Tag: Miami Hurricanes football

Despite Texas A&M’s loss to Miami, one thing is clear: Quarterback Conner Weigman is the real deal

Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss to Miami provided one positive outcome for the Maroon & White, as sophomore QB Conner Weigman continues to thrive under pressure

Suffering is an optional emotion when it comes to rooting for a team, but for Texas A&M fans, there always seems to be an early season letdown as embattled Head Coach Jimbo Fisher has only started 2-0 once during his five years at the helm.

Not to further add to the misery train, but second-year defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin’s future is currently in flux after one of the worst defensive showings in nearly a decade, as a mix of missed tackles, poor coverage, and lack of effort gave way to Miami quarterback Tyler Van Dyke shredding the Aggie D for 374 yards and five touchdowns through the air.

Through all the bad, some good, specifically the play of sophomore quarterback Conner Weigman, came out of the 48-33 drubbing, as any remaining question regarding who has taken hold of the starting signal spot for now and the near future has been put to rest.

Harrassed by the Hurricane’s pass rush for most of the afternoon, Weigman completed 31-53 for 336 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions despite all while being blitzed on 33 of his 57 dropback attempts. Without taking a sack, Weigman’s impressive combination of poise and grit, coupled with his quick release and downfield vision, kept the Aggies in the game despite the defense’s ineptitude.

Ending the game with a notable 83.5 QBR, Weigman’s trajectory in new OC Bobby Petrino’s offense puts the Aggies in a great position to stay in every game if the defense and offensive let them. According to PFF, Weigman had 2.5 seconds or more in the pocket, which is good for seventh in the country over the Week 2 slate, yet his high-pressure rate tells a different story and leaves many of us wondering just how much progress the O-line has made since the offseason.

Again, this is all based on two games in September, so despite the immediate call to arms regarding Jimbo Fisher’s future, etc., ten games remain to determine the identity of the 2023 Texas A&M Aggies, but in the meantime, hopefully, Conner Weigman’s ascendance as a reliable signal caller puts some fans at ease till the next game is played.

Texas A&M will return to Kyle Field to take on Louisiana Monroe on Saturday, Sept. 16, as the game will air on the SEC Network at 3:00 p.m. CT.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Cameron on Twitter: @CameronOhnysty.

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Texas A&M’s 2023 season isn’t over by any means, and from the looks of it, the problems are fixable

Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss to Miami is hopefully a blip on the radar, and while the problems are fixable, Jimbo Fisher’s response will be telling.

Texas A&M’s Week 2 road matchup vs. Miami was a tale of two quarters, as the Aggies actually led 17-7 with 13:11 remaining in the 2nd-quarter before Hurricanes quarterback Tyler Van Dyke zeroed in on A&M’s apparent weak spot in the secondary, throwing for five touchdowns en route to a 48-33 blowout victory for a Miami team that looked highly competent compared the visitors.

On paper, Texas A&M’s lackluster defensive performance is the primary culprit based on the film alone, and while second-year defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin has likely overstayed his welcome, open-field tackling, one of the more basic defensive concepts was lacking in droves throughout the disappointing contest.

Head Coach Jimbo Fisher, of course, deserves a wealth of the blame as the essential CEO of the program. Still, while a bulk of what is a rightfully angry Aggie fan base attempts to find their pitchforks, there are still ten games to right their wrongs, and after Alabama’s shocking double-digit loss to Texas, the SEC West is wide open.

“We aren’t worried about expections, we are worried about next week.”

Focusing on the secondary, the debate surrounding the Aggies’s talent barometer as opposed to simply possessing depth is an issue that can’t be mended in 2023. For senior strong safety Demani Richardson, his vocal leadership to the rest of the defensive back group will be vital for any changes to be made, which starts in practice this week.

“I just fee we as the secondary, we have to do a better job at covering, and tackling.”

As I’ve stated several times already, Texas A&M’s highly talented defensive line failed to pressure Van Dyke, who was outmuscled by Miami’s solid but far-from-elite O-line at a consistent rate, aside from two registered sacks. So, while tackling and discipline in coverage have a path toward improvement, how Durkin plans to free up the many blue-chip pass rushers stretched across the Aggies roster will be telling.

