The South Carolina State Bulldogs werent ready. They werent fast enough, strong enough or deep enough. The Aggies did to them what was expected of an SEC team. Sumlin and company scored 70 points and the Bulldogs scored 14; thats all that needs to be said for Saturdays laugher. It was fun, and its over. Giggle one more time over the box score, O Aggie Stat-Nerds, and then toughen up.
Before we go too far, however, a look at senior defensive back and punt return-man Dustin Harriss historic, lightning-in-a-barrel performance is warranted. Harris broke the Southeastern Conference record and topped his own school record by over 80 yards with 246 punt-return yards. By games end, Harris was gunning for the all-time NCAA record of 277. Harriss night was the byproduct of a perfect storm of an above-average punter, a below-average coverage team, and a great returner the reigning NCAA stat leader in punt returns. It was a sign of his success that Harris fielded a punt off the bounce on his own four yard-line a huge no-no, as almost any coach, high school and up, will tell you and burned the SCSU coverage team for a 96-yard score, coming up two yards short of the program record for longest punt return. Nothing should be said to detract from Harriss game. He deserves it. But its time to look beyond the glorified scrimmage that was SCSU.
A&M looked down the barrel of uncertainty over this past offseason, and not because of any uneasiness about the transition to the SEC. The Aggies had a coach and a conference, but they didnt have a quarterback. Redshirt freshman Johnny Manziel emerged from the offseason scrum with the signal-caller role, and everyone said the right things when asked. He has our full confidence, Manziels coaches and teammates said again and again. No one else seemed so sure.
Even after a Florida game that was probably above average for a freshmans first start and a roasting of the SMU defense, there were those that continued to point to sophomore Jameill Showers, touting Showers as the better arm and the better decision-maker.
Ill end the debate in a sentence: Manziel had five combined touchdowns before the half for 941 all-purpose yards and 12 touchdowns with no turnovers through three games, and Showers threw a bumbling interception on his third toss of the game. Its over, Aggie fans. Manziel is our guy. Hes here to stay, so stand behind him. Hes not a perfect quarterback, but hes our imperfect quarterback.
Behind Manziel, its time to look forward. Arkansas staggers into Kyle Field next Saturday on a three-game skid including an overtime loss to lowly Louisiana Monroe and a 52-point shelling at the hands of Alabama. Theyre humbled, beaten, subdued, thrashed. Tread softly, Ags. With senior quarterback Tyler Wilson back in the fold, the Razorbacks arent the same animal. A&M has struggled sealing wins against Arkansas in recent years, and that should scare Aggie fans. The worst part for the home team is the high risk, low reward nature of the matchup. When the Razorbacks sat in the Top-10 nationally, a home loss wouldnt be a deathblow for a young Aggie season. With the Razorbacks reeling, splitting at the seams, a second home loss would sink the A&M ship.
If weve learned anything from the first three games of the season, its this: the final score is anyones guess, but the thrill comes guaranteed.