The 20 most overhyped college football teams of the last 20 years
2011: Texas A&M Aggies
Texas A&M toiled in mediocrity during the first decade of the 21st Century. The Aggies won nine games twice during the decade, first in 2006 under head coach Dennis Franchione in 2006 and again under Mike Sherman in 2010.
Sherman led A&M to its first end of season ranking since 1999 when the Aggies finished the 2010 season No. 19 in the country. The improvement was particularly notable because Texas A&M stumbled to 4-8 in Sherman’s first season in 2008, and the Aggies finished 6-7 in 2009. Led by quarterback Ryan Tannehill and running backs Cyrus Gray and Christine Michael, the Aggies entered the 2011 season ranked No. 8 in the nation.
Despite no Texas A&M football teams entering the Top 10 of the AP Poll at any point during the previous 10 seasons, expectations were the highest they’d been in College Station since R.C. Slocum led the Aggies to No. 5 after a 3-0 start to the 1999 season. Those lofty expectations ultimately cost Sherman his job.
After easy wins against SMU and Idaho, No. 8 Texas A&M lost a thriller to No. 7 Oklahoma State 30-29 in the Big 12 opener. The Aggies followed with another tough loss, 42-38 to No. 18 Arkansas, before going on a three-game winning streak to climb back to No. 16. However three losses in four games, capped by a 27-25 loss to Texas in the last meeting between the two archrivals, led to a 6-6 final record and a spot in the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas – hardly a dream destination for a preseason Top 10 team.