This year’s narrative for sports has followed a common story line: a team doesn’t necessarily need experience to be at the top.
Let’s look at Ohio State for example. The Buckeyes rummaged through three quarterbacks, including Cardale Jones, who didn’t start a down until the 13th game of the season. A little over a month later, the sophomore hoisted a national championship trophy over his shoulders, and was projected high in the draft before deciding to return.
Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari experimented with this phenomenon recently, and gathered a national title and four Final Four appearances in the process with the Wildcats.
Even Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski, who historically features teams with seasoned veterans and chemistry, won the national championship last night with his youngest team in his 35 years of coaching the Blue Devils.
Rob Childress and the No. 1 Texas A&M baseball team fits in well with this narrative.
Blake Allemand, Mitchell Nau and Jason Freeman are the only players that were a part of the 2011 College World Series squad. Leadership was needed coming in to this season, and it was surely provided.
Over the weekend, Texas A&M became the first collegiate baseball team to reach 30 wins, securing its spot at No. 1 in the country. This is no coincidence, for the Aggies have shown all the right tools to prove its top-ranked position.
A relatable story that could explain the Aggie’s success is the Louisville basketball team of 2012-2013. In the Elite Eight, Cardinals guard Kevin Ware suffered a gruesome injury in the national spotlight against Duke. Moving forward, Louisville used that as inspiration, and the Cardinals eventually won the title game. Similarly, A&M faced adversity with the loss of two weekend pitchers, Tyler Stubblefield (ACL) right before the season, and AJ Minter (Tommy John surgery) in the midst of this season.
Nevertheless, A&M ranks second in the country in ERA at 2.03. Childress’ recruiting success and defensive mindedness gave him the luxury to bring in arms at the level of the players lost to injury.
But the credit doesn’t fully go towards the pitching staff, and that’s what makes the Aggies top notch. The A&M hitting is just as good, if not better, than the pitching with the deepness of the lineup. Every Aggie hitter in the order has collected a home run, with Ronnie Gideon and Logan Taylor leading the way with six apiece. Eight players also have 20 or more RBIs, while seven are batting more than a .300. Through April 1, A&M stood at No. 5 as a team in batting average.
An even spread is A&M’s strong suit on both sides, but it has specific players that can step up when it matters the most. Nick Banks bats a .431, ranking fourth among all player. Two of the Aggies weekend pitchers, Grayson Long and Matt Kent, remain undefeated at 6-0 each, aiding in only allowing five home runs and 87 total runs all season, which both rank best in the SEC.
The Aggies boast a 30-2 record after opening the season 24-0 as they host the No. 15 Rice Owls at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. A&M remains undefeated in midweek series, despite usually throwing out freshmen in Turner Larkins and Brigham Hill, proving again that experience isn’t everything. This game provides the Aggies with their first ranked opponent in a midweek series, and a win with a freshman at the mound could add to the bevy of impressive feats collected this year.
The young, promising Aggies came into this season with one goal on their mind: making the College World Series again. Despite losing two of its best players and calling on freshmen and sophomores for help, A&M has shown the nation that their season might just end with something more: a title shot.