The Texas-Texas A&M football rivalry will move back to its traditional Thanksgiving slot for the next two years. The longtime Thanksgiving event was moved to the day after in 1996. The switch back accommodates a Thanksgiving night ESPN broadcast, Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds said Monday. The news comes on the heels of Monday's announcement that ESPN will continue to televise regular-season Big 12 games through a new two-year agreement with Fox Sports Net. The terms of the new agreement will include seven games being broadcast on either ESPN or ESPN2 during the 2008 season. The only other game finalized so far is a Colorado-West Virginia tilt on Sept. 18. Texas and Texas A&M have played on Thanksgiving 60 times in a rivalry that dates to 1894. The game with be the 115th meeting between the schools. "I am very excited about playing our Texas game on Thanksgiving night," new A&M coach Mike Sherman said. "This tradition-rich rivalry between two great universities deserves this type of exposure. I am hopeful we can keep this date for this game in years to come." The five remaining games will be selected during the course of the season.
This is where the game belongs. I have fond memories of waking up Thanksgiving Day in College Station, getting together with my buddies, trying to find someplace to eat and going to the game. After the game, we would car caravan to H-Town, and I would have some late turkey with the family. Good times.
