14 in 14: Texas A&M
Texas A&M is coming off of a top-five finish and a New Year’s Six bowl win. Are the Aggies ready to challenge Alabama and make a run at the SEC West crown?
By: The Hammer
The 2020 football season, despite all of its challenges and weirdness thanks to COVID, was a big one in College Station, Texas. In Jimbo Fisher’s third year at the helm, the Aggies went 9-1 and capped off their season with an Orange Bowl victory over North Carolina, finishing #4 in the final poll. It was their highest finish in the final polls since their national title season in 1939.
After such a successful season, can Jimbo and the Aggies continue that upward trajectory? It’s hard to say - the SEC, outside of Alabama, has been hard to project in recent years. Jimbo and his staff have recruited very well so it will be interesting to see if they can make a run. But we have plenty more offseason ahead for predictions, let’s talk about last season and where the program is at right now.
State of the Program is…Rising - 10/12 Biscuits
When Texas A&M bolted for the SEC in 2012, the welcome wasn’t so warm. Folks from the SEC and the conference A&M spurned, the Big 12, predicted the Aggies would struggle mightily. The Aggies had not won the Big 12 since 1998 and had a pretty average decade-plus since their strong run in the 1990s. Add on the fact that the SEC is a much more difficult conference than the “little 12,” and it made sense that many folks questioned the move - for on-field purposes at least. Of course, A&M burst onto the scene in 2012 with Johnny Manziel and made it clear the Aggies should be taken seriously.
#2 was one of the most electric players to ever suit’em up.
But once Jonathan Football left for the NFL, A&M regressed steadily during Kevin Sumlin’s tenure. They were known for high-ranked recruiting classes, late-season collapses, and spitting out a bunch of 8-4 seasons, struggling in the conference as many predicted. That got Sumlin fired and the Aggies pulled off a hire many thought impossible by bringing in Jimbo Fisher.
Since Fisher arrived in College Station, A&M has been a different team. They’ve played better defense and run the football. Fighting through a younger roster and playing against far more talented teams, Fisher and co. put together 9-4 and 8-5 seasons in 2018 and 2019 respectively. Similar results to Sumlin, but for those really paying attention, the shift in the program was clear. They were winning games in a different fashion and not relying on speedy wideouts to break big plays while getting gashed on defense to hopefully win in a shootout.
Photo: Nathan Hunsinger, The Dallas Morning News
How bout them Cowboys?
Then last season, it all seemed to come together. Jimbo had a team he trusted, players with talent all over the field, and a key ingredient Sumlin teams sorely lacked: depth. They beat opponents up with physicality and a brand of football not seen in College Station for quite some time. There are really only two things that held A&M back from getting that coveted 11th or 12th biscuit and we’ll get into that shortly.
But first...What went right in 2020
To state the obvious, plenty went right for A&M in 2020. When you only lose one game, and it happens to be against the eventual national champion Alabama Crimson Tide, it’s hard to pinpoint things that did not go right.
Most importantly, the Aggies defense finished as the top-rated unit in the SEC. Mike Elko is a defensive mastermind and does not get the credit he deserves nationally for the turnaround he has orchestrated on that side of the ball. A&M had studs all over the field on defense last year, especially in the front seven. No one could run on these dudes. Buddy Johnson and Aaron Hansford played very well at linebacker and the defensive line was unblockable in many games. Bobby Brown, Jayden Peevy, Demarvin Leal, Micheal Clemons and Tyree Johnson were in the backfield constantly. Just ask LSU or Mississippi State how difficult it was to block those guys.
In the secondary, A&M was much improved. Jaylen and Myles Jones (related only by their shut-down abilities) turned into very solid corners on the outside, and the combination of Demani Richardson, Leon O’Neal and a rotating nickel player kept things in front of them (except against Alabama) and forced some turnovers.
Offensively the Aggies plowed over teams with tight ends, toughness and a relentless commitment to running the damn ball with workhorse Isaiah Spiller. The A&M offensive line bullied people all year and A&M ran almost at will. Not an easy feat in the SEC.
Just a few examples of great blocking up front, capped off with running backs refusing to go down. Two of the most impactful plays of the entire year for A&M in 2020.
In addition to run blocking out of their minds, the “Maroon Goons” upfront gave Kellen a clean pocket all year. Mond was only sacked seven times all season, a far cry from the pressure he saw in years past. Many times in Mond’s first three years I feared he would not get up after taking a big hit. He was constantly running for his life and taking big shots - but not last year. He finally had time in the pocket and he put up great numbers as a result. On the year, Mond completed 63.3% of his passes with 19 touchdowns, 3 interceptions, and was able to finish with a 146.93 total QBR. By far his best season under center as a 4-year starter.
A&M was a very balanced team overall. Great defense, great run game, and a solid passing game when needed. They suffocated and imposed their will on their opponents, pulling away late in games, a trait that Aggie fans loved after seeing the opposite for many years. It was a great year for the Aggies and there is palpable excitement moving forward. Based on a top 5 finish and the talent coming back, I think 10 biscuits is warranted. They will need to continue posting great seasons and building in recruiting to keep all those biscuits and possibly earn a few more, but at this moment, they are in the top tier of the SEC.
