Five Storylines To Follow For Aggies At SEC Media Days

Texas A&M heads to Nashville for SEC Media Days and here's what Aggie nation should be paying attention to.

Jimbo Fisher will have some explaining to do come Monday in Nashville. And no, the subject of conversation won't be surrounding his relationship with Nick Saban and Lane Kiffin, either. 

Fisher and Texas A&M Aggies football kick off SEC Media Days in the Music City, marking the beginning of the new college football season. The event will be held for four days as all 14 coaches will speak on their program's offseason, roster upgrades, new personnel looks and future goals that hopefully lead toward a trip to Atlanta, Ga., in early December. 

The Aggies should be one of the more prominent programs of discussion this week. A year after securing the No. 1 recruiting class in FBS history, regression set in. Strike that; implosion might be a better word. Lack of veteran talent, injuries and unimaginative offensive play concepts led to one of the worst years in A&M history and the first sub-.500 season since 2008. 

A&M isn't a program with the longstanding history of Alabama or LSU in the SEC. It doesn't have a "cakewalk" schedule like Georgia, which has represented the SEC East six times since the Aggies joined in 2012. However, A&M has the resources to be one of college football's premier programs. Fisher's finished with four top-10 recruiting classes since touching down in College Station in 2018. 

The Aggies should expect more than eight victories each year. Reaching double-digits would be a milestone for Fisher since he's yet to finish with 10 wins during the regular season. From a roster standpoint, there's no excuse why the Aggies shouldn't be fighting for respect as an SEC West front-runner come early November. 

Can it all come together in 2023? Here are five storylines to monitor when Fisher and the trio of Aggies represent A&M Monday at the Grand Hyatt Hotel deep in the heart of Nashville. 

What Went Wrong? 

Those in College Station who cover the Aggies daily know the spiel from the spring. The Aggies never found their rhythm on offense, couldn't capitalize on turnovers and failed to meet expectations after a promising fall camp. 

No, really, what happened? More importantly, can it be fixed before conference play begins in Week 4? 

The offensive line was a constant revolving door of unproven players due to injuries. Three quarterbacks saw first-team reps, some weeks due to injury, others due to insufficient production. Suspensions negated any positives surrounding the program and eventually, it felt like Fisher and the squad were just going through the motions on Saturdays.

That shouldn't happen with a roster like A&M's. Even with mixed quarterback play, finishing 93rd nationally in total offense and 101st in scoring is inexcusable with all the talent collected over four recruiting cycles. It would be easy for Fisher to blame former offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey, but the head coach is also the mastermind behind the playbook. 

A&M has had eight months to reassess the film. That means Fisher either has found the root of the problem and is working to correct it, or the Aggies are right back at square one from a season ago. 

Is QB1 Decided? 

Kellen Mond made Fisher's job easy when he arrived from Florida State. A year after battling Nick Starkel for the starting quarterback job, Fisher elected to run things back with No. 11 as a sophomore. Three years later, the Aggies were hoisting up the Orange Bowl Trophy at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Fla., and Mond was leaving A&M as one the most decorated players in recent memory. 

Since then, Fisher has allowed an open quarterback competition at the start of fall camp. Haynes King won the starting job both years, but injuries and lackluster play eventually led to changes. With King now at Georgia Tech, the race for QB1 is between sophomore Conner Weigman and redshirt junior Max Johnson. 

Both were functional options last season in limited starts. Weigman might have more upside due to arm strength but lacked weekly consistency. Johnson, who would have likely retained the starting job if not for a thumb injury in Week 5, isn't known for his power, but rather for his decision-making. 

Neither passer is a complete product, but Weigman could be in line to start against New Mexico thanks to a promising end to last season. The Cypress, Texas, native threw for over 330 yards and four touchdowns in a 31-28 loss to Ole Miss, but also kept the offense moving in a 38-23 upset over then No. 5-LSU in the season finale. 

Neither Weigman nor Johnson will be in Nashville, so Fisher and receiver Ainias Smith will have to suffice when answering questions on the battle afoot.  

Hot Seat Pressure? 

Two things can be true; Fisher has failed to keep his end of the bargain since joining the Aggies, and a buyout likely isn't imminent. For boosters and influential members of the A&M community to rid themselves of Fisher, it would cost $77 million after this season. 

Does this mean Fisher's job is safe? Not in the slightest. Dan Mullen posted two 10-win seasons and had Florida ranked in the AP Poll's top 25 thrice entering 2021. That didn't stop the Gators from paying his $12 million buyout after a 5-6 season in The Swamp. 

A $12 million buyout is chump change for prominent names who invest in their football program. It would take a GoFundMe page and a complete implosion that involves total loss of the locker room for the Aggies to become desperate enough to write a check of that magnitude. 

But change has to come for the Aggies. Fisher knows this, too. Eight wins are unacceptable for the head coach who posted six double-digit winning seasons while at Florida State. He's made moves this offseason, ones that should produce better results for A&M in 2023. All that's only on paper, though, so hot seat chatter will be scorching likely Monday morning. 

Petrino's Prerogative

This is the week's headliner. Fisher knew this question was coming back when he whisked Petrino away from UNLV after his three-year stay at Missouri State. He evaded answering it for most of the offseason. 

Plain and simple; will Petrino be in complete control of the offense? Will the marriage be 50/50? Is Petrino here to coach quarterbacks or provide a change to a unit that ranked bottom-three in scoring among SEC teams? 

No one should question Petrino's work with quarterbacks, especially after his work with Lamar Jackson at Louisville. His moral background and ethics will be a conversation starter, but Fisher didn't hire Petrino as A&M's PR poster boy. His role on staff is to provide clarity and consistency at quarterback. Well that, and likely run the offense. 

Since his days at LSU under Nick Saban, Fisher has called plays. When Bobby Bowden stepped down in Tallahassee, Fisher added a new title but kept most of the same duties. Last year's results speak for themselves, leading to Dickey's firing and conversations of change. 

The firing means little if Fisher is still running the show, so it's time to rip off the band-aid and end the curiosity. 

Renewed Rivalry 

It's a year away, but that won't stop people from asking about the return of the Lone Star Showdown. For decades it was a staple of Thanksgiving in Texas households as the Aggies would meet against the Longhorns for in-state dominance and bragger's rights. 

For the first time since A&M departed for the SEC, the rivalry will return to its former glory. Texas and Oklahoma still have their sights set on winning the Big 12 and perhaps more, but fans can't help but dream of a matchup that could have major implications on recruiting and roster building in the not-so-distant future. 

A&M athletic director Ross Bjork said that the first game would be played at Kyle Field if the rivalry were to be renewed. SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey honored the request, now putting pressure on A&M to take a swing right out the gate. 

How excited are players for the rivalry to return? How does the game impact recruiting wars and the transfer portal? What does a win mean for A&M in ridding the "little brother" mantra against the flagship school? People are always two steps ahead in their thoughts, so expect this to be a point of interest. 

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