Week 9 of the 2022 college football season has arrived, and for Texas A&M, the 15th-ranked Ole Miss Rebels are in town, and the question remains, like every week so far this season, will the Aggies play a complete, mistake-free game? We shall see, as their 3-4, 1-3 SEC record will keep them as the underdog in 4 of their 5 remaining games, and maybe that’s a good thing for a squad that needs to find some kind of competitive edge.
The Aggies are reeling from their third consecutive loss at the hands of the South Carolina Gamecocks last weekend, combined with the recent news involving the three-player suspensions of freshmen wide receiver Chris Marshall, cornerback Denver Harris, and offensive lineman PJ Williams reported on Monday night, who miss at least this weekends matchup against Ole Miss. One bright spot coming out of the loss to South Carolina was the play of true freshman quarterback Conner Weigman (8-15, 91 yards), who relieved quarterback Haynes King after a late-game shoulder injury, showing his potential not only as the future signal caller but as a player who should be starting the rest of the season.
Last week, it seemed that the Aggies were as healthy as they’ve been all season before facing the Gamecocks, yet news broke just hours before the game that center Bryce Foster and guard Aki Ogunbiyi would be ruled out, while head coach Jimbo Fisher confirmed on Monday that both would miss the rest of the season. All hands on deck yall.
Here are a couple of areas of concern I have for Texas A&M heading into their Saturday night showdown against Ole Miss in the Aggie’s return to Kyle Field:
Texas A&M’s run defense vs. Ole Miss’ run game
Just like South Carolina last weekend, Ole Miss has one of the best running games in the FBS, ranking third in the nation in rushing yards (2,017), and first in rushing touchdowns (26), while averaging 252.1 yards per game on the ground. How are they doing it? The three-headed monster in the backfield of Quinshon Judkins, Zach Evans, and Ulysses Bentley IV, who all display different skill sets at the postion, consistently placing defenses in uncomfortable spots.
For Texas A&M, this is by far the biggest challenge for the young, but stout Aggie defense who have dealt with their own share of injuries this season, but have not been the sole blame for any loss this season. However, the second half has not been kind to the defense, averaging a putrid 50.41% success rate, which squarely contributed to the loss to the Gamecocks last weekend during their final touchdown drive to take a 30-21 lead with only minutes remaining. Nose tackle McKinnley Jackson and defensive tackle Shemar Turner will need to set the tone for the run defense early on and force Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart to drop back at a higher rate.
Texas A&M’s offensive line vs. Ole Miss’s pass rush
I know I may be entering the redundancy phase of writing about Texas A&M’s weaknesses, but hear me out, because the offensive line, which has been one of the worst collective units this season is now dealing with injury after injury, as three starters are now out for the rest of the year, while their replacements, especially backup center Matthew Wyckoff did not inspire a lot of confidence in the loss to South Carolina.
If you’re a stats person, you’re probably asking yourself by the Aggie’s offensive line should worry about a defense that has only recorded 6 sacks on the year, one of the lowest accumulations in the FBS, but just remember, they struggled immensely against a South Carolina defense that has dealt with their own issues in pass rush this season. The last stat to prove my point is the opponent-adjusted pressure rate allowed ranking, as Texas A&M ranked 121st in the nation while allowing more pressure in the pocket than their opponent in four consecutive games, which has certainly contributed to their losing streak thus far.
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