A Tale of Two Gamethreads: Aggies and Longhorns react to A&M's epic comeback

Much has been written and much will be written about Texas A&M's historic comeback win versus Northern Iowa in the NCAA Tournament Round-of-32. Gamethreads always get out of hand, but games with wild momentum swings always produce the best meltdowns. I pulled the gamethreads from TexAgs.com's and ShaggyTexas.com's basketball boards to gauge how Aggies and Longhorns reacted near the end of regulation. Remember that the Longhorns lost a heartbreaker to Northern Iowa on Friday night via a halfcourt heave at the buzzer. And they hate Texas A&M, it seems.

We analyzed the final real-time hour of regulation basketball from both gamethreads with help from AdoreBoard.com, a semantic analytics firm based at Queen’s University. The platform works on any content using mathematical algorithms for emotions expressed in tweets so feelings such as joy, rage, anger, surprise, annoyance and trust can be measured. In this case, we explored how both teams were rated by the fanbases using an index rating called Adorescore, which varies between minus 100 to 100 based on the types of emotions being expressed.

background photo by Kevin Jairaj, USA TODAY Sports

You will notice that Aggies remained positive about a comeback at several stages of the 2nd half, but hope was depleted with under 2 minutes remaining and a double-digit deficit. Aggie and Longhorn sentiment noticeably diverges at the very end of the game. This analysis included all gamethread chatter so some comments registering as negative Longhorn emotions involved schadenfreude toward A&M.

Finally, here is a sample of posts from each fanbase both before and after the improbable, last-minute comeback.

Aggies before the comeback

Fan Reaction Index (-8)

That's game. Absolutely terrible way to end. See y'all next year.

Stupid play all night. What a disaster.

What a complete ****show

air ball, now its over!

No, just sad. it's okay to talk about your feelings.

What a bad game.

We just fell apart.

wide ****ing open and then Hogg can't hold on.

Choke

This team failed to show up.

Pathetic

Freakin' One Bid Conference...throw up a Brick OFFENSE!!!

End of our season.

that's it.

Embarrassing game. Glad we didn't play tu

I was just thinking this. We did not show up to beat anyone today. Rather lose to northern Iowa than texas

Caruso without a clue. Whole team without a clue.

**** **** ****

Good grief what a **** show.

we're done

Now it's over.

The Coaching Staff failed to show up.

Everything that can go wrong is going wrong

Good game to UNI. They were better than us tonight.

How did we play this bad?

This is horrible

This is painful to watch.

It's done....

Pathetic. We just got schooled by a much of Mid Westerners

We ****ing suck

We played so absolutely terrible. What an absolute pathetic performance

So frustrating. The way we lose sometimes.

What a choke there.

Embarrassing game tonight.

Lots of terrible performances.

Never would have guessed we'd get knocked out by a team that we have so many mismatches against.

BK relaxed with that fat contract in his pocket.

Got straight up beat. Props to UNI.

Embarrassing end

Can the BOR still re think that contract extension?

So, you think the sips are loving this?

I hope uni gets their **** pushed in by OU.

Freakin choke job if I've ever seen one...we Aggied this game

Aggies during the last 30 seconds

Fan Reaction Index (+12)

Holy mother of god

HOLY ****!!!

USA!!! USA!!! USA!!! USA!!! USA!!! USA!!! USA!!! USA!!! USA!!!

Holy! ****!

I CANNOT EFFINNN BELIEVE THIS

OMG **** I'm drunk I don't know what I'm watching

OMG....ill eat all that crow if we pull this off

You got to be ****ing with me

Holy ****!

UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!

Ags tie

Oh my freaking lord

Is this real life

AGGGGGGGIES

F'n A man!

We've never seen em quit!

my kid won't let me watch b/c "bad things happen when you come in the room to watch"....

Like I always say, it aint over till its over

WTFWTFWTFWTF

OMG!!!!!

MAJIC

jesus my heart rate is up

Never ever ever seen this. Jesus.

What the **** is going on???? Haha

Aggies are still alive OMG

HOW THE F

OH MY GOD!!!!!

I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS!!!

INSANE!!!

Ho Lee ****!

Ho. Lee. Jeebus.

WTF just happened?

Oh. My. Goodness.

OMG, what just happened.....

Thanks refs!

OMFG

This has taken the perfect combination of ref blown calls and uni chokes

Pretty sure I just scared my neighbors I yelled so loud

You freaking losers. I never gave up.

We totally planned that... right?

I'm gonna be so hungover tomorrow

Damn. Let's take it Ags!!!

HELL YEAH AGGIES

What the hell did I just watch?

Overtime baby!

Told you guys we'd win on a buzzer beater. Don't know why everyone is surprised.

I'm having a meltdown.

MY GOD WTF

MARCH MADNESS

We are going OT! MOFOS!

Unbelievable

Lord Jesus, take me now. Ive seen it all.

