As a native Texan I feel like it’s somewhat unusual to find an avid sports fan around here who doesn’t have a true allegiance to either Texas A&M or the University of Texas. Growing up in Houston I didn’t have as much interest in football as basketball since I was a young Duke and Rockets basketball fan in their heydays. However, in lieu of recent events I have found myself taking sides like never before. I have narrowed down my reasons for this to a few main points. From the beginning, I was not a fan of A&M’s move to the SEC. It still seems like a knee-jerk reaction out of jealousy over UT signing a fat contract with ESPN for the Longhorn Network (no matter how badly it could fail). As a relatively neutral observer, I don’t get it. I’ve tried to look at it from the financial standpoint, but the benefits are truly minimal for individual schools. Not to mention how tough the competition in the SEC is. On top of it all, the school is knowingly putting an end to what they admit to being a great rivalry.
It was clear that A&M was going all-in with this home finale against their archrival. They were ready to walk out of Kyle Field with a win and gloat forever about how they were better than Texas University. That would be conveniently forgetting that Texas has 75 victories to A&M’s 37 in the all-time series coming into the last Thanksgiving meeting for the foreseeable future.
Within the context of the last 15 years, while both have had successful runs, there is no question which school has produced more prominent players at both levels and won more big games; The University of Texas. Texas has gone 3-1 in BCS games, including their 2005 National Championship and 7 Conference titles. In the same time period the Aggies have 3 Conference titles and a loss to Ohio State in the 1998 Sugar Bowl.
Many times in this state I feel hesitant to rag on A&M as a neutral fan, and until recently I never had any real reason to. Today though, I think it is appropriate to mention that the way Texas A&M has handled this ugly break-up has been less than exceptional. As many have already mentioned, the only result I can hope for is an eventual renewal of one of the best rivalries in college sports.
- Jack Hamburger
