Bearkats-Aggies Face Off Today At Kyle Field
by Cheval John
Everyone have been looking forward to the matchup between Sam Houston State Bearkats and Texas A&M Aggies since it was announced earlier this year.
Bearkats fans were in high gear since they finished at 14-1 as NCAA FCS finalist while Aggies fans were excited to be playing their first season in the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
Now the day is here when the Bearkats (8-2 overall, 6-1 Southland Conference) square off against the Aggies (8-2 overall, 5-2 SEC) today at Kyle Field in College Station at 2:30 p.m.
The game is sold out to capacity and is available on Fox Sports Southwest via Pay Per View in the state of Texas and on ESPN Game Plan nationwide.
Here are some players to keep an eye on in this game:
Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M
Johnny “Football” Manziel has played lights out for the Aggies this season.
The freshman quarterback has passed for 2,780 yards and 18 touchdowns and rushed for 1,014 yards and 15 touchdowns.
He’s only the second freshman to ever pass for 2,000 yards and rushed for 1,000 yards in NCAA FBS history (Brad Smith of Missouri did this in 2002).
He was the arquitect behind A&M’s 29-24 “upset” of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, when he passed for 294 yards and 2 scores.
Many are looking for him to have a huge day against the Bearkats.
Ryan Swope, Texas A&M
Swope is the go-to guy for this A&M offense.
The senior receiver has 236 catches for 2,956 yards and 22 touchdowns in career for the Aggies.
He needs 136 yards to break A&M’s school record for reception yards.
He also has 13 career 100 yards receiving which is also a school record.
Look for him to have a big day.
Deamontre Moore, Texas A&M
Moore has been the anchor for the A&M defense.
The junior defensive lineman leads the team in tackles and is ranked No.2 in the nation in tackles for losses (2.00 per game) and averages 1.5 sacks per game.
Brian Bell, SHSU
Bell is not flashy as Manziel, but has been managed the Bearkat offense efficiently.
The junior is 27-6 as a starter and has passed for 45 touchdowns, the most in SHSU history.
He has a 5,333 career passing yards which is second in SHSU.
Timothy Flanders, SHSU
What more can you say about Flanders.
He has made his name known in the nation and at SHSU.
The junior All-American and Walter Payton Award candidate has twenty-two 100 yard games and is the all-time leading rusher for SHSU (3,679). That mark also ranks him at No.6 in the Southland Conference.
He scored 51 career rushing touchdowns which puts him at No.2 in the SLC.
The Bearkat defense
The Bearkat defense has been been solid throughout the season.
They are ranked No.3 in the nation in rushing defense (68.3 per game) and No.5 in total defense (283.2 per game).
During their seven-game winning streak, they have held opponents to an average 255.4 yard and allowed only 83 total points.
The prediction:
Many analyst in major media from CBS Sports to ESPN have already predicted an Aggie win because of the opponent that A&M faces today.
Me, I am not going to do that.
Instead, I am going to predict that this game will be closer than everyone thinks because SHSU is no chump team.
Many forget that the Bearkats had an 20-10 lead at halftime against Baylor earlier in the season and kept it close at 24-23 in the fourth quarter before they eventually lost 48-23.
Though A&M have an all-time record of 10-0-1 against the Bearkats, anything can happen.
This will be a game that both Bearkat fans and Aggie fans will never forget.
“Johnny” Go Lucky
By Cheval John
So after months of all the hoopla on whether Heisman trophy winner Johnny Manziel “allegedly” received any payments for signing autographs during the BCS National Championship game, the NCAA decided to suspend Mr. Manziel for half a game when Texas A&M faces Rice on Saturday.
Really, half a game?
It’s asinine because it seems like Mr. Manziel got away with a violation that many others wouldn’t have been able to do.
This is really pale compared to a year suspension that Dez Bryant, now wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys, got while he was a college player for the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
No pun added.
Bryant’s violation? Lying to NCAA investigators, who questioned him about whether he had dinner with Deion Sanders.
That shouldn’t have constituted a year suspension.
What this says to me is that the NCAA will go after players ruthlessly who aren’t producing their bottom line: TV ratings and making money.
They also proved that getting student-athletes through the door to graduation is only secondary and their mission statement is only in words.
So congratulations, NCAA, you just gave the critics more amo to blast and criticize you even more.
With Manziel having the opportunity to play this season, everybody will forget about his “alleged” transgressions and maybe, lead the Aggies to win the National Championship.
They already won with this ruling.
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