Longhorns before the comeback

Fan Reaction Index (-3)

Aggy is so dumb.

that was bad. really bad aggy shot

What a horrible shot.

Air ball lulz

ball game

haha way to go Panthers

**** Aggy lol

Game

I want this so bad. Go UNI.

looks like aggy is gonna lose to UNI by wayy more than we did. so using aggy logic, UT is SEC champs?

Hahahaha pooooooor aggy

Billy Kennedy can't coach, and aggy just signed him to a Sumlin deal.

Well this makes me feel a little better. NIU could take OU.

Pasty gangstas of Hickory all up in that aggy ass

Hope uni beats them by double digits

Brown spot sighting on backside of Aggy shorts. Looks wet....

Damn, this is great but also sucks. We would have taken these bitches down.

SFA was the best team in Texas this year without a doubt

UNI, Texas Champs, lulz

A&M was barely competitive this game. I guess they were lucky they didn't have to live with a loss to Texas.

UNI fans "we own Texas"

Aggy gonna **** up one of these half court ball rolls and UNI is gonna dunk it on their ass.

House failed to show up

Brown spot now running down backside of Aggy leg....

What a bunch of retards.

Let me introduce the basketball world to Aggy

Aggy neighbor across fence has added surrender cobras to his screaming and ranting act now.

Kids still crying. Think I'll either throw a rope over for him to hang himself or go kick his collie.

sweet dreams, aggy ****tards

The stench.......Aggy fail

aggy fans heading the exit before the game is over? Bull****

Poooooor aggys

**** aggy. I had those bastards going to the Final Four in my bracket. Good for nothing losers.

Let me check my ****ty bracket, oh yeah I had UNI beating A&M. **** em.

The best part of this game is that the score doesn't indicate how bad UNI dominated aggy.

Gonna be some pissed off aggys at the hooters in bricktown.

It took a miracle half court buzzer beater shot for UNI to beat Texas. aggy proved to be much easier. **** aggy.

It really is like clockwork. I don't care what sport, what year, when it comes between Texas and aggy, somehow Texas always ends up with the last laugh.

Screen caps of Aggy tears please

Go UNI

A&M version of Paula Abdul looks sad :(

bbbbbwwwwwaaaaahhhahahahahaha!!!

**** Aggy... The tears are sweet

Longhorns during the last 30 seconds

Fan Reaction Index (-11)

Bull**** call

You gotta be kidding me

HOLY **** THEY"RE GONNA **** UNI

SEC sec SEC SEC SEC SEC SEC

Stupid UNI

How is that a foul?

That foul call was bull$#@! though.

****.

Such bull****.

jesus christ

This is the worst meltdown in tournament history.

What the ****

oh my ****ing god

holy choke job batman! Unreal.

put these second-class texans to ****ing bed. No business living amongst us...

I blame you ****s for this

They were pushing him oob!

Holy ****.

Unbelievable

**** these refs

****

kind of lost right now...

**** this?

I don't think I've ever seen a collapse like this

Worst basketball I may have ever watched.

launch the ****ing ball downcourt and the clock runs out einstein

Is it possible NIU is more aggy than aggy? Yes, yes it is.

If they don't have a second person to take the ball, and some organized in-bounds play, they deserve to ****ing lose and go home and **** cows.

Just throw the ****ing ball down court

He completely ****ed up throwing it at the court. Throw it off a leg

Of course.

way to go you jinxing ****s

Stupid ****ing UNI. Fake Hawkeye ****s.

Wtf is this ****?

What a dumb****, just heave down court

**** everything

Aggy wins this. **** This ****

do they ****ing forget to throw it off a player?

why would you let people a school composed of Aggies make a comeback in a sport?

**** you, UNI.

the UNI coach should be fired immediately

Wow

wtf am i watching

Wow, UNI with perhaps the worst basketball choke ever, choking to Choke University.

Hahaha UNI! Dumb asses

That was some Rick Barnes coaching. Just wow

they went full stupid....complete full stupid shit

UNI is screwed. They're done.

Biggest choke I can remember

Just terrible coaching and decision-making. Terrible.

What a mess

Why the **** would you go to the corner with no help? Dumb ****s.

luckiest piece of **** people

Choke job of all Choke jobs. No way they can recover from that.

what a UNI meltdown. worst ever

Biggest choke job I've ever witnessed.

worst weekend of bball ever

SMH @ this entire team

Now rooting for the comet to speed up. Now, please god. Both of these teams are $#@!ing embarrassments to sports.

He just throws it up in the air they win

UNI shouldn't have made a deal with the devil on the half court lucky shot to beat us.

Classic meltdown. ****. Watching game with hog friends. $#@!ing SEC SEC. Tole them to shut the $#@! up. It's Aggy for gods sake.

He throws the ball high in the air and game ends

Aggy is going to take it in OT. This is karma for UNI.

Precisely. **** UNI forever for this.