Sometimes, I wonder if those free buffets in the press box at football stadiums across the nation trigger tryptophan comas in sportswriters, because I often see observations and reports from them which make me wonder if they actually watch the game. A nap brought on by too much free food always seems like a logical and easy explanation for some of the dubious reports I would read on Sundays following games on Saturday. Dubious reporting was especially prevalent last Fall, when many people reported on Aggie football games. Week in and week out, I would read about what a poor job Mike Sherman and his staff was doing, how they just weren't coaching these kids up to win games, how they were getting blown out by the likes of Oklahome, Oklahoma State, and Miami, and it just didn't make any sense. Every week, I would wonder if these reporters were watching the same games I was, because I could see why we were getting blown out; we weren't able to stop anyone on defense, and the main reason for that was that we were incredibly slow.

Now, slowly but surely, it seems that the media has awaken from their tryptophan coma, and they are starting to catch on. I am not a fan of Randy Riggs or the Austin-American Statesman in general, and his latest installment on the Aggies shows why. Riggs says:

Defensive speed and quickness were glaringly lacking last season in Mike Sherman's first year as head coach.

What Riggs doesn't point out is that defensive speed and quickness has been glaringly lacking in the Aggie football program for the last six years. Ever since Dennis Franchione arrived in College Station, our defense became bigger and slower. Everyone in the media seemed truly shocked last season when other teams were faster on offense than we are on defense; well, when was the last time we had a truly elite defense on the field? When was the last time A&M fielded a defense that had some speed all over the field? 2002? Yet, I never see anyone in the media calling Franchione out for completely whiffing in defensive recruiting and player development during his tenure here, and pointing out that Sherman and Joe Kines had little to work with when they took over following the 2007 season. It takes too much effort to look up from your plate and think about what you are watching, I guess.

Riggs does note that Joe Kines is trying to simplify our schemes, blaming himself for making the schemes too complicated for players new to his defense to understand:

"That's poor coaching. That's really poor coaching," said Kines, blaming himself. "It's hard to run fast when you're confused."

Riggs does a good job covering Von Miller's position change to the quasi-OLB "jack" position, and mentions our new four-linebacker alignment. Our need for depth at the linebacker position and for more speed on the field is also mentioned, but again, I have to wonder where these sentiments were during Fall '08. Is the food in the pressbox at Kyle Field really so good that reporters can't lift their faces from the plates to see what is right in front of them?