Texas A&M’s perfect record in the SEC standings evaporated in the second half of Saturday’s 44-20 loss to South Carolina, as the Aggies were outscored and outplayed on the road in the most lopsided SEC matchup under first-year head coach Mike Elko.
Things got worse two days after the loss, as it was revealed that star running back Le’Veon Moss would miss the remainder of the season after sustaining a knee injury in the first half of Saturday’s game. On Monday, Elko spoke to the media, revealing Moss’s diagnosis while noting just how well the junior had performed before the news:
“Same thing happened with Tyreek (Chappell). When you see young people turn a corner… You hate for anyone to see adversity, but you hate to see it for those kids. You would like to reward them with a clean path.”
“It’s extremely unfortunate for him. He was having a great year.”
The Aggies still have everything in front of them, tied for first place in the SEC standings at 5-1 entering the bye week, knowing that wins against New Mexico State and Auburn (on the road) will set up a likely play-in scenario vs. Texas for a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff.
Texas A&M’s RB room suffered a significant blow due to its paper-thin depth. Junior Amari Daniels and senior EJ Smith are the only scholarship backs on the roster, with Moss now shelved.
“I think we will try to look at everything on the table. We are confident in Amari (Daniels). EJ (Smith) will be the primary backup. At this point, everything is on the table.”
While Daniels, who has already run for 466 yards and six touchdowns, is more than skilled enough to take over, saving his touches is key down the stretch, meaning freshman athlete Terry Bussey could see snaps at running back, as Elko alluded to during the Monday presser:
“Terry (Bussey) is talented… Understanding he is still a freshman, that is maybe lost a little bit.”
“He is effective in the role he’s in, and we are trying to expand that role.”
Realistically, after the bye week, Daniels and Smith will take most of the running back snaps vs. New Mexico State in what is hopefully a short day for both players. At the same time, walk-on RB Anthony DiNota should also see time against the Aggies before Daniels and Smith play nearly every running back snap vs. Auburn and Texas.
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