Offensively, Texas A&M has found their quarterback in sophomore Conner Weigman, who, despite being blitzed on 33 of his 57 dropbacks, completed 31-53 for 336 yards and two touchdowns and two interceptions on the night, connecting with starting wide receiver Evan Stewart for 11 receptions at 142 yards. The offensive line, led by senior right guard Layden Robinson, also improved pass protection, but the lack of blitz pickup and average run blocking is unacceptable moving forward.

“Make no mistake he is the quarterback for this team. We need to protect him. He is our leader.”

Offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino’s had his questionable play-calling moments, but overall, Fisher relinquishing the play-calling duties is already paying dividends., and will surely continue to improve throughout the rest of the season.

How the team led by Fisher, amid his sixth season, who has yet to live up to the lofty expectations placed on him by the University and the fanbase alike, will once again respond to adversity will not only tell us what the future holds for the football program’s trajectory, but just how long Jimbo Fisher will remain in the driver’s seat.

Texas A&M will return to Kyle Field to take on Louisiana Monroe on Saturday, Sept. 16, as the game will air on the SEC Network at 3:00 p.m. CT.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Cameron on Twitter: @CameronOhnysty.

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Social media reacts to Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss to Miami in Week 2

Following a humbling defeat to the Hurricanes, social media was ablaze with reactions to Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss in Week 2.

No. 23 Texas A&M (1-1) dropped to .500 in the early season following their 48-33 loss to Miami (2-0) in Week 2. It’s clear that this season is over and it’s time to fire everybody, or at least, that’s what social media is telling everyone.

Granted, the negative takeaways surely outpaced the positive ones following the Aggies’ loss, but by no means is the season over. Head coach Jimbo Fisher and veteran leaders Demani Richardson and Layden Robinson echoed the same in their postgame pressers. There are clear areas to address, and Texas A&M must work on those in the coming week. But as well know, social media doesn’t act logically.

Rather than focusing on adjustments that need to be made ahead of Week 3, social media proclaimed that the Aggies season was officially over and Fisher must be fired. Also, we got a nice dose of revisionist history because, according to the social media timeline, the Maroon and White made a drastic mistake in departing with revered coach Kevin Sumlin.

The reality is that college football is a week-to-week battle, and that rings especially true for the media hot takes swirling around. Buckle up for a monsoon of negative reactions to the Aggies’ loss, but at least take a glance at social media for more than a few hilarious takes.

Here are the best social media reactions to Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss to Miami.

Five takeaways from Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss to Miami in Week 2

No. 23 Texas A&M (1-1) fell in their rematch against Miami (2-0) in what proved to be a humbling 48-33 loss. For the Maroon and White, it’s evident there are areas to address as the season moves forward. Despite their special teams unit generating …

No. 23 Texas A&M (1-1) fell in their rematch against Miami (2-0) in what proved to be a humbling 48-33 loss. For the Maroon and White, it’s evident there are areas to address as the season moves forward.

Despite their special teams unit generating some early momentum at the onset, a sluggish end to the first half gave all the momentum to the Hurricanes as they led 21-17. By the start of the third quarter, it was bombs away for Miami as offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson outcoached, and outschemed, Aggies defensive coordinator DJ Durkin.

Despite Texas A&M dropping to .500 and with an expected monsoon of negative reactions on the way this week, by no means is the season lost. As Texas’ upset over Alabama late Saturday night highlighted, the SEC West appears to be up for grabs this year. The Aggies can very much contend, but it starts with cleaning up some glaring issues that arose this past weekend.

Here are the five takeaways from Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss to Miami in Week 2.

Best Photos: No. 23 Texas A&M 48-33 loss to the Miami Hurricanes

The Aggies can’t keep up with the Miami offense as they give Texas A&M their first loss of the season.

For about 13 minutes, the Aggies looked like a championship-caliber team, but the other 47 minutes looked the same or worse than the 5-7 team from last year. The ACC has started off hot against SEC opponents, so this was a good game to test their team identity against a formidable foe in the Miami Hurricanes.

A 48-33 loss comes with much criticism, which should be the case. However, for now, I want to take a few moments to talk about how much better the offense looks with Bobby Petrino calling the offense. Since I’m going to make an excuse for now, the Aggies made a poor decision with the cleats they wore during the game.

There were many instances of the Aggies slipping and falling down all game. A few times, it looked like a golfer took a huge divot when Conner Wiegman would step up to throw the ball.

The offense showed some encouraging improvement over last year’s team, but the offensive line still needs work. The defense was less than inspiring, and DJ Durkin has some serious things to consider with his scheme going forward.

