Texas A&M will take on No. 1 Kansas State in the 1998 Big 12 title game. Simply put, it's one of the biggest games in school history.

National implications are everywhere, as BCS slots and the rest of the links in the bowl chain will soon be tightened up.

But for the Aggies, they may not have even reached such a game of this magnitude had they not mustered their most impressive Ñ and in hindsight their most important ÑÊdrive of the season against the other team from the state of Kansas.

Against the Jayhawks on Oct. 3, A&M trailed KU, 21-17 with 8:54 left in the game. The Aggies had looked slugglish on both sides of the ball in relinquishing a 14-0 lead, and the thought of having to drive 75 yards for the winning score seemed as gloomy as the misty air surrounding Memorial Stadium on that day.

But A&M quarterback Randy McCown led an 11-play surge that ended when Dante Hall ran it in for a 3-yard touchdown to give the Aggies a 24-21 lead and, after a defensive stand, the three-point victory.

It was an "ugly" win against a nondescript Kansas squad, and with Nebraska looming the next week, the idea that A&M would struggle to make it to a bowl game was a real one.

But then head coach R.C. Slocum, his staff and his team rallied, not wavered. They bore down instead of going belly up.

The Sunday after the narrow win over Kansas proved to be the turning point of the season, coaches and players say. It was another Sunday afternoon practice, or so the players thought.

But then Slocum became as animated as some players have ever seen him, challenging them to intensify their practice speed and intensity. If this team was to make it back to a Big 12 title game, Slocum said, the work had to begin on the practice field.

"We should have beaten Kansas worse,"Êsaid Slocum, whose team ripped off 10 straight wins heading into the Texas game. "That day, we really weren't as sharp as we should have been, but we won. I thought it was impressive that we kind of bore down and took the ball the length of the field and scored.

"Sunday afternoon, we had a meeting out there and talked about practice. I got pretty involved in talking about practicing harder and setting the goals higher and just being better. I thought that week, we had excellent workouts for Nebraska. We practiced hard, and it was physical. Since that time, we've had good workouts. For whatever reason, we kind of came together."

The Aggies' turnabout can be partly credited to Slocum's Oct. 4 meeting, but some good luck attributed to the Aggies sharpening their focus as well.

Yes, the schedule-makers were smiling, ironically, by placing

mighty Nebraska on the table right after the Kansas near-miss. In essence, the Aggies were forced to take their game to another level, or another lopsided loss like the one suffered in last year's Big 12 title game could have been in the works.

"It was good that we played Nebraska that next week," said senior strong safety Rich Coady. "Playing that close game to Kansas, I think it opened a lot of eyes on this team, that we can't just go out there and push people around. We have to work hard.

"(Slocum) called us up, and that was the first time I had seen him show a lot of emotion toward this team. He was fired up, very vocal and very loud. He pretty much challenged us and said there's enough talent on this team to be good."

Coady said practices have been so intense since those of the Nebraska week that games are often a welcomed relief from the pressure of performing during the week. It's not that the A&M coaches have been tyrannical, but they have demanded attention to every detail.

One of Slocum's post-practice soliloquies this fall dealt with carrying yourself in a professional manner, telling the team how, as a high school player, he was told to make sure even his shoelaces were tied in championship form.

Indeed, from chinstraps to shoestrings, the 1998 Aggies have been laced up for most of the season.

Even after the 23-14 loss against Florida State in the Kickoff Classic, the ineligibility situation of Tiki Hardeman, the depleted roster at running back because of injuries and a switch at quarterback, A&M has stayed remarkably steady this fall.

Without a doubt, the Aggies have taken on the personality of their head coach, who has turned in perhaps his best coaching job in his nine years at the helm of the program.

"The biggest thing about R.C. is that he is very even-keel," offensive coordinator Steve Kragthorpe said. "When we beat Nebraska, R.C. did a great job that week of keeping us all level-headed and saying. 'Hey, that's just one game.' I think that was the most impressive thing about R.C. was the way he handled the Nebraska win. We were all excited, but we enjoyed it a day or two, got back on the horse and said we've got to go to Waco. That win doesn't mean anything if we didn't beat Baylor."

The Aggies smothered the Bears, 35-14, and turned in their most impressive offensive outing of the year. Both the offense and defense came together and gave the fans a glimpse of what this team could do if all facets of the Aggies' game were clicking.

In fact, if the Aggies are to upset Kansas State, a performance like the gem in Waco will be called for. What should be comforting to A&M fans and players in preparing for the Big 12 title game is the notion that Slocum may have his most talented and well-prepared coaching staff since the Bob Davie/Bob Toledo coordinated staffs of the early 1990s.

And as much as the season has been filled with outstanding defensive performances by the Wrecking Crew, the defensive coaching staff can be credited with much more than sterling X's and O's. The coaches have rallied around one another, even if the offense has struggled because of a mountain of adversity.

"I think it's a credit to the coaches," Slocum said. "The team unity and disposition a lot of times is a reflection of the unity of the coaching staff. This group of guys really blends well and gets along. We don't have a bunch of big egos on the coaching staff or people with a bunch of different agendas."

Slocum had to replace three coaches in the offseason, and then he promoted Kragthorpe to offensive coordinator. And Kragthorpe said he has never once felt like he was on the end of some kind of bad-mouthing by the defensive staff.

"First of all, we have great coaches on this staff," Kragthorpe said. "They are all excellent football coaches. But more than that is we've got great people on the staff. There's a lot of unselfishness."

Slocum said he has been a part of other coaching staffs that became divisive when things didn't go according to plan on the field.

"I think it's a real credit that our defensive (coaches) have not at all said, 'Well, when are you guys going to get it going on offense and help us out,'" Slocum added. "They have made it positive, and as a result, the defensive players haven't felt that way.

"And the offensive coaches haven't resented the fact the defense is getting the recognition. The offensive guys have stayed steady in the boat. They've had a multitude of disasters. They've done a good job of staying poised and not panicking and saying, 'Oh God, we've run out of all our guys.' I think they've really done a great job of utilizing the players that we have."

Regardless of how the 1998 season finishes, the Aggies have positioned themselves for more national glory, having received a good bit already.

The top-10 ranking. The close loss to Florida State. The 28-21 win over then-No. 2 and unbeaten Nebraska. Dat Nguyen's run for the Butkus and Lombardi awards.

All of the above have helped the perception of Texas Aggie football nationally. And all of this came when the Aggies rolled through the nation's best football conference without several key players and an offense that could never find a consistent stride.

"I think we've gotten a lot of mileage out of the team," Slocum said. "It's been fun because we're demonstrating the things you like as a coach. The things people say about this team are what you like. The teamwork, they play hard, they play with some class. They're unselfish. They're not braggadocios.