Texas A&M Football: What this ESPN analyst said about Jimbo Fisher

You can say what you want about the Texas A&M football team’s recent success — the Aggies haven’t won a national title in a long time. To be specific, the last time A&M was the best team in college football at the end of the season was 83 years ago, meaning most Aggie fans have not watched their team win it all.

And while the program is certainly trending in the right direction.

But how far does “moving in the right direction” actually get you? ESPN’s Mark Schlabach thinks the Aggie head coach may have a lot to prove, as exemplified in ESPN’s SEC coaching roundtable. Fisher isn’t on the hot seat, but does he need to prove himself?

Does Texas A&M football HC Jimbo Fisher have to win immediately?

Nobody will sit here and act like Jimbo Fisher is on the hot seat, but Mark Schlabach thinks Jimbo Fisher might have more to prove than any other coach in the SEC. Here’s what he said.

"Jimbo Fisher is being paid $9 million per season and just signed the best recruiting class in program history. Given everything that Texas A&M has invested in its program, it has lost at least four games in three of his first four seasons. There was much to be made about Georgia’s 41-year drought without a national championship, which ended this past season. Does anyone remember the last time the Aggies won it all? That would be 1939, which was 83 years ago! It’s time for Fisher to get over the hump at Texas A&M."

There are a few takeaways from what he said.

For starters, Schlabach mentions Fisher’s $9 million per year salary — a number that is only matched by a few other coaches in college football. The ESPN journalist is absolutely right here, too — when you’re paid among the best coaches in college football, you have to perform among the best.

It’s never a great idea to place national championship expectations on a head coach for a program that hasn’t won it all in nearly a century, but what else is Jimbo Fisher in College Station for?

I don’t think there should be any comparisons between Georgia and Texas A&M’s respective title droughts. We’re talking about two different programs with different contexts. That said, Fisher should look at Kirby Smart’s tenure with the Bulldogs as an example moving forward.

Should Jimbo Fisher be expected to win it all in 2022? Absolutely not. Still, the Aggie head coach should be looking to win an SEC title and College Football Playoff appearance soon.