What Is Going on With Kevin Sumlin and Texas A&M?
By Ty Duffy
The Swag Copter was losing altitude. It may have just hit the ground.
Kevin Sumlin signed five-star quarterbacks in both 2014 and 2015. Neither will be on campus entering 2016. Sophomore Kyle Allen announced he was transferring last week. Freshman Kyler Murray, it appears, will be following him out the door.
Per multiple sources, Kyler Murray's intention as of one hour ago and following a meeting with Kevin Sumlin was to transfer from A&M
— Billy Liucci (@billyliucci) December 16, 2015
Since that time, I've been told the Aggies have been in the process of attempting to change Murray's mind and keep him in College Station
— Billy Liucci (@billyliucci) December 16, 2015
Murray was not present at Texas A&M practice today.
QB Kyler Murray not present at Texas A&M practice today. More on that: https://t.co/aaWqE3LVgG
— Sam Khan Jr. (@skhanjr) December 16, 2015
Should both Allen and Murray depart, Texas A&M would be left with sophomore Jake Hubenak who averaged 3.4 yards/att in sporadic 2015 action.
Sumlin looked like one of the nation’s elite coaches, riding Johnny Manziel and a masterful offensive line to an 11-2 record his first season. The Aggies signed him to a massive $30 million extension after 2013. But, he was trending downward entering 2015.
An 8-4 record in 2015 was not terrible. Though, the Aggies closed 2-4 against FBS teams, after a 5-0 start, with wins over lowly South Carolina and Vanderbilt. Since Manziel departed, the Aggies are 7-9 in the SEC, 4-8 within the West division.
Sumlin rebooted on defense after last year, bringing in John Chavis from LSU. It looks as though he’ll be rebooting on offense this year as well.
One thing seems clear: we were premature leaving Sumlin off our 2016 coaching hot seat list.