Below, you can check out the best photos from the game on Saturday.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

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D.J. Durkin’s future with Texas A&M is wearing thin

After failing to Miami 48-33 behind one of the worst defensive performances of the season, Texas A&M defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin has become a liability.

In one of the worst defensive performances in quite some time, Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss to Miami on Saturday afternoon provided more questions than answers, mostly pointing toward Aggies defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin, who failed to adjust his defense in the second half after an early dismal showing.

Besides nearly allowing 50 points on the board, Miami quarterback Tyler Van Dyke shredded the Aggies for 374 yards and five touchdowns through the air (451 total). At the same time, the Hurricanes offense averaged an embarrassing 8.4 yards per play, even with Texas A&M holding Miami’s ground game to 77 yards on the night.

Yes, numbers don’t lie, but what absolutely killed the Aggies chances of coming back behind admirable performances from sophomore quarterback Conner Weigman (31/51, 336 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT) and wide receiver Evan Stewart (11 rec, 142 yards) was the beyond poor tackling in space, especially after the catch as the Miami wideouts outmuscled Texas A&M’s undisciplined secondary, which included three of Van Dykes’ five touchdowns to junior WR Jacolby George on 94 yards receiving.

While blaming Jimbo Fisher may be the easy way out, and yes, it does start at the top, D.J. Durkin’s skill set as coordinator is honestly something I can’t comprehend, constantly trying to find where he thrives from a scheme standpoint every time the Aggies take the field.

Outside of the miserable tackling attempts, the highly talented defensive line littered with blue-chip talent failed to bring pressure against Van Dyke, tallying only two sacks on the night, which were honestly surprising the few times Miami’s O-line actually succumbed to the pass rush.

Look, the writing is clearly on the wall regarding Durkin’s murky future with the program, and while Texas A&M defensive line coach Elijah Robinson stands in the shadows on the sidelines every Saturday this fall, the only thing keeping Durkin from becoming a free agent sooner than later is an immediate defensive turnaround before SEC play.

Texas A&M will return to Kyle Field to take on Louisiana Monroe on Saturday, Sept. 16, as the game will air on the SEC Network at 3:00 p.m. CT.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Cameron on Twitter: @CameronOhnysty.

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‘This loss will make us stronger, we will bounce back,’ Demani Richardson and Layden Robinson reflect on Week 2 defeat to Miami

Demani Richardson and Layden Robinson were confident that Texas A&M will bounce back stronger following their 48-33 loss to Miami.

Every college football team gets handed a humbling loss, and No. 23 Texas A&M (1-1) endured its own following their 48-33 defeat to Miami (2-0) in Week 2.

In a game where the Aggies relinquished their early momentum, the Hurricanes’ pursuit of revenge proved to be too much for Texas A&M to counter. As quarterback Tyler Van Dyke finished 21/30 for 374 yards and five touchdowns, it underscored the porous play from the Aggies secondary.

On a multitude of occasions, Texas A&M’s backend unit displayed poor performance when tackling in the open field. That was coupled with a curious lack of pressure from the Aggies defensive front, as it felt like Van Dyke had long stretches to make plays comfortably in the pocket.

Despite 336 passing yards and two touchdowns from Conner Weigman, Texas A&M’s offense wasn’t enough to claw back from a double-digit deficit. After the loss, Demani Richardson and Layden Robinson spoke to the media to echo their confidence in this team to bounce back.

Below are Richardson and Robinson’s full postgame press conferences, as well as key highlights from their time speaking to the media.

‘We tackled poor in space. We just didn’t make the plays,’ Jimbo Fisher recaps Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss to Miami

In speaking at the podium for his postgame recap, Jimbo Fisher highlighted the areas Texas A&M must address following their humbling 48-33 loss to Miami.

No. 23 Texas A&M (1-1) was brought back down to earth following a 48-33 loss to Miami (2-0) on Saturday. After the Aggies’ high-octane offense piled on 52 points the week prior, their defense nearly allowed a fifty-piece in Week 2.

Despite some early momentum following a blocked punt and a recovered muffed kick, the Maroon and White played sluggish through the first two quarters. After taking an early 17-7 lead, Texas A&M’s defense allowed back-to-back touchdowns to trail 21-17 by halftime.