What went wrong in 2020
Now that we know what went right, let’s dig into what went wrong, and what is holding A&M back from garnering those last two coveted biscuits. First, the Aggies lost to Alabama by 28 points. To preface this, Alabama destroyed everyone last year, including the Ohio State Buckeyes in the national championship game with a hobbled Jaylen Waddle and one half of football from Devonta Smith. For the record, Jaylen Waddle was fully healthy when A&M got run over by Bama. Absolutely no one was going to beat the Tide last year. But the fact remains: Alabama was that much better than A&M and the two square off every year. So if the Aggies want to earn more respect and a few more biscuits, and more importantly win an SEC title and a natty, they need to slay the dragon in Tuscaloosa.
With how Alabama has dominated the SEC, A&M is not alone in this situation. There are several teams across the conference that you could argue are some of the top programs in the country who still get their ass beat every year by Nick Saban and the Tide. So if the Aggies can take solace in anything, it’s that every damn school in the SEC and the country are chasing the Tide.
Outside of that one game, there was one other issue with the Aggies in 2020 that held them back, at times, and needs to be remedied if they want to take another step forward in 2021: the wide receiver position. Part of A&M’s receiver issues in 2020 were due to injuries, ill-advised early NFL departures and a key opt-out. After the 2019 season, two top targets, Kendrick Rodgers and Quartney Davis left for the NFL. Neither player was drafted.
Understanding those players left, the Aggies top three returning wide receivers in 2020 played a total of three games. Jahmon Ausbon opted out and eventually entered the NFL draft (he went undrafted as well), Camron Buckley missed the entire year due to injury and Caleb Chapman played in just three games before tearing his ACL. The position unit was left shorthanded and inexperienced.
Caleb Chapman’s huge catch against Florida. Unfortunately, he tore his ACL on this play and A&M rarely took deep shots down field in his absence.
Jimbo obviously game planned around this as A&M relied on the running backs and Jaylen Wydermyer primarily. And the receivers who were out there were rarely asked to run downfield, especially after Chapman went down. Jimbo simplified the offense and was afraid to really open things up because the receivers had a hard time getting separation downfield. The Aggie offense performed just fine without throwing bombs but in today’s college football game, it’s hard to go toe to toe with the best if you can't break some big-time plays with game-changing receivers. Can you beat a majority of teams with the style A&M had in 2020? Obviously. A&M already proved that. Georgia has proven that for several years. But if you want to get to that next level, you need some playmakers on the outside. See: Alabama.
What the Aggies need in 2021
The Aggies have recruited well at receiver, and with the presumed return of Caleb Chapman, this issue should be remedied next fall. Aggie fans sure hope it will be. Jimbo doesn’t need to tweak much or change his whole system, but the threat of a deep ball must be there. And you need to connect on a few.
Beyond wide receiver, A&M needs their offensive line to replace four starters. All-American Kenyon Green is returning and moving out to left tackle. Outside of Green though, all spots are up for grabs. SEC games are won in the trenches so the Aggies need to gel and gel quickly on the offensive line.
Finally, A&M needs to replace Kellen Mond. I put this last because I think the quarterback position will be fine, assuming the offensive line is solid and the receivers improve. No doubt quarterback is the most important position on the field, but I’m not that worried about the new blood. Haynes King and Zach Calzada both can be very good SEC quarterbacks according to me, so I think it really depends on the players around them. If given time in the pocket, and receivers who can get open, I think whoever wins the QB job will be solid.
Heading into 2021, expectations are high. The Aggies got a taste of high-level success and are expecting it to be sustained this time around, rather than a flash in the pan like 2012. That is why the school paid Jimbo 75 million dollars over 10 years, fully guaranteed. Based on my 10/12 biscuit rating, I think the Aggies are in store for another big year with more to come but I’ve been duped by the Maroon & White before.
How they can earn some extra biscuits
So we know what went right in 2020, what went wrong in 2020 and what the program needs in 2021 to have a good year. So how can the Aggies earn some extra biscuits? Spoiler alert - it’s going to be difficult. Even if everything goes well in 2021, the SEC West is a gauntlet. They need to finish at least 2nd in the SEC West again to maintain their biscuit rating. Winning the SEC West would definitely earn them another biscuit but finishing second behind Alabama for two straight years is nothing to be ashamed of. If A&M wins 10 games and finishes second, they’ll hold steady at the 10 biscuits rating.
Can the Aggies get the best of the Tide in 2021? All I know is October 9th can’t come soon enough.
If they can get to 11 wins, even if that means finishing second in the SEC West, they would be right in the CFP picture. In my mind, an 11 win season has the Aggies right in the CFP playoff debate again and could warrant them another biscuit. Being the second-best team in the SEC West sometimes means you are the second-best team in the country. Bottom line, the Aggies need to compete with or even beat Alabama and be in the mix for the SEC title and the CFP if they want to garner any more coveted biscuits.
Think we got it wrong? Think we got it right? Where do y’all see the Aggie program right now? Chirp us on Twitter or Instagram and let us know!
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