The surprising thing here isn't A&M being listed as the top program by anonymous, "prestigious" Texas high school coaches. It's that the Longhorns are now lagging behind Baylor in terms of perception:
Coach A: “A&M, Baylor and then Texas.”
Coach B: “I hate to say it but [Texas is] third behind A&M and Baylor. Because they are Texas it is an easy gap to close if there is any. I think there is a bigger gap between Texas and Texas A&M. But that can close in a number of ways. It will be interesting to see how A&M responds without Johnny Football, and it will be interesting to see how Texas responds with Strong.”
Coach C: “A&M, Baylor, Texas, TCU, Texas Tech. A&M has the momentum right now. As you know, one winning season at Texas will change everything.”
Coach D: “Third behind A&M and Baylor. Texas is going to be Texas. They could come back right now and take over A&M if they want to. That’s how powerful they are. They can do anything they want. They are the Texas freaking Longhorns. But A&M is on top right now. I think it all depends on their offensive coordinator.”
Charlie Strong may think Texas A&M is a gadget program, and therefore isn't built to stand the test of time, but he definitely has his work cut out for him going forward.
