Texas A&M Mid Season Report Card - Defense
We’re over halfway done with the season, time to had out mid term grades. By: The Hammer
We saw the offensive grades, and they were good. Now we dive into the defense to see if the Wrecking Crew is making a comeback. For anyone who wasn't born yesterday, the Texas Aggie defense coined the Wrecking Crew nickname during the RC Slocum era, despite what Arkansas thinks (the Hogs defense isn’t good either, but I digress). Texas A&M defenses have been pretty weak since joining the SEC. The Sumlin era was riddled with teams who got steamrolled against the run and burned in the passing game. We’ve had plenty of talented players on defense - ahem, Myles Garrett - but the overall defensive units have not been great.
Photo: David J. Phillip, AP Phot
Since the arrival of Jimbo and his defensive coordinator, Mike Elko, things have been improving. A&M could not stop the run before Elko arrived. For comparison the Aggies allowed 164 yards rushing per game in 2017, Sumlin’s last season. In 2018, they only allowed 92 yards rushing a game. Then after a step back in 2019 where they allowed 129 yards rushing a game, the Aggie defense is back on track holding opponents to just 95 yards rushing per game - this against an all SEC schedule. Clearly Elko’s impact has been felt, and the current defensive unit has been stingy. Similar to the offense, it seems like A&M finally has the talent across the defense to play big boy football. And you guessed it, everything starts with the defensive line.
Defensive Line: A
The Aggie defense line is downright nasty. There is talent all across the line and it finally looks like a daunting SEC front. The kind of defensive line that has freaks and sends dudes to the next level. The most impressive thing has again been their help in the run defense. These guys are hard to block and they are getting in the backfield often. Jaydeen Peevy, Bobby Brown, and McKinnley Jackson have been plugs up the middle. Meanwhile, Demarvin Leal, Micheal Clemons, and Tyree Johnson have been studs on the edge. No one guy stands out and puts up big numbers, they are a strong unit together. Clemons leads the way with four sacks, which is good enough for third in the SEC so far, but he is not as good as some others in the run game. Like I said, they are strong as a unit. As a team, A&M is third in the SEC in sacks, but those are not only from defensive lineman. Micheal Clemons will be sidelined for a while with an injury, but Tyree Johnson can fill that role. Next man up.
Linebackers: A-
Naturally, the linebackers are next. These guys set the tone for any defense. They are the slobber knockers. Linebackers are tasked with taking on an offensive lineman or charging fullback in order to fill gaps and help stop the run. The good ones do so with reckless abandon and sacrifice their bodies for the good of the team. Taking on a full back at the point of attack in order to fill a hole and hope someone else makes a tackle is a tough, thankless job. But that's what linebackers are for. And we have some good ones.
Buddy Johnson has been a stud all year. He is strong, physical and the leader of the defense. Johnson has recorded 57 tackles on the year. He’s added two sacks as well. Aaron Hansford has been good alongside Johnson. He’s always in the backfield and has tallied two sacks and 33 tackles respectively. Antonio Johnson has looked promising as well in relief appearances and one start in place of a hurt Hansford.
The only thing holding this unit back is the passing defense. Buddy and Hansford have been decent but nothing special defending the pass. Johnson and Hansford are typically the only two linebackers on the field so they are asked to do a lot. Hard to find a ton of things they need to do better but they can definitely improve against the pass. Hard to complain though then the A&M defense is only allowing 338 yards per game, which leads the SEC.
Defensive Backs: A-
Coming into the season, this group was the biggest question mark. A&M has had a tendency over the last 10 years to get burned in the secondary. Whether its coverage breakdowns or lack of talent, the A&M secondary has not been in strength in some time. That is starting to change. Projected starting cornerback Elijah Blades opted out before the year began and that worried me. So far, he has not been missed. Outside of Alabama and Florida, this secondary has been great. That’s not to excuse those games, especially Alabama where Tide receivers gashed the Aggie secondary, but those teams are getting yards on everyone. They are the two best passing teams in the country. UCF plays no one and is irrelevant, so take them out of the picture. With those two offenses, it’s obvious why Mac Jones and Kyle Trask are atop many Heisman projections, and why the Aggies had trouble with both of them
Teams are getting 242 yards per game through the air against A&M and in the fast paced, high flying offensive style of 2020, that isn't bad at all. Senior Myles Jones looks much improved this year and has been solid. On the other side, true freshman Jaylon Jones is the real deal. He was torched against Alabama but responded and has been nails since that game. Teams are barely throwing his way, which is a testament to how well he has been playing. He has a future on Sundays for sure. Safeties Leon O’Neal and Demani Richardson have been good on the back end. Richardson missed a few games due to COVID-19 but was having a solid season up to that point, as expected. O’Neal continues to make some head scratching plays in coverage but he’s been making impact plays this year, leading the Aggies with two interceptions. Keldrick Carper filled in for Richardson nicely and Sophomore Erick Young has a bright future as well.
Photo: Craig Bisacre, Texas A&M Athletics
Overall, how can you be critical of this defense? Always things to improve on but we are leading the SEC in yards per game, and that includes games against Alabama and Florida. A&M has seen the best offenses in the country and still leads the conference in total defense through six games. Elko has earned his paycheck and more since arriving in College Station and I hope we can hold on to him for years to come. The thing that is most impressive in my mind is how well they play as a team. No player really stands out statistically, meaning these guys play sound, disciplined defense. They are rarely out of position and make plays when they need to. No flash or star power, just good, solid team defense. That’s a testament to Jimbo recruiting the right guys, the coaches putting the players in a position to be successful, and the players executing. I’m not quite ready to crown these guys the return of the “Wrecking Crew” but they are close. Now let's hold LSU to 7 points and trounce those fools like they did to us last year.
#BTHOLSU
