With the SEC football season just a few months away, here’s a look at how the conference’s coaches rank in 2016.
Bio: Kevin Sumlin made his head coaching debut with Houston in 2008. Sumlin led the Cougars to a 35-17 (24-8 C-USA) record and two Conference USA West Division titles (2009, 2011) in four seasons, earning conference Coach of the Year honors twice (2009, 2011).
Sumlin took over at Texas A&M in 2012, which was the most successful season of his tenure so far. The Aggies went 11-2 (6-2 SEC), including an upset of eventual national champion Alabama, in their first season as an SEC team. It was a season that also saw Sumlin earn SEC Coach of the Year honors and quarterback Johnny Manziel win the Heisman Trophy.
Sumlin is 36-16 (17-15) in four seasons at A&M and is 3-1 in bowl games.
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
|---|---|
| 1989–1990 | Washington State (GA) |
| 1991–1992 | Wyoming (WR) |
| 1993–1996 | Minnesota (WR) |
| 1997 | Minnesota (QB) |
| 1998–2000 | Purdue (WR) |
| 2001 | Texas A&M (AHC/WR) |
| 2002 | Texas A&M (AHC/OC/WR) |
| 2003–2005 | Oklahoma (TE/ST) |
| 2006–2007 | Oklahoma (Co-OC/WR) |
| 2008–2011 | Houston |
| 2012–present | Texas A&M |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 71–33 |
| Bowls | 4–2 |
| Statistics | |
Reason for ranking; Sumlin’s tenure started strong, but has lost steam in recent years. He was once regarded as the “next great SEC coach,” but now finds himself in a less favorable scenario entering his fifth season at College Station.
CoachingHotSeat.com has Sumlin as the coach with the hottest seat in college football in 2016. On the field, the Aggies have failed to show improvement since Manziel’s departure. They’ve been good, but never great, which has been the expectation since their debut SEC season.
Then there’s the off the field issues. A&M started two quarterbacks last season and now neither are with the program. Both Kyle Allen and Kyler Murray transferred elsewhere within a week apart from one another. Allen’s decision wasn’t much of a surprise given that he lost the starting job, but Murray’s was shocking considering he finished his true freshman season under center.
In this case, the blame has to be on the head coach. Losing one quarterback is a cause for concern, but two is ridiculous. Adding to the firestorm that is A&M football, five-star quarterback Tate Martell and four-star wide receiver Mannie Netherly both decommitted earlier this month. Wide receivers coach Aaron Morehead sent out several since-deleted tweets shortly after Martell’s decision, which led to Netherly’s decommitment later that night.
Keep in mind, Morehead is responsible for coaching the best wide receiving corps in the SEC. That’s definitely who I want coaching my team if I’m an Aggies fan, a guy who angrily sub-tweets teenagers. And yet, Sumlin decided to show his support of Morehead by retaining him. GIG EM!
2016 Schedule:
| Date | Opponent | |||
| Saturday Sep. 3 |
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UCLA Bruins Kyle Field, College Station, TX |
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| Saturday Sep. 10 |
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Prairie View A&M Panthers Kyle Field, College Station, TX |
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| Saturday Sep. 17 |
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at Auburn Tigers Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn, AL |
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| Saturday Sep. 24 |
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Arkansas Razorbacks AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX |
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| Saturday Oct. 1 |
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at South Carolina Gamecocks Williams-Brice Stadium, Columbia, SC |
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| Saturday Oct. 8 |
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Tennessee Volunteers Kyle Field, College Station, TX |
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| Saturday Oct. 15 |
— | OFF | ||
| Saturday Oct. 22 |
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at Alabama Crimson Tide Bryant-Denny Stadium, Tuscaloosa, AL |
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| Saturday Oct. 29 |
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New Mexico State Aggies Kyle Field, College Station, TX |
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| Saturday Nov. 5 |
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at Mississippi State Bulldogs Davis Wade Stadium, Starkville, MS |
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| Saturday Nov. 12 |
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Ole Miss Rebels Kyle Field, College Station, TX |
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| Saturday Nov. 19 |
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UTSA Roadrunners Kyle Field, College Station, TX |
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| Thursday Nov. 24 |
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LSU Tigers Kyle Field, College Station, TX |
2016 Outlook: As noted, A&M has been a competitive program during Sumlin’s last three seasons, but hardly a contender in the SEC. Despite having the best wide receiving corps in the conference and talent on defense — including pass rushing specialist Myles Garrett — it doesn’t seem like that’s going to change.
A&M is, much like last preseason, a team with a wide spectrum of “what if?” heading into 2016. The Aggies could be a great team, but have shown no reason to make anyone think they’ll dethrone Alabama or upset LSU.
The SEC West is tough, as proven by Auburn making a bowl game despite ranking last in the division. Had A&M stayed in the Big 12, perhaps it’d be contending for a conference championship, but who knows? There’s little reason to believe Sumlin and his staff will be able to work past all the hot seat and off-field distractions for a team Pete Fiutak of Campus Insiders called the “Kardashians of football.”
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