Gusts from Hurricane Isaac brought a whirlwind of emotions for Texas A&M.
On Aug. 28, just two days before the Aggies were scheduled to open their season, they found out their game against Louisiana Tech would be postponed.
After the announcement, first-year Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin noticed a change of attitude in his players.
“I don’t think we can be any lower than we were without playing a game,” Sumlin said. “When you go through a situation where you are in camp and you have 26-27 practices, you are looking forward to playing somebody else.”
Texas A&M will do that Saturday, hosting No. 24 Florida in its first game as a member of the Southeastern Conference.
Florida arrives at College Station off a sloppy home victory against Bowling Green in which it committed 14 penalties and converted only 31 percent of third downs.
“I think it is good that we played our game; that we made mistakes and that we can’t make the same mistakes in Texas, obviously,” right guard Jon Halapio said. “We won’t win if we make the same mistakes that we did against Bowling Green.”
The Aggies don’t have the luxury of fixing problems from the previous week’s game.
Sumlin, the coach at Houston for the last four seasons, brought in nine new assistant coaches in his first year at Texas A&M and would have appreciated the opportunity to have a dress rehearsal before the SEC opener.
“It’s an advantage for Florida to be able to play,” Sumlin said. “You make your most improvement between the first and second game. Obviously, that comes from experience. It’s an advantage to play and get to know your team.”
Not playing in Week 1 could work as both a positive and a negative for Texas A&M.
With the Aggies’ new coaching staff and a lack of game film, Florida has no idea what to expect from its opponent.
Defensive players watched Houston tape for clues about the Aggies offense.
Halapio said the offense looked at South Florida video, as Texas A&M defensive coordinator Mark Snyder coached there from 2010-2011.
“That can only go so far,” Florida defensive coordinator Dan Quinn said. “If I was a nickel or safety, I’ve got to cover this guy. I’d like to look to see what his speed is like and that kind of thing.
“You have this balance of, ‘OK, I’d like to know who the opponent is, but at the same time know what the scheme is.’ That’s the challenge for the players this week.”
For the Aggies, the waiting game has ended and the mood has changed. They began studying Florida game tape earlier this week, and College Station has come alive.
College Gameday will film on campus for the first time since 2006. Sumlin said season tickets sold out faster than in any other season in school history.
“There’s a real buzz around here. It’s pretty easy when you’re on a campus with 50,000 students,” Sumlin said. “The people (are) letting them know that they’re excited with seeing [them] play this Saturday.”
Contact Adam Pincus at apincus@alligator.org.
Defensive Coordinator Dan Quinn watches with excitement during Saturdays win against Bowling Green University.
