Texas A&M vs. Northwestern: 5 Things We Learned from the Texas Bowl

The final score has been tallied. The Texas Bowl has come to a close, finishing out a fantastic season for both universities. A fantastic victory by a strong Texas A&M squad over their Northwestern opposition is the end result, 33-22.

Next season now looms on the horizon for both of these teams, one looking to continue to improve and the other hoping to rebuild.

What can the coaches use from this bowl game to help them better understand what to fix over the long break? Where will the focus be for the returning players? What can be learned?  

We'll take a look for ourselves. The Texas Bowl may be over, but the effects it will have on next year are yet to be known, so let us dive on in.

Ryan Tannehill Should Be a Top Draft Pick

The senior QB from Texas A&M will be entering the 2012 NFL draft after winning his final game as a college player. He put up big numbers all year and has made his squad very competitive in a tough Big 12.

Tannehill has left a true impact on Aggieland since he entered the Kansas game last season and reinvigorated a team that had lost a lot of momentum going into the year. He picked up 329 passing yards on 40 attempts for one TD and one interception in the Texas Bowl.

Although the Texas Bowl was no blowout, Tannehill and his offense were running on pure emotion after losing a senior lineman in Joey V. He played more solid than most people thought he would, helping win is school’s first bowl since 2001.

The NFL is always looking for smarts combined with talent and skill. Tannehill has all three and then some. His combine results will be extremely indicative of who wants him, but no matter what happens, he should go extremely high in this year’s draft class.  

Kain Colter Will Be a Threat Next Season in the Big Ten

This young man started the season for the Wildcats while senior superstar Dan Persa remained injured. Gaining two wins a close loss, Colter is one heck of an athlete. He retained solid playing time at QB the rest of the season while also going in at wide receiver. 

Only throwing three passes in this game, Colter completed two of them for a TD and 13 yards. He led the rushing game with 75 yards and a TD. This sophomore also pulled down three receptions for 12 yards. He is a threat wherever he plays, but next season it will be at QB.

With Dan Persa leaving, Colter will take over for the program. Staying easily for two more seasons, this young player will force opposing teams to game plan around him. We all thought that Persa was a Heisman candidate this year, just wait for Colter to become a senior.

Sean Porter Will Be Dangerous Next Year

The junior from Schertz, Texas has been and will be one of the best in the college football world. His strong play from linebacker for the past two seasons has shown how much of a threat he is to offenses.

The SEC relies heavily on defense. A&M needs to look to conform to their new conference by pushing for big-time recruits on that side of the ball. Porter is a key part of what remains and will be a leader as a senior next season.

Grabbing one sack, one TFL, and six total tackles on the game, Porter is a force to be reckoned with. His composure on and off the field have him as one of the best linebackers going into the 2012 season.  

Northwestern Will Continue to Be the Upset Squad of Their Conference

This season, the Wildcats upset the heavily favored Nebraska Cornhuskers in Lincoln for what turned out to be the biggest one of the season for the entire college football world. They seem to do it at least once a year, pulling off a game that should have easily gone the other way.

Next season, Kain Colter will lead the offense under coach Pat Fitzgerald. They will be more potent than anyone in the Big Ten realizes and expect another huge upset at the hands of the Wildcats. Things are turning around up in Illinois under their passionate head coach, so watch out for Northwestern to break their bowl drought soon.

Kevin Sumlin Is Inheriting a Solid Program

Taking over Mike Sherman's duties as head coach next season as Texas A&M enters into the SEC, many people think that Sumlin will have a broken program that he'll have to put back together as he competes for wins in the toughest conference in the nation.

The truth is that A&M is the strongest it has ever been. Recruiting was possibly Mike Sherman's greatest ability as he was able to bring in some of the best in the state to Aggieland. Sumlin has the shot to secure all those recruits and more as he takes over.

Additionally, the Aggies are returning a superb class of young men. Led by LB Sean Porter and WR Ryan Swope, this A&M squad is more powerful than most analysts will give credit. Kevin Sumlin is walking into a death trap no more than any other coach coming back next season.