Ole Pete was on the sidelines last Saturday to see the first football scrimmage action contained within the Aggies regular practice. There is one thing this old sodbuster can tell you; organization is the name of this coaching staff’s game.

And you know what? The camaraderie they are showing is infectious. Everyone, players, coaches and assisting staff are totally focused on the job of getting Aggie football in a better place. That renewed vigor from the new staff plus a favorable schedule from the WAC has some markers leaning the Aggies way early. Pete knows there is a long way until kickoff and a longer way to the final gun sometime in December, but as I told you last week, this is football season and pondering and prognosticating about how the year is going to go is food for thought and gab as we get primed for what is coming.

Before I talk about the slate of games, let me get back to the enthusiasm that I saw during the first scrimmage. Little things like attention to detail, whether it’s linebacker coach Dale Lindsay taking extra time to show his squad how low to get to tackle effectively or the line coaches going over the proper way just to line up, the seeds like this that are planted now can sprout into victories in the fall.

Pete’s take on the schedule is this; a good start can be had with this setup of games. It is tough to take on a conference foe right off the bat, like Idaho, but the Vandals are still treading water at the same depth as the Aggies so there is a lot more reason for optimism for this opener than last year versus Nebraska. NM State will be the favorite versus Prairie View A&M and up next is UTEP, the team the Aggies have beaten two years in a row. I haven’t forgotten about the heat in this rivalry but there first three games are at home and there is a big plus in that.

Two Mountain West teams who also have new coaches are next in New Mexico and San Diego State. Don’t assume a win here, but again; these are good building blocks that lead to a return home with Utah State, which is another WAC team that the Aggies are even with at this stage of the game. I’m predicting a year you’ll enjoy, so get those season tickets and keep your cowbell handy cause we’ll be ringing up a storm at Aggie Memorial this fall.