After the momentum shifted in Miami’s favor by marching 75 yards down the field in the final 44 seconds of the first half, the Hurricanes never relinquished control of the tempo. Quarterback Tyler Van Dyke tossed five touchdowns as the Aggies’ defense, namely the secondary, displayed a porous effort when tackling in open space.

In taking to the podium for his postgame Saturday evening, head coach Jimbo Fisher echoed many of the same sentiments felt by Aggies fans following the humbling loss. A&M has to be better when tackling in the open field, they must capitalize on turnovers, and ultimately, they must clean things up with Week 3 just around the corner.

Below is Jimbo Fisher’s full postgame following Texas A&M’s 48-33 loss to Miami, as well as key highlights from his time speaking to the media.

Post Game Recap: No. 23 Texas A&M falls to Miami 48-33

After a fast start the Aggies spudder out and fall to the Miami Hurricanes 48-33

No. 23 Texas A&M Aggies (1-1) dropped the rematch game in Florida 48-33 to the Miami Hurricanes (2-0). Miami weathered the early storm to beat the Aggies convincingly for a marque early season win for Cristobal’s program.

You couldn’t ask for a better start to a football game on the road than the Aggies. Special teams set the tone with a big stop on the opening kickoff, Sam Mathews, the 12th man, trapping the Hurricanes deep to start the game. The defense followed that up with a quick three-and-out, leading to a blocked punt by transfer Jahdae Walker.

Bobby Petrino’s offense’s first drive would start Miami’s 15-yard line. Amari Daniels and Conner Weigman took turns chipping away until they reached the endzone on a one-yard touchdown run for an early 7-0 lead.

Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

Not wanting to let this game get out of hand early, Miami answered back to cut the lead to 10-7 late in the first quarter. As both teams settled in, the Hurricanes came back in to lead 21-17 at halftime.

Unfortunately for the Aggies, Miami would pressure Texas A&M across the board in the second half, keeping them off-balanced for the rest of the night. After the Maroon & White pulled within one in the third quarter, Miami took the kickoff back 98 yards after the field goal to the house, killing what little momentum the Aggies built off the previous dive. The Hurricanes would outscore the Aggies 27 to 16 over the final 30 minutes, leaving the Texas A&M fans scratching their head at the outcome.

The offense did not look bad, but the offensive line is still a work in progress. Conner Wiegman, Noah Thomas, and Even Stewart stood out as studs, but it still was not enough to overcome the deficit. The defense was nonexistent after the first two drives, and while a few players did flash, like Taurean York and Walter Nolan, this was one of the worst outings under DJ Durkin’s watch.

It’s too early to call this a turning point; some even had this as one of the Aggie losses on the books. Monday is on to the next opponent, but the Texas A&M coaching staff will have much to work on moving forward.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

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Halftime recap: Texas A&M plays sluggish through two quarters, trail Miami 21-17

Texas A&M is lucky to be down by just four at the half after a sluggish style of football through two quarters has them trailing Miami, 21-17.

Perhaps the game delay due to lightning was a premonition because Texas A&M just survived a sluggish first half to trail Miami 21-17 after two quarters. If anything, they have their special teams to thank for keeping them afloat.

It was all Aggies at the onset, with their special teams recovering not one but two muffed kick returns to place them in a great scoring position. A Conner Weigman one-yard touchdown run to start the game, followed by an Amari Daniels touchdown in the second quarter, put A&M up 17-7 early. Outside of a Tyler Van Dyke touchdown pass, the Hurricanes were at the expense of all the momentum going the Aggies’ way.

And then Miami tacked on two straight touchdowns to propel the Hurricanes to a 21-17 lead heading into halftime. Aside from one sack from Shemar Turner, Texas A&M’s defensive front failed to generate any pressure on Van Dyke for much of the first half. As a result, the Hurricanes’ receivers exploited the Aggies’ secondary on a handful of drag routes.

Van Dyke found Isaiah Horton on a beautiful 52-yard touchdown pass that had Jayvon Thomas, a true freshman cornerback, lost and on skates. The latter touchdown, an 11-yard dime to Jacolby George, capped off an ugly end to the first half as Miami marched down the field 75 yards in just 44 seconds.

As the Aggies head into the locker room, it’s a massive understatement to say that adjustments must be made on both sides of the ball. DJ Durkin must ensure the Aggies generate pressure up front and better contain the edge, while Texas A&M’s offense must inject some new life by any means to tilt the momentum back in their favor.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Pete on Twitter: @PeteThreee.

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