy season from Conner Weigman and perhaps Evan Stewart would bolster the offense. The same goes for other standouts like Le'Veon Moss and Donovan Green.
Not to mention, Texas is filled with some of the nation's top recruits. If one were to lose out on a five-star receiver to Texas or Alabama, another could be waiting in the wings, hoping to don the Maroon and White one day.
UTSA Roadrunners head coach Jeff Traylor before the game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the UTSA Roadrunners at Neyland Stadium.
Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
From an NIL (name, image and likeness) standpoint, few can compete with the Aggies. According to On3, A&M's 12th Man+ Fund ranked second among "ambitious programs" in the NIL game. Only Tennessee's Spyre Sports Group garnered more attention heading into the regular season, while seven other SEC schools — including future foes Texas and Oklahoma — made the top 20.
That doesn't mean the job will be easy. A&M has posted a 10-plus win season since the turn of the century. The Aggies haven't won a conference title since 1998 under R.C. Slocum and haven't won a division title during their decade-plus-long stay in the SEC.
Of course, there's also the level of competition, both on the field and the recruiting trail. The Aggies won't have to face Alabama and Ole Miss on the regular, but next season features matchups with top-10 Missouri, Florida, LSU, and the return of the Lone Star Showdown.
A&M also kicks off the year with its preplanned head-to-head matchup against Notre Dame.
It doesn't take a special coach to lead the Aggies to glory, but rather the right one. A&M has swung and missed like countless other contenders of the past.
The difference? Those who hoisted up titles added the coach who demanded more.
Everything is made in Aggieland for success. Does the next hire hold the right key to unlock the potential?
