Texas A&M Aggies
Texas A&M Aggies
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Texas A&M Aggies

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Texas A&M Aggies

The Texas A&M Aggies are the students, graduates, and sports teams of Texas A&M University. The nickname "Aggie" was once common at land-grant or "ag" (agriculture) schools in many states. The teams are also simply referred to as "A&M" or "Texas Aggies," and the official school colors are maroon and white. The mascot is a rough collie named Reveille.

The sports teams compete in Division I of the NCAA. Until the dissolution of the Southwest Conference, Texas A&M was a charter member of that conference. The Aggies became members of the Big 12 Conference with its subsequent formation in 1996. On July 1, 2012, they left the Big 12 Conference and joined the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

Texas A&M sponsors 20 varsity programs—nine men's and eleven women's.

The Texas A&M Aggies claim three national titles and have won 21 conference titles. They have produced two Heisman Trophy winners—John David Crow in 1957 and Johnny Manziel in 2012, the first redshirt freshman to ever win the award. A&M has had two perfect seasons, having gone undefeated and unscored upon in both 1917 and 1919. They were named AP National Champions in 1939.

The football program experienced a period of little success lasting from 1944 to 1971, when the Aggies won only two conference titles. With Emory Bellard as head coach beginning in 1972, the Aggies returned to prominence with two 10 win seasons during his short tenure. He was replaced by Tom Wilson who had little success at Texas A&M before Jackie Sherrill took over the program. Sherrill won three consecutive conference titles and two Cotton Bowl Classic postseason games. His defensive coordinator, R. C. Slocum, replaced him as head coach in 1989. Slocum finished in the top 25 during 10 of his 14 years at Texas A&M and won 4 conference titles, including the school's only Big 12 title in 1998. Slocum also owns the Aggies' last undefeated season, in 1994, though they were ineligible for the conference title or postseason play due to NCAA sanctions.

In late 2002, Dennis Franchione left his position as head coach at the University of Alabama to take over Texas A&M's football program from Slocum. He finished the 2003 season at 4–8. Franchione finished the 2004 regular season with a 7–4 mark and an invitation to the Cotton Bowl Classic, a game the Aggies lost to Tennessee. The 2005 team regressed to 5–6 and defensive coordinator Carl Torbush was fired and replaced by Gary Darnell. Due to the much-needed improvements on defense, the Aggies finished the 2006 regular season with a 9–3 record and a 5–3 mark in Big 12 play, including a 12–7 victory over the Texas Longhorns in Austin, the first over the Longhorns in 6 years.

In the 2007 season, the Aggies finished in a three-way tie for third place with Texas Tech and Oklahoma State in the Big 12 South, leading only Baylor, which finished last. Although the team pulled out a 38–30 victory over the Longhorns on the day after Thanksgiving, Franchione was forced to resign due to fallout from a secret email newsletter that violated NCAA and conference rules. Former Green Bay Packers coach Mike Sherman was announced as his replacement three days later. Unfortunately, Sherman's first year at A&M resulted in one of the worst records in years, finishing at 4–8. The 2009 season showed some improvement with a 5–2 home record and a 6–7 overall record. More coaching changes were made after the 2009 season and the hiring of Tim DeRuyter lead the media coverage. In 2008, DeRuyter was the defensive coordinator and safeties coach at Airforce where his defense finished 11th in the NCAA in total defense, and 5th in pass defense.

The Aggie Football team was featured in the ESPN movie, The Junction Boys. The film dramatized Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant's grueling football practice sessions in 1954 in Junction, Texas.

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