Texas A&M Football: Positives and negatives of Texas joining the SEC
I know most Texas A&M fans who read this article are thinking this is something I should have jumped on earlier. To be honest, I wanted to wait a few weeks before I gave my thoughts on this. Yes, I know I am one of the last people in sports to be writing about this topic but since the dust has settled and I have had time to think about what is happening, I believe that the Texas Longhorns’ move is beneficial for the SEC and Texas A&M.
Do not get me wrong — I dislike Texas as much as the next guy and when the news broke, I was not happy about it whatsoever. I was among the many Aggies that believed we should have left Texas out to rot in the Big 12.
Quite frankly, I believe they would have been better off getting a group and going to the Pac-12 but that is not why you are here. Today, I am going to come up with reasons why I like the move and why I do not then my final thoughts at the end.
Why I am in favor of the Texas Longhorns joining Texas A&M in the SEC
One of the reasons I am in favor of this move is it is time for Texas A&M to take over.
Since 2011, when Texas A&M joined the SEC, we have dedicated time and money to athletics that we would have never contributed back in the Big 12. By saying this, the fields are balanced and I believe more in favor of A&M than ever before. The football team specifically has made leaps toward the commitment to improving facilities and to the overall teams.
Football is in a much better place in the last three years combined than it was the 20 years before that. I notice it, you notice it, and guess what — so do recruits. Texas A&M has built its own identity in the SEC and I do not think Texas will change that at all.
The Aggies seem to be putting it together and by the time Texas and Oklahoma arrive, I think we will be in the Tier 1 category of the college football world. Jimbo has continuously raised the bar and it will keep going higher.
A lot of people emphasized that Texas A&M will lose their biggest pitch to people since we have to share the SEC with TU. Life is full of changes. You have to adapt to what is happening around you. If Texas were to join the Big 10 or the Pac-12, they would peaked the interest of a lot of recruits and have a ton more areas to recruit in. If A&M and TU played last year A&M would have won, if they played this year, next year, or the year after, I believe A&M would win all three of those games.
Texas A&M is hitting its stride, while Texas is almost at rock bottom right now. Football comes in cycles and at some point, meaning Texas will be good again, but right now, they are in a major rebuilding phase for the 3rd time in the last decade. For once, Texas is the one playing catch-up to A&M in football. If they weren’t, why would they be joining the SEC? I would gladly take a game against Texas right now as I do not think it would be close.
The state of Texas recruiting becomes even more interesting.
I like the idea that if this rivalry starts back up it will keep the top recruits in Texas. Whether you grew up an Aggie or a Longhorn, it is your dream to go out and crush your rival. Texas has no in-state rival that they play on a consistent basis (I would say TCU but that seems to be very one-sided).
Bringing Texas back brings back the excitement, the bragging rights, and the feeling of “I can lose every game this year but if I beat (Texas in this case) the season will feel like a successful one.”
My last pro comes with the main reason behind it… Money.
I would assume the payout, which is around $40 million, will leap towards $60-70 million. This is all better for A&M. The second part is the SEC will not be bowing down to Texas. Texas will be shown the door before the SEC lets them call the shots. Their voice will be the same as Vanderbilt’s, and if they try to become bigger, nobody is going to let that happen.
The SEC has done just fine without them and that can be the case again. But there are reasons against Texas joining the SEC.