Ahead of Texas A&M’s 2024 season opener vs. Notre Dame on Saturday night, Aggies’ head coach Mike Elko talked to the local media on Monday afternoon, where he was asked about facing a Notre Dame offensive line that will feature three sophomores and two freshman starters, which just six total starts between the five starters.
After dealing with several injuries this offseason, including the season-ending loss to the program’s starting left tackle Charles Jagusah, Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman knows that the “next man up” mentality is mandatory. However, Elko knows that despite the youth, he knows that talent across the Irish O-line won’t be lacking.
“Notre Dame has recruited the offensive line really, really well for a really, really long time.”
“The six starts maybe is a concern for them to some degree, maybe in the opener, but I’m sure these young kids that they’re putting out there are really talented.”
On paper, this looks like a huge advantage for Texas A&M’s defensive line, which will likely rotate throughout the night to preserve starting defensive ends Nic Scourton and Shemar Stewart while starting defensive tackle Shemar Turner will also face a favorable one-on-one matchup.
Another name to watch is former Bowling Green pass rusher Cashius Howell, who will start at the Jack position, a hybrid defensive end/linebacker based on the defense being called.
During his final season with the Falcons, Howell racked up 9.5 sacks. Together with Scourton, Turner, and Stewart, he accounted for 27 sacks last season.
Set to face Nic Scourton on the left side, Freeman announced that freshman Anthonie Knapp will start at left tackle for the Irish.
No. 20 Texas A&M will host No. 7 Notre Dame on Saturday, August 31, at 6:30 p.m. CT, and the game will air on ABC.
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