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Texas A&M Starting QB Competition Completed: Kenny Hill Gets Position, Beating Out Kyle Allen

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The Texas A&M Aggies' starting quarterback competition is over and Kenny Hill will get the nod for their week one matchup with the South Carolina Gamecocks.

According to ESPN, Texas A&M head football coach Kevin Sumlin announced his starter Saturday, less than two weeks ahead of the Aug. 28 visit to S.C. Hill won the position over true freshman Kyle Allen.

Thanks to Johnny Manziel and Co.'s efforts last year, the Aggies landed at 21st on the AP's preseason poll, while the Gamecocks are ranked ninth. The game is one of the first of the college football season and will be the first game ever aired ESPN's brand new SEC Network.

"The competition was close and that competition will continue to help us improve," Sumlin said in an Aggies football press release. "I have talked to both quarterbacks as well as the team and we will prepare with Kenny getting the first-team reps."

Manziel was the starter at Texas A&M for the last two seasons, which is also how long the team has played in the SEC. Manziel won the Heisman Trophy in his freshman season and followed that up with an even more impressive effort, though Jameis Winston took him the coveted award.

Like Manziel, Hill was a three-star recruit out of high school and is a dual-threat talent. ESPN ranked Hill 21st among passers like him, though he chose Texas A&M over schools like Baylor and Kansas State.

"I thought both guys really competed in a great way," Sumlin told ESPN. "We put a lot more emphasis on situational football in this camp and put guys in some situations to see how they'd perform and see what their learning curve is and not just playing 7-on-7.

"There's not really one deciding factor; I think it's a body of work and a feel that you have through practice and with your team."

Sumlin and his coaching staff believe it will be an easy transition with Hill, since he already knows the offense and posses a skill set similar to his predecessor.

"He's been here for a year, he's learned under Johnny Manziel so he understands how this offense operates," QB coach Jake Spavital told ESPN. "He's more of an athletic guy. He has a pretty quick release, too."

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