Aggies’ Sherman has long row to hoe

By Marc Hudgens  |   Monday, September 01, 2008  |  Comments( 1 )

Texas A&M Aggies
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The upset bug that swept across the nation on Saturday bit Texas A&M, which lost 18-14 to Arkansas State in College Station. As with all upsets, the Aggies' loss shouldn’t have happened.

Adapting to a new coaching staff will always involve some obstacles to overcome, of course, but to cough up an 11-point halftime lead and lose at home to a mediocre Sun Belt team isn’t one of them. Patsy games are there for tuneup purposes only, and are a must for new coaches in order to implement their systems. These games are scheduled with easy wins in mind, but the Mike Sherman-led Aggies got more than they bargained for.

At the risk of jumping the gun, it makes one wonder if Sherman will, like too many NFL expatriates, fail at the college level. For instance, Charlie Weis has struggled at Notre Dame, while Bill Callahan flunked at Nebraska. Only USC’s Pete Carroll has enjoyed great college success after a failed NFL career. Hopefully for the Aggies, Sherman will be different from his ex-pro brethren.

To come from the all-too-corporate (to wit: dull) world of pro football into the intense, rabid realm of college football requires a completely different mindset, so it's a tough situation for Sherman. You can’t approach college players the same way you do NFLers, nor can you run the program similarly. As obvious as this all sounds, the question is: Will Sherman be able to adapt and change?

If Sherman and his team can overcome their respective learning curves, it’s not out of the question for Texas A&M to stumble another couple of times before turning it on full-blast around midseason. But it mostly depends on Sherman.

So far, not so good.
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About Marc Hudgens

Marc Hudgens has been with RealFootball365 since 2007, covering college football, specifically Clemson and Oregon. He also writes for SouthernPigskin.com covering the ACC. He enjoys the acidic wit of Hunter S. Thompson, is a freelance graphic designer and has written several screenplays. He...
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