NASHVILLE — The trio entered the expansive ballroom inside the Grand Hyatt Nashville all sporting designer shades and a confidence hardly befitting a team coming off a winter bereft of a bowl game.
“The swagger’s changed tremendously,” Texas A&M senior defensive tackle McKinnley Jackson said.
“I feel like the biggest difference is how much explosive plays we’re going to have, whether it’s from the long game, like a long pass or a short pass,” Aggies veteran receiver Ainias Smith added. “I believe we’re going to turn 1-yard catches into 75-yard touchdowns, stuff like that.”
Credit the Aggies ensemble — which also featured defensive lineman Fadil Diggs — with betraying a veneer of confidence and camaraderie, even if the external perception of Texas A&M is one of desperation and mild dysfunction. A decade after leading FSU to an unbeaten season and national title, sixth-year Aggies coach Jimbo Fisher has failed to produce results commensurate with his salary.
Most believe only a bloated buyout (reportedly $75 million after this season) has kept Fisher’s tenure in College Station afloat. Only twice in five seasons have his teams finished above .500 in the SEC. The Aggies are 2-8 in their last 10 league contests, and last season they finished 101st nationally in scoring (22.8 ppg).
With each forlorn fall, paying Fisher not to coach seems more plausible.
“We live under pressure every day,” Fisher said Monday at SEC media days. “We put more pressure on ourselves than anybody out there ever puts on us, so there’s no added pressure because what good does that do? Does worrying make you any better? No.
“What you’ve got to do is get to solutions.”
The most scrutinized solution Fisher has attempted? Hiring former disgraced Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino as his offensive coordinator. Even disregarding Petrino’s checkered past (which also includes a woeful 13-game tenure as Falcons coach), many wonder how he and Fisher — two strong-willed offensive play callers — will co-exist.
“Have you ever been in any staff room that doesn’t have arguments or disagreements?” Fisher asked rhetorically. “Every coaching staff in America has an argument or a disagreement. That’s part of it. But no, I’m the boss, we’re the boss. We’ll do it at the end of the day, but you listen to everybody’s opinion.”
Fisher and Petrino — whom Fisher hinted will call the plays — won’t suffer from a talent shortage. And Fisher was profusive in his praise of his overall team leadership.
Quarterback Conner Weigman displayed promise in five games in 2023, including a late-season upset of LSU. This season he benefits from the return of Smith, the team’s top receiver in 2021 who missed most of last fall with a knee injury. The backfield (coached by former USF star Marquel Blackwell) may be a committee approach, but the offensive line is seasoned, if not spectacular.
“We definitely have, let’s just say, a quicker mindset on how we should run our offense,” said Smith, who had 47 catches two seasons ago. “Definitely want to start with a lot more energy, a lot quicker, and being a lot more consistent throughout the entire season for sure.”
The playmakers and play callers are in place.
Whether they mesh or implode is anyone’s guess.
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