Jimbo Fisher defends Haynes King, still remains critical

Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher handled questions about his starting quarterback Haynes King with a certain amount of delicateness on Monday, balancing his defense of the young quarterback with criticism.

After the team’s upset loss to Appalachian State, Fisher made it clear the team is considering all options, including a switch at quarterback, if necessary.

“People don’t understand, the quarterback is your mother,” Fisher said. “She cleans up so many messes that are around. He’s a young guy right now, he’s not ready to clean up anybody’s messes and he’s still got to do his things right.

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“There’s some things he’s not ready to take over to fix and at the same time, there’s some plays, three or four throws in there, I wish he would have made.”

In the 17-14 loss, King threw for 13 completions on 20 attempts. He totaled 97 passing yards while taking two sacks and throwing zero touchdowns or picks. He also added 23 yards rushing on eight carries.

Fisher knows King needs to clean things up, but he appears dedicated to making things work before moving on to Max Johnson or Conner Weigman.

“That last drive at the end of the game, we had a couple of opportunities there and he knows that,” Fisher said. “That’s part of the evolution of the quarterback or a football player’s growth… We’ll work on it and do what we have to do, evaluate as we go.”

Paul Finebaum urges Fisher to make change at quarterback

ESPN host and analyst Paul Finebaum is one advocate for a change at quarterback in College Station. On McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning, Finebaum laid out the reasons he believes A&M and Fisher are headed for DEFCON 1.

“You have to start thinking that this thing is going in the wrong direction,” Finebaum said. “I’m not ready to go there yet, because I’ve wanted to believe in him. One thing I do believe, is he’s got the wrong quarterback playing. When he makes that change, if he makes it, can the season be salvaged?”

The SEC talking head put Fisher on the hot seat, but not in the traditional way.

“This was not supposed to be the year that Jimbo Fisher was on the hot seat, but he’s on the hot seat,” Finebaum said. “Not in the conventional sense, the University saying they’re going to buy you out… but he’s on the hot seat from a perceptive standpoint. A lot of people in the country think he’s a complete fraud as an elite coach.”

Despite the loss, Fisher and the Aggies remain in the top 25 of both the AP and coaches’ poll. On Saturday, Texas A&M hosts No. 13 Miami at home for a 9 p.m. kickoff.