It seems like there’s a “game of the century” every few years. Less than two years ago, top-ranked Alabama fell to No. 2 LSU in Baton Rouge in a game billed as such. Now the Crimson Tide, coming off back-to-back BCS Championships, are ranked No. 1 again and face another road contest for the ages, this time in College Station against No. 6 Texas A&M.
The hype machine for this game has already run out of control, but let’s try to temper it a bit; this is not an all-or-nothing matchup. Since 2006, only two of the seven BCS National Champions have finished their seasons with unblemished records, so a loss will not cripple either team’s season. No championship — BCS or SEC — will be decided Saturday.
So, if there’s no trophy up for grabs this weekend, what is the reason for all of the hoopla over this game? Why are fans willing to pay record prices for tickets? The short answer is simple; this is the SEC. This is a matchup of the two best teams from the best conference in the country (yes, it is and I’m from the Midwest, so stop with the bias accusations) with arguably (I’m trying to be diplomatic here) the most rabid fans in the country, so naturally it will be a big game.
The long answer, however, is much more complicated and more fun to talk about. The Crimson Tide have had this game circled on their calendars ever since they watched the Aggies ruin their perfect season in 2012. Not even the balm of eventually winning a BCS Championship was enough to soothe the sting of allowing Johnny Manziel to run wild at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Alabama coach Nick Saban made sure the returning Tide players didn’t forget Johnny Football’s exploits by replaying them in an endless loop in the team weight room over the summer. It’s safe to say Alabama’s players are tired of seeing the reigning Heisman winner.
This is also a chance for the 2013 Tide team to begin building its own legacy, separate from the 2011 and 2012 title teams. “After the national championship game [against Notre Dame], we had a team meeting,” Saban said. “I told them they were not the national champions… I went on to tell them what this team does will only be defined by what they could do from this point on.”
The first real step (sorry Virginia Tech) in that championship-building journey is exorcizing their Texas A&M demons of a year ago and getting a jump-start on the SEC West race along the way.
That step won’t be easy to take against an Aggie team that comes into the game with a Texas-sized chip on its shoulder. Despite going 11-2 and defeating Alabama last year, they are 7.5-point underdogs against the Tide at home Saturday. This spread isn’t entirely surprising considering that A&M lost 11 starters from last year’s team, including All-American left tackle Luke Joeckel, but it is certainly enough to make the Aggies feel disrespected.
Texas A&M fancies itself a national title contender this season and there would be no better way to prove their legitimacy than knocking off the overwhelming preseason favorite. So, don’t believe Manziel’s claims that this “feels like just another game.”
This is a statement game for both the Aggies and for Manziel in particular. The Aggies quarterback spent much of his offseason partying, meeting rappers and generally not ingratiating himself with college football traditionalists. Much of that will be forgiven if Manziel can also prove that he also spent much of his offseason improving as a football player.
It can be easy to forget, considering all of the bad publicity he has received lately, but by almost all accounts, Manziel did just that — paying a visit to noted quarterback guru George Whitfield. “I want to lead this team to a national championship,” Manziel explained while with Whitfield in San Diego. “The biggest thing for me is to make sure that I’ve done everything I can do.”
It has been difficult to determine whether Johnny Football 2.0 is really a superior version due to the lack of high-quality competition in the Aggies’ first two games. That will certainly not be the case on Saturday, so the showdown against the Tide will amount to “put up or shut up” time for the Texas native.
Manziel’s tumultuous offseason will be largely forgotten if he leads the Aggies to a win and he will be free to make as many “cash money” hand gestures as he wants. A loss will only intensify attacks on the quarterback’s maturity and calls for him to tone down his celebrity lifestyle. In short, Johnny had better be good.
There is plenty of motivation to go around on either side and in this writer’s opinion the game is a toss up. The game will likely hinge on whether Alabama’s defense can stay disciplined while Manziel scrambles in the backfield, something it was unable to do a year ago. The matchup between Manziel’s daring offensive brilliance and Saban’s defensive wizardry is an intriguing one, to say the least.
On the other side of the ball, the key will be whether Texas A&M can stop Alabama running back TJ Yeldon with a defense that needed to replace two starters on the line and two more at linebacker. Alabama will likely control the clock to try and keep Manziel and the rest of the Aggie’s explosive offense off the field.
Despite not playing for any trophy, this game has about as much intrigue surrounding it as a September game possibly can. The only factor that is known for sure is that football fans and fans of drama alike should tune in for what promises to be a classic.
Dylan Sinn is a freelance contributor for CraveOnline Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSinn or “like” CraveOnline Sports on Facebook.
