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By Kevin Roark

After three straight mediocre seasons, Texas A&M is searching for a spark that will lead them to a national championship in 2017. Meanwhile, the SEC blue-bloods aim to re-establish themselves as the nation’s No. 1 team.

Texas A&M has finished its previous three seasons with identical 8-5 records. Despite appearances in the Liberty, Music City and Texas Bowls, the maroon and white are looking to free themselves of their pedestrian rut before getting lost in the dominance of the SEC. They’ve fallen short of double digits in the win column every year since 2012, and have not been above .500 in SEC-play during that span.

      To put themselves back in the College Football Playoff conversation and save head coach Kevin Sumlin from searching in the classifieds, the Aggies have loaded their already raucous slate with one worthy out-of-conference adversary. A&M topped UCLA to kick off the 2016 season and will pay visit to the Bruins to open this fall. While the Aggies undoubtedly need to top every non-conference opponent, they haven’t fallen to their opening competition since 2012.

      Needless to say, the Aggies are no strangers to hot starts and we can expect to see plenty of energy from their sixth starting QB in as many years. With a defensive hole left by Myles Garrett, Daeshon Hall, Shaan Washington and Justin Evans, all eyes will be on the man under-center as he is expected to perform well on the road. Since the last four starting quarterbacks have failed to hang around for more than a season, A&M is ready to invest in consistency for a long-term QB.

     This season, College Station may put their faith in freshman Kellen Mond. The San Antonio-native boasts dual-threat abilities and should be able to dish out yardage on the ground.

     Also in the running for the starting position is redshirt freshman Nick Starkel, who is more of a pocket passer. Senior Jake Hubenak returns, too, but is not expected to start under center as he performs as a safe backup.

       With three straight non-conference games to welcome the season, the Aggies face Arkansas in the Southwest Classic in Arlington. The Razorbacks have yet to unseat the Aggies since 2011 despite being a consistent bowl team in the past few years. With a returning backfield and weakened A&M defense, it would be foolish to count the Hogs out.

     Further down the road, the Aggies will face off against the Florida Gators, the two-time reigning SEC East champions. The timing of this game is crucial as it comes near mid-season a week after the Aggies face Alabama, a match-up that has proved to derail A&M’s season time and time again. The fact of the matter is College Station is no longer impressed with 5-0 starts. Until the maroon and white can show up in the latter half of the season, they will find themselves nursing another 8-5 record. The team will experience growing pains at signal-caller but need to steal one at the Swamp to gain momentum at this pivotal time of the season.

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     With the SEC continuing to dominate their non-conference competition, expect the league to make a move to slide a second team into the playoffs. The Crimson Tide show no signs of slowing down, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see their Alabama neighbors, Auburn, make a push for the conference title and a spot in the College Football Playoff. Under Gus Malzahn, the Tigers have a revamped offense with newcomer coordinator Chip Lindsey and quarterback Jarrett Stidham. Alongside them is the SEC’s top-rushing duo Kamryn Pettway and Kerryon Johnson who stand behind a veteran offensive line sure to bring a celebration to Toomer’s Corner. The Plainsmen are all set to bring some much needed changes to the SEC while also carrying the conference to new heights as long as their roster doesn’t dry out.

     The Aggies are slated to kick off their 2017 season on Sunday Sept. 3 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.

Jacob Martindale — The Battalion

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