LSU beats A&M, completing Ed Orgeron’s trial run and Kevin Sumlin’s latest collapse

LSU beat Texas A&M in College Station on Thanksgiving night, 54-39. The Tigers led 20-7 at halftime, and didn’t take their foot off the gas pedal in the second half, outscoring the Aggies and managing to put up 624 total yards of offense on Texas A&M’s defense, including a new school-record 285 rushing yards by Derrius Guice.

The W marks a 5-2 run for Ed Orgeron as LSU’s interim head coach and completes his on-the-job pitch for the full-time job. Friday, he’s expected to meet with athletic director Joe Alleva and make a pitch to be the head coach in 2017 and beyond. (That’s despite mid-game reports that LSU’s drawing interest from Houston head coach and Texas target Tom Herman.)

The LSU side is pretty simple. Either Orgeron gets the job or he doesn’t.

So let’s talk a little bit about Aggie head coach Kevin Sumlin’s five seasons at Texas A&M.

It’s funny because in October I wrote how, on paper, it looked like the Aggies wouldn’t do this in 2016. QB Trevor Knight’s addition, along with new defensive coordinator John Chavis, made it look like the Aggies were more of a finishing team than in years past.

But here we are in November, and the Aggies are 4-4 in conference play.

The Aggies opened 2016 beating No. 16 UCLA at home, then followed that by winning their next six games, setting up a Top 10 matchup against No. 1 Alabama.

TAMU was even able to take a 14-13 lead over Bama in the third quarter. But Texas A&M’s momentum turned out to be an illusion; Alabama overpowered Texas A&M and scored 20 unanswered points to win 33-14.

A couple weeks later, the College Football Playoff selection committee gave TAMU the No. 4 spot in the first Playoff rankings of the season.

Instead of serving as motivation, the No. 4 ranking turned out to be a direct target on the Aggies’ back. Mississippi State, who entered as a 1-3 team in SEC play, upset A&M, thus ruining any hope for the Aggies sneaking into the Playoff.

A week after the upset, the Aggies were still No. 8 in the country. They had Ole Miss next, which had yet to beat an SEC West team all year.

Texas A&M held a 21-6 lead at halftime, but Ole Miss scored 24 points in the fourth quarter to rally and upset the Aggies, 29-28. Here’s Good Bull Hunting on the loss:

It shouldn’t be happening, yet it does over and over again. We’re not here to postulate on solutions, we’re just here to peel off the scab and remind ourselves just how painful this reality is: this team once again imploded and snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

These late-season collapses are common occurrences under Sumlin. It’s especially odd when you consider how well the head coach does with recruiting. From 2012-14, the Aggies have finished with top-10 recruiting classes, including the No. 4 class in the country in 2014. After the No. 11 class in 2015, the Aggies still put together a Top 20 class in February.

Sumlin may not be on the hottest of seats in the country, but it’s hard to think he can make it through many more disappointments like this season.