What Texas A&M's Kevin Sumlin Must Do to Save His Job in 2016

If you see Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin squirming a little bit while sitting down this offseason, don't be alarmed.

He's just trying to look and remain calm while sitting on the hottest seat in the country.

Sumlin's Aggies have fallen off the SEC radar after he and former quarterback Johnny Manziel burst onto the scene in 2012—the program's first season in the conference. 

Since winning the Cotton Bowl after that season, they've regressed to a point where they're rarely thought of in the SEC West race and have become noted for inconsistent defense and an ongoing quarterback carousel rather than contending.

The culture of the program was even brought into question by former quarterback Kyle Allen in an interview with CBSSports.com's Dennis Dodd. Allen and fellow 5-star quarterback Kyler Murray both transferred from the program in December.

As ESPN's Chris Low noted on Sports Talk With Bo, a statewide syndicated radio show in Arkansas, Sumlin can't continue along this trajectory.

"

Low: If Kevin Sumlin has another year similar to the last two years, it’s going to be tough for him to survive. Climate of the SEC West.

— Bo Mattingly (@SportsTalkwBo) January 6, 2016"

Sumlin has to contend in 2016, and that likely means at least having a shot at the SEC West title when the calendar flips to November.

Does he need to win it? 

Of course not.

He just needs to have a legitimate chance in November, and Sumlin should be fine.

Administrators and most fans know that while teams have to be talented and well-coached to win titles, they have to have a little bit of luck, too—which is wildly unpredictable.

It's not like the SEC West is littered with certainty, though.

Alabama has earned the benefit of the doubt in the face of massive roster turnover, but every other team in the division either has massive roster holes to address this offseason or philosophies that need to change in order to be taken seriously. 

The thing about this team is that aside from the surprising departures of Allen and Murray, Texas A&M actually has some things going for it that could land it in contention.

Former offensive coordinator Jake Spavital's departure was addition by subtraction, no matter who the replacement was. As I noted during the season, Spavital has overseen three of the four most notable midseason quarterback regressions over the last four seasons and clearly was a problem in College Station.

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Not only did Sumlin do the right thing by showing Spavital the door, but he hired Noel Mazzone away from UCLA to replace him. Mazzone teaches a physical offense that is predicated on establishing the run while incorporating many of the same spread elements that have become synonymous with Sumlin and Texas A&M. 

He's the perfect coordinator to maintain Texas A&M's offensive identity while making the appropriate tweaks to deal with the day-to-day grind of SEC football.

No quarterback? No problem. 

All Sumlin did was sign Oklahoma graduate transfer Trevor Knight to contend with Jake Hubenak, who topped the 300-yard mark in the loss to Louisville in the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl. 

No, Knight didn't look great against TCU as an injury replacement for Baker Mayfield in 2015 and nearly allowed the Horned Frogs to win a game they had no business being in at halftime. But he is a two-time captain of the Sooners (even when he wasn't the starter), enjoyed success at the top of the college football food chain when he toppled Alabama in the 2014 Allstate Sugar Bowl and was the best graduate transfer quarterback on the market.

"You see how certain guys just ooze leadership, and he's all about that," Sumlin said on national signing day, according to the school: 

"

Takes care of his business. Tremendous team guy. Tremendous leadership guy. First thing that strikes me is we got back here and his conversation level is a lot different than an 18-year-old. His ability to rally guys when we are gone and the coaches can't be there … He's already had guys out throwing and catching.

"

Simply put, Sumlin made the best of a bad situation in the face of massive pressure.

That matters, even though it goes largely unnoticed by the public.

Jackson Laizure/Getty Images

Lost in the shuffle of the quarterback exodus and intra-state rival Texas' dominant national signing day was the fact that Sumlin gets two more big-time transfers in 2016 after they sat out 2015.

Keith Ford is a former 5-star running back for Oklahoma who will provide options and depth in the backfield alongside James White. On the other side of the football, former 4-star corner Priest Willis will join a defensive backfield that includes safety Armani Watts, as well as a front seven that includes stud defensive ends Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall, tackle Daylon Mack and linebacker Otaro Alaka. 

"[We were] able to add two really good transfers last year—Priest Williams as a corner who started at UCLA and Keith Ford who was really fine player at Oklahoma," Sumlin said of the newcomers in a press conference on national signing day. "Those guys don't show up on this list, but you add them to this class and you start to see the depth pile up real quick."

Depth is what vaults teams into contention for championships, and Texas A&M actually has that everywhere else other than quarterback.

Sumlin needs to contend to save his job. Even though the last few months have been uncomfortable at best and dicey at worst, he has done a lot to the roster and staff over the last couple of seasons to do just that.

Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Statistics are courtesy of CFBStats.com, and recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports.

Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and national college football video analyst for Bleacher Report as well as a host on Bleacher Report Radio on SiriusXM 83. Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.