Best Case/Worst Case in 2017: Texas A&M Aggies

All of our Best Case/Worst Case scenarios:Texas / Texas A&M / Texas Tech / TCU / Baylor / Houston / UTSA / SMU / UTEP / Rice / North Texas / Texas StateWill this season be a dream or a nightmare for your favorite FBS program in the state of Texas? In this series, we take a look at the best and worst case scenarios for all 12 teams.Texas A&M 2016 record: 8-5Best Case While those in College Station have grown sick and tired of eight-win seasons over the last few seasons, the Aggies will likely have their work cut out for them just to reach that point this year. Athletic Director Scott Woodward increased the pressure on Kevin Sumlin in the spring when he declared Sumlin “has to win and he has to win this year”. 8-5 may have been underperforming for the Aggies in each of the last three seasons, but with so many holes across the roster, a lot will have to go right for A&M to just get to eight wins in 2017. Sumlin will have a new quarterback, questions on the offensive line, and a young receiving corps behind Christian Kirk. Defensively, the Aggies will rely on new faces to step up at linebacker and have to replace Daeshon Hall and Miles Garrett, who was the top pick in the NFL Draft. So if things work out the way Sumlin hopes, what is the best the Aggies could hope for in 2017? A lot of that will fall on the shoulders of whoever wins the quarterback battle between Jake Hubenak, Kellen Mond and Nick Starkel. The Aggies open the season on the road against Josh Rosen and UCLA before facing four winnable games leading up to a home matchup against Alabama. A win in the opener will tell a lot about the team’s ceiling. If the team gets off to a hot start in the first five games as it has in the past, a three-game home stand against Mississippi State, Auburn and New Mexico offers a chance to build some momentum down the stretch. Without any slip ups, the Aggies could be looking at moving to nine wins if they can split a pair of road games against Ole Miss and LSU to close out the year. Worst Case This will be the fourth straight season the Aggies enter the year with a new starting quarterback. From Kenny Hill to Kyle Allen to Trevor Knight, the A&M has yet to find any consistency at the position for more than a year since Johnny Manziel left the program after the 2013 season. If there is turmoil under center again this year, the Aggies could struggle mightily. UCLA will likely be favored in the opener, and Arkansas is not a cakewalk four games into the season. Fortunately, the Aggies play eight games in Texas this season – seven at home in College Station and one in Arlington – but there is a realistic chance they go winless on the road (UCLA, Florida, Ole Miss, LSU). That scenario would put a lot of pressure on A&M at home against teams like South Carolina, Mississippi State and Auburn. The Aggies will likely rely on several true freshmen in key positions throughout the year. The class has a high ceiling, but will the group be able to push the Aggies to the nine-win mark likely needed to save Sumlin’s job? If the Aggies don’t at least hit the eight-win plateau, the team will likely be looking for a new coach by the end of the fall. If the Aggies struggle, they could be looking at a 6-6 or 7-5 year – certainly not enough to satisfy a fan base hungry for a big year after suffering through late season collapse after late season collapse in recent years.

— –– —