Preview 2019: Previewing and looking ahead to the Texas A&M Aggies season with what you need to know.
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– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Recruiting Class Analysis | Schedule Analysis
– Texas A&M Previews 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015
2018 Record: 9-4 overall, 5-3 in SEC
Head Coach: Jimbo Fisher, 2nd year, 9-4
5. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE TEXAS A&M OFFENSE
– The offense worked. It finished 15th in the nation averaging 471.6 yards and 36 points per game, with good balance and enough efficiency to keep everything moving. It was explosive and dangerous, but remember, 74 points came in the win gajillion-overtime win over LSU. The O failed to get to 27 points in seven games, and lost four of them. To be fair Clemson and Alabama were part of those losses, but Clemson and Alabama are part of the fun this year, too.
– Leading rusher Trayveon Williams, star TE Jace Sternberger and anchor C Erik McCoy left early for the NFL, and backup quarterback Nick Starkel wanted to be an Arkansas Razorback. Other than that, it’s pretty much all good among the returning starters.
The key is keeping Kellen Mond in one piece. The junior quarterback needed to be a bit more accurate after competing just 57% of his throws, but he kept the massive mistakes to a minimum, and he showed the upside to potentially go from being good to next-level special. However, the backup situation is an issue, hoping for true freshman Zach Calzada or sophomore Connor Blumrick to be ready for the In Case Of Emergency Break Glass moment.
– The receiving corps is very big, and potentially very amazing. Sternberger led the team in receptions, but 6-2, 200-pound Quartney Davis is back after finishing second in catches. 6-2 Camron Buckley returns, and so does 6-2 Jhamon Ausbon. In all, the top six wideouts all return, and there’s a whole lot more talent on the way from the recruiting class. There isn’t another Sternberger at tight end, but the wideouts will pick up the slack while the Aggies use a rotation at the position.
– Mond helped the cause on the ground, finishing second on the team with 474 yards and seven scores. Now the young backs have to step up with the 1,760 yards and 18 scores from Williams gone. Jashaun Corbin is a star waiting to bust out, and now the sophomore will get his shot after finishing third on the team with 346 yards. It’ll take fall camp to find the right No. 2, but UCF transfer Cordarrian Richardson is an interesting 246-pound thumper of an option.
The skill guys are in place, but …
– The line needs to be better. It was good for the ground game, but it got hit for way too many plays behind the line and was a polite rumor too often in pass protection. McCoy might be gone, but the left side is set, Carson Green is fine at right tackle, and McCoy’s understudy – junior Ryan McCollum – is about to slide right in. As is, the line should be in for a stronger season, and then throw in super-recruit Kenyon Green to the mix – he might be the line’s most talented player the moment he steps off the bus.
NEXT: What You Need To Know About the Defense, Top Players, Keys to the Season, What Will Happen
4. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE TEXAS A&M DEFENSE
– Things aren’t nearly as bad as they might appear. The top six tacklers – along with a massive chunk of the sack production – have to be replaced.
Start with the linebacking corps that loses leading tackler Otaro Alaka and second-leading man Tyrel Dodson. There’s hope that junior Buddy Johnson can turn into more of a baller at one outside spot after coming up with 27 tackles, and then it’s going to come down to who can take the other outside gig and Alaka’s spot in the middle in fall camp.
There are prospects coming in, but it’s one of the lighter parts of the recruiting class compared to what some of the other positions got, but …
– The defensive front is going to be terrific. Three of the four starters are done, but even after losing some NFL-caliber talents, the potential is there for an upgrade if the young guys are the real deal.
6-4, 285-pound DE DeMarvin Leal was 1A in the Aggie recruiting class if he’s not the top guy, and senior Micheal Clemons appears ready for a breakthrough year after spending last season hurt.
6-3, 304-pound junior Justin Madubuike is back on the inside as the lone returning starter in the front four, and there will be a rotation around him, starting with 6-6, 298-pound junior Jayden Peevy.
– The secondary is going to be a thing. Assuming the pass rush is as strong as the 2018 version, the big plays will be there for the taking – they need to be after the D came up with just seven picks – with junior Debione Renfro and senior Charles Oliver back, and with an upgrade about to arrive from the latest recruiting class.
Leon O’Neal should be ready to do more at one safety job after getting his feet wet as a freshman, junior Derrick Tucker can play anywhere in the secondary, and there are plenty of options to work into the rotation – again, the recruiting class is about to help here.
NEXT: Top Players, Keys To the Season, What Will Happen
3. TOP TEXAS A&M PLAYERS
Best Texas A&M Offensive Player
QB Kellen Mond, Jr.
After being part of a rotation as a freshman, Mond stepped up into the starting role as a sophomore, completing 57% of his throws for 3,107 yards and 24 touchdowns – but six came in the seven-overtime game against LSU – with nine picks, and he ran for 474 yards and seven scores.
The 6-2, 217-pounder isn’t huge, but he bulked up a wee bit. The arm is good enough, and he’s got the recruiting corps around him to make the stats shine. Considering Jimbo Fisher quarterbacks have a terrific track record, get ready for Mond to become a bigger national name.
