After taking a pretty significant step forward from his freshman to sophomore seasons, a lot was expected out of Kellen Mond in 2019. He apparently expected a lot out of himself as well, saying at SEC Media Days that he considered himself the best quarterback in the conference.

Yeah...well, that didn't quite work out. Joe Burrow won the Heisman, a national title and was the first overall pick in the draft; Tua Tagovailoa went fifth overall. Mond is back in College Station for a senior year, so the prediction might have been premature. In fact, he was pretty much the same quarterback he was in 2018 and might have regressed a little bit.

Now, he's the most experienced quarterback in the SEC and, with experience comes introspection. During his first meeting with the media of the 2020 season, Mond gave a very blunt self-critique.

"I think last year, my fear of failure at times was pretty high," he said.

That probably doesn't come as much of a surprise to many people who watched him play last year. The hesitation, the refusal to throw the ball or take off and run -- those were signs of someone who was afraid of making a mistake or didn't trust what he was seeing.

"You can kind of look at maybe one play from from each game and some plays more and certain games where certain throws are not very accurate because I didn't, you know, I didn't really trust the receiver I didn't trust myself on making that throw," Mond continued.

Quarterback, as much as any position, is a mind game. Mond's intelligence has never been questioned -- at least, it shouldn't be -- but sometimes you can be too smart for your own good. There can't be room in the back of your head for that nagging voice of doubt; you've got to be 100% in your decisions, even if they prove to be the wrong one. And if that's the case, it has to be water off a duck's back. It's not an easy job mentally, athletically or emotionally.

We've seen what Mond can do when he doesn't overthink things and lets it rip. It's when he does his best work and looks like as a quarterback as there is in the nation. It's just that he does it when A&M is behind and time is running out. If he makes things simpler on himself, everyone benefits.

Now, press conferences mean nothing and words are just that. But I was struck by how different Mond was yesterday as opposed to last year. During our discussions last year, you could almost see him think out responses, another attempt at being too fine. Yesterday, he was confident, calm and assertive. Not jittery like he was in the past. So when Jimbo Fisher had his comments and he said how pleased he was with Mond’s throws, progressions and decision-making in the opening practice, I took note of it. Jimbo also said he feels like he’s found ways to coach Mond better and they had made some tweaks to the offense.

A lot of people might think of Vince Young and Texas when they figured out the right way to coach and utilize him. I thought of another number 11: Mark Rypien. Rypien was one of those guys who didn’t trust himself, to the point other teams knew it. Matt Millen, then of the 49ers, told his teammates in a 1990 playoff game that “you can see it in his eyes. He (Rypien) doesn’t believe he can do it.”

So Joe Gibbs, one of the greatest coaches and leaders of men the NFL has ever seen, went back to the drawing board. He found ways to utilize Rypien’s strengths, built up his confidence and the 1991 Redskins were bombs away, using his huge arm for a ton of big plays. Result: 14-2, two losses by a total of 5 points and a romp to the Super Bowl. Injuries and the departure of Gibbs stopped Rypien from repeating the magic, but for one year, everything worked. And isn’t that what we’re looking for here?

The NCAA’s decision to give student-athletes back their season for 2020 regardless of how much they play is both exciting and confusing. There are a lot of unanswered questions. First, it could really benefit a team with a lot of seniors like A&M. If they have a good season, great; off to the NFL. If not, then they could stay and add leadership and talent to a 2021 team that should have a lot of athletes but may not have a lot of experience. If the Aggies only keep a couple of guys, like Carson Green, Elijah Blades and Jayden Peevy, that would be a huge boost to the 2021 team. And, for them, it could be a big increase to their draft stock.

But there are big questions.

First, are there going to be roster exemptions? The NCAA did that for spring sports, but those were still at the discretion of the universities. It does look like that's going to happen, as the NCAA said this evening that "the financial aid of fall sport senior student-athletes who take advantage of the additional year of eligibility and extended clock should not count against team limits in 2021-22."

But what are those universities going to do as they run massive deficits as the result of no basketball and baseball tournaments, and in some cases, no football? Sounds like it could be a nice idea in theory and irrelevant in practice — unless schools get creative.

For two weeks, I've been making fun of the Big 10. I've been making fun of their arrogant demeanor, the "Because I said so" approach they've taken to cancelling the season and their absolutely botched response (none whatsoever) to the negative reaction.

They've stayed quiet until today, when the released a statement from Commissioner Kevin Warren. You can read it here, but short version: it's garbage. It doesn't answer any questions, gets into absolutely no specifics and, again, basically says "BECAUSE WE SAID SO!"

The Big 10 said, in part, that "(t)he vote by the Big Ten Council of Presidents and Chancellors (COP/C) was overwhelmingly in support of postponing fall sports and will not be revisited." Overwhelming, my backside. It was apparently 8-6, and the Big 10 isn't releasing the vote totals. Penn State's president said they didn't even vote. Nebraska's said they absolutely did.

So what in the world is going on there?

But it gets dumber. Now the Big 10 is talking about starting up football in the dead of winter and playing in domed stadiums, not at their home fields. So instead of allowing players to compete now, they think it's ok to start a season in the middle of flu season, likely before a vaccine, and play indoors where the likelihood of spreading the virus increases exponentially?

The Big 10 considers itself to be the smartest bunch of guys in the room. This whole debacle, whether there's a season anywhere else or not, is showing them to be a bunch of dithering idiots.

Two of many things that stood out in Jimbo Fisher's comments yesterday: first, there isn't any real competition on the offensive line and second, Jared Hocker and Kenyon Green have switched spots. Hocker is now the right guard, and Green the left guard. I appreciated the second one, because I watched the footage from Monday night's practice and was baffled at why 54 (Carson Green) was lined up next to Hocker.

But anyway, the bigger picture here is that it's a promotion of sorts for Kenyon Green. The primary reason is obvious: Kellen Mond, Zach Calzada and Haynes King are all right handed, and you want your best linemen protecting his blindside. It also could potentially strengthen the running game, because you'll have your two biggest linemen (Green and Dan Moore) on the same side of the line.

But I suspect there's something else at work here. Kenyon Green has never played on the left side of center before. In high school, he was a right tackle. The Aggies are going to need a left tackle next year, and he's the guy they want out there. In fact, should there be an injury to Moore, he may end up there this year. So there's an acclimation process that has to occur, and getting him closer to that position will only help him out.

Fisher said he's comfortable with the offensive line as it is: Moore-Green-Ryan McCollum-Hocker and Carson Green, and he is probably thinking that four seniors and a very talented sophomore should be enough to make it one of the league's best. That, of course, would be a big step from last year, but this is college football and many stranger things have happened from one year to the next. But in 2021, you'll be looking at an entirely new line, with (I would guess) Aki Ogunbiyi, Luke Matthews, Layden Robinson and Chris Morris stepping in. Green won't be the young pup, then. He'll be the big dog.

• Demond Demas is already running with the 2s. I think Caleb Chapman is in Kendrick Rogers old spot as the starter (not as the injured guy, smart alecks), and he drew praise from Mond right off the bat. Demas is going to be almost impossible to keep off the field, but what will happen to Chapman if he's playing that well? There has to be a role for him somewhere.

• Hezekiah Jones moved right back in with the 2s. That surprised me more than a little. We'll see if that sticks.

• If Micheal Clemons is doing as well people are saying, then A&M's defensive front could be extremely salty. A front of Clemons, DeMarvin Leal, Bobby Brown and Jayden Peevy is pretty big and athletic.