The Big 12 has some work to do.
What, you ask? Well, it could use a signature talent that captures the imagination of an entire country. You know, a player that lifts his team to unseen heights.
Good luck with that one.
Basically, someone like Johnny Manziel. The Heisman Trophy winner closed out his freshman season by authoring a Big 12 demolition over the Oklahoma Sooners at the Cotton Bowl.
Texas A&M 41, Oklahoma 13.
Manziel juked and rebuked the Sooners for a Cotton Bowl-record 229 yards and two touchdowns. And those were just the rushing yards. Counting the 287 yards passing and two touchdowns, Manziel finished with 516 total yards and four touchdowns against a defense that ranked fourth in the Big 12.
This was the same OU roster that brutalized Texas 63-21 at the old Cotton Bowl Stadium just three months ago, looking the part of a legitimate BCS title contender. In hindsight, that beatdown appears to have been less about Sooner supremacy in college football and more about Sooner supremacy over the Longhorns, whose four most lopsided losses under Mack Brown have all come against the Boomers.
These weren’t the same Aggies that floundered in the Big 12 under Mike Sherman. These were new Aggies. Confident Aggies. Winning Aggies.
They represented their new conference well and Manziel showed that he wasn’t slowed by the banquet circuit. He chewed up the Sooners, then hoisted the Cotton Bowl trophy for dessert.
The was pretty indicative of how things have gone for Big 12 teams over the last 10 Cotton Bowls played against SEC teams. One win. Nine losses. The conference went 4-5 in bowl games, but Oklahoma’s loss will have a bigger impact than any of the wins because it came against a former league member.
One night after Kansas State received a 35-17 spanking at the hands of Oregon, the Sooners pulled a terrific no-show in the second half by going scoreless while the Aggies were on their way to a 27-spot, with Manziel tossing touchdown passes for A&M’s final two touchdowns.
As the SEC chants emanated from the rafters of Jerry World, Manziel drove home the point that he’s just getting started. Archie Griffin, beware. JFF could actually walk away with a second Heisman next year, if he can stay healthy.
Somewhere, in front of a very large television screen, Mack breathed a heavy sigh of relief. The team that worked Texas by 42 points was rendered helpless in the second half. OU got its yards, but the Sooners didn’t get any points.
Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said Manziel is as good as any quarterback he has ever coached against, and that’s saying something, considering the Sooners have lined up against Vince Young, Colt McCoy, and Robert Griffin III in his tenure.
Is there a Johnny Manziel in the Big 12’s future? The conference enjoyed a nice heyday in the not-so-distant past when players like Young, McCoy, Sam Bradford, RG3 and Collin Klein were invited to New York City for the Heisman Trophy ceremony. The cupboard isn’t bare in these parts, but players like Manziel don’t come along every year.
Next season’s Big 12 rosters aren’t exactly bursting at the seams with All-America talent. Klein and West Virginia’s Geno Smith are out of here, while Oklahoma’s Landry Jones won’t be around for Sooners fans to bash for not being Bradford.
So there are a few openings for superstars. We’ll see if Texas’ Johnathan Gray can provide the same impact he did at Aledo High School. Baylor’s Lache Seastrunk has already proclaimed himself as the 2013 Heisman Trophy winner. That would be some mean feat, especially with Manziel back in the college game.
Yes, Friday night was a night of SEC domination.
Next season could be another year of Big 12 frustration.
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