There was a good article in the Houston Chronicle yesterday entitled "Bottom line proof UT, A & M don't need each other" written by Mike Finger. Hopefully you can access it. I would post but like in the past you may not be able to read it since you must be a subscriber to the Houston Chronicle. I'm not.
I guess the only way these two teams will ever play each other is if they are both in the College Football Playoff and that's like finding a needle in a hay stack.
One quote from the article: "It has been five years since Texas A & M left the Big 12 for the Southeastern Conference, putting an end to the state's best football rivalry. Since that departure, rarely has a month gone by without some Texas or Texas A & M coach or official being asked when the schools are going to play again." "But the truth is neither school wants the game to happen. At the beginning of the divorce, a vindictive UT wanted to punish A & M for bailing out of the Big 12 and putting the league in jeopardy, and the Aggies brilliantly made the Longhorns look like cowards by declaring themselves open to a rematch they knew wouldn't happen." "Both sides convinced themselves they owned the high ground. And because of that, both sides believed the only way they could lose it was by playing the other in football. And to this day, neither is willing to risk that."
Continuing: "So we are left with the modern version A & M - UT rivalry, which consists primarily of fans of each university arguing about which side needs the other less. The Aggies say they don't need UT because they are part of the highest-profile conference in the country. The Longhorns say they don't need A & M because they are still cashing ESPN's checks, and filling their schedules with games against Notre Dame, USC and Michigan. And both might be right."
Continuing: "Last week, when USA Today released its annual database of the wealthiest college athletics programs in the country, A & M ($194.4 million) and UT ($188 million) ranked first and second in revenue for the second year in a row."
"Around Thanksgiving, at least a few fans might argue with the sentiment. They will get wistful for the old days and shake their heads about why a great tradition had to end. But the balance sheets say the Longhorns and Aggies don't need each other, so the rest of us will have to wait. Until the balance sheets say they do."
I just hit some of the highlights. Will they eventually end up like au vs UA, forced by the legislature to play each other. Only time will answer that question.