2. WR Quartney Davis, Jr.
3. WR Jhamon Ausbon, Jr.
4. RB Jashaun Corbin, Soph.
5. OT Dan Moore, Sr.
Best Texas A&M Defensive Player
P Braden Mann, Sr.
Okay, so it’s not quite right to put a punter among the top defensive players, but coming off one of the greatest seasons of all-time, he’s a D’s best friend.
A true weapon, the Ray Guy winner blasted away on kickoffs and averaged 51 yards per kick with 19 put inside the 20. How good was he? The No. 2 punter in America averaged 48.3 yards per kick, and only four averaged more than 46. Again, though, as historic as Mann might be, he’s a punter.
In terms of the best defensive player, it’s a fluid situation considering the stars should be coming from the recruiting class in fall camp. Until then …
2. DT Justin Madubuike, Jr.
3. S Derrick Tucker, Jr.
4. DE DeMarvin Leal, Fr.
5. DE Tyree Johnson, Soph.
NEXT: Keys to the Season, Prediction & What Will Happen
2. KEYS TO THE SEASON
Biggest Key To The Texas A&M Offense
Get that ground attack going and don’t stop. Pass protection is right up there in importance after allowing a whopping 35 sacks, but the veteran line first and foremost has to get the running game rolling without Trayveon Williams to help the cause. The Aggies ran for over 200 yards seven times last season and went 6-1 – the lone loss coming to Auburn – when they did.
It was one of the biggest improvements under the new coaching staff. The 2017 Aggie ground attack was okay, but it failed to hit the 150-yard mark in any of its last eight games, and lost five of them.
Granted, Clemson, Alabama, and the great Mississippi State D were a part of this, but A&M failed to crank up more than 130 yards – three three worst performances of its season – in three of the four defeats.
Biggest Key To The Texas A&M Defense
Start taking the ball away. The pass rush was great, and there were more than enough plays behind the line to be disruptive, but the defense didn’t take advantage of the chances to do something special.
The 2017 defense generated 22 takeaways, and the 2016 version came up with 24. Last year’s defense under Jimbo Fisher came up with just 11, with a mere nine in the regular season.
In the eight SEC games and the date with Clemson, the Aggies came away with just five takeaways – and two of those were against South Carolina. In all, A&M failed to come up with a turnover in eight games.
Key Player To A Successful Season
RB Jashaun Corbin, Soph.
It’s not like the Aggies don’t have options, but the depth took a big hit when likely top backup Vernon Jackson suffered a neck injury. Cordarrian Richardson is a thumper, and freshman Isaiah Spiller is expected to be terrific, but now the pressure is on Jashaun Corbin to be the new star … and durable.
Last year’s four-star recruit ran for 346 yards and a score, but the running game was almost all about Trayveon Williams and his 271 carries. Corbin won’t have to shoulder that much of the workload, but if and when he’s on, he’ll be a workhorse.
Key Game To The Texas A&M Season
Auburn, Sept. 21
Texas A&M did the near impossible last season and made Tiger QB Jarrett Stidham look great – at least late – in the 28-24 loss.
The two programs have only played nine times, with Auburn winning the last two and three of the last four. This time around, the Aggies need the win, or that’s about it for any SEC West title dreams.
It’s the SEC opener, and with Alabama, Mississippi State, South Carolina, at Georgia, and at LSU – among others – still to go, there can’t be a September conference home loss.
– Texas A&M Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2018 Texas A&M Fun Stats
– Time of Possession: Texas A&M 34:27 – Opponents 25:26
– Average Yards Per Punt: Texas A&M 51 – Opponents 44.1
– Field Goals: Texas A&M 23-of-33 – Opponents 9-of-18
NEXT: What Will Happen
1. TEXAS A&M WIN TOTAL PREDICTION: WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN
The Aggies aren’t there quite yet under Jimbo Fisher, but they’re getting very, very close.
Running back, linebacker, quarterback depth. These aren’t screaming issues – at least compared to about 100 other teams – but for a program looking to make the leap up into College Football Playoff/superpower-of-superpower status, that’s just enough to keep this from being the next-level breakthrough season that’s inevitably going to happen with Fisher as the head man.
The passing game has a chance to be special if the line can keep defenses from jumping up and down on QB Kellen Mond, and the D is about to get a massive talent infusion to make fall camp a blast.
Throw in the great special teams, and the elite coaching staff, and the Aggies should be in for a fun season, but …
Set The Regular Season Win Total At … 8
The schedule is almost criminally unfair
This could and should be one of the 15 best teams in college football, and nine wins might be generous. And why?
At Clemson. Auburn, Alabama, Mississippi State, South Carolina, at Georgia, at LSU.
Granted, four of those are at home, but even one loss in the bunch is a killer to College Football Playoff dreams considering those three gigantic road games hanging out there.
But watch out for A&M to be just good enough to sidestep the landmines – be careful of that trip to Ole Miss – pull off a few upsets, and grow into a terrific team that has a schedule that screams 5-7 for just about anyone else outside of the top 25.
What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– Recruiting Class Analysis | Schedule Analysis
