SEC Nation, the SEC Network’s weekly conference football preview show, is on A&M’s campus for the Aggies matchup with Missouri. The show travels to a different SEC venue each weekend, airing from 8-11 a.m. Saturday morning. The show’s anchors Joe Tessitore, Marcus Spears, and Tim Tebow offered their thoughts on both teams heading into the impending matchup, as well as their experience in College Station.
After A&M’s unexpected win over Auburn, Tebow talked about what the win means to a young Aggie squad after experiencing a winless October.
“I think last week said a lot not just for this team, but for Kevin Sumlin and his style of coaching,” Tebow said. “Even a few people on our set were giving him a hard time last week, and you just have to look at how he puts his players in a position to succeed. The way that they’re able to get advantages based on formations and plays, and the timing of his plays, I think he’s one of the better coaches in the country. I’ve been super impressed with him and not just his design, but his ability to call the right play at the right time.”
Tebow is no stranger to what it takes to play quarterback in the SEC, winning the Heisman trophy as a sophomore at Florida and leading the Gators to the 2009 BCS National Championship. Tebow said A&M’s freshman quarterback Kyle Allen can expect to face the best of the best when it comes to defenses while playing in the SEC.
“You’re playing against the best teams in the country,” Tebow said. “You’re playing against the best defensive lines who are rushing you and linebackers that are blitzing, so there’s a lot of pressure and Missouri’s got two of the best defensive ends in the country so I’m sure they’ll be getting after him early.”
Spears, a former defensive end at LSU, said he has fond memories of Aggieland, making the trip from his hometown of Baton Rouge, La. to attend a football camp here in his youth.
“It brings back memories,” Spears said. “I came here for a camp when I was in high school and left that camp the No. 1 tight end in the country, so I’ve got a special feeling toward Texas A&M.”
Spears said that A&M has managed to climb to the top of the heap among Texas schools in recruiting, reversing the trend from the time he was a high school recruit.
“When I was recruited here, coach [R.C.] Slocum was the head coach,” Spears said. “I enjoyed my trip, met a bunch of guys, and it was great. Having coach Sumlin, and the type of players that you guys have had since being in the league, especially Johnny [Manziel,] it does a lot for the program. It used to be at one time UT was the place to go for the top players in Texas. Now A&M, it’s hard to beat. Then if you look at the new facility — if I was 17 from Texas? I would be coming here, just to sit in that spa every day.”
Spears played eight seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, and called A&M defensive end Myles Garrett an “absolute beast,” comparing the true freshman to former Cowboy Demarcus Ware.
“When you watch him play, for me I can’t help but think about Demarcus Ware,” Spears said. “Just the length, the ability to squeeze through gaps. Sometimes he rushes and you can tell he’s a freshman, cause it’s just so unorthodox, and then ‘Myles Garrett on the sack.’ He has just a knack for getting to the quarterback, and he’s a long, rangy guy, and what he’s done his freshman year in the SEC is very difficult. He has the ability to be one of the most dominant forces in college football history if he continues to do what he’s doing.”
SEC Nation has set up shop in Spence Park and the crew encourages Aggie fans to come show their support during the show’s broadcast Saturday morning.
“We encourage everybody to come out tomorrow,” Tessitore said. “I think we’re probably a little more interactive than most studio shows at a live event. Hopefully the local fans will get a sense of that tomorrow.”