Tag: Mike Elko

Report: Texas A&M starting center Bryce Foster will enter the transfer portal

Multi-sport athlete and three-year starting center Bryce Foster will reportedly enter the transfer portal

With the Texas A&M football team having too many scholarship players on the roster at the moment, and still actively working the portal, turnover was inevitable. It was recently announced that Bobby Taylor would step away from football to concentrate on graduating reducing the scholarship number by one and this morning it’s being reported that starting center Bryce Foster would be entering the transfer portal.

Foster started his career at A&M showing a lot of promise but in need of some development. He finished his freshman year as an All-American with a promising and bright future. Not to say his next two years were less than stellar but there seemed to be some dysfunction on the team that led to a lot of players either taking a step back or staying stagnant. Foster fell into the latter category possible for a few reasons.

While being a solid starting center for Jimbo Fisher he would spend every spring with the track team where he is a good shot putter. This always sort of rubbed some fans the wrong way, which is understandable. But the biggest blow he suffered was a season-ending ACL tear in early 2022, and to his credit, he worked his way back on the field in 2023.

However, the writing was on the wall about halfway through spring practices that coach Mike Elko and Adam Cushing were looking for competition at the center position while Foster was with the track team. The deal was further sealed once it was announced that former Utah offensive lineman Koliu’u Faaiu would be transferring to A&M.

Just because Foster has put his name in the portal doesn’t mean he is gone, but it does appear that his time in the Maroon & White has come to an end and we wish him the best at his next stop.

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Texas A&M lands a commitment from former Minnesota forward Pharrel Payne

Texas A&M Basketball has landed another commitment from the transfer portal, as former Minnesota forward Pharrel Payne is making his way to College Station

Texas A&M head basketball coach Buzz Willimas has acquired two players through the transfer portal in the last two days, as former Minnesota forward Pharrel Payne will make his way to College Station for the 2024-2025 season, coming off his productive 2023 season.

After the announcement that starting guard Wade Taylor IV would officially return next season, the Aggies are just a couple of transfer additions away from earning a potential third consecutive bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Needing to fill several holes on the depth chart after the departure of veteran guard Tyrece Radford, while the reveal of senior forward Julius Marbles’ legal issues eliminates his future on the roster, Williams’ addition of former Nebraska guard CJ Wilcher, who shot nearly 40% from beyond the arc last season, was just the first step.

With Tuesday’s addition from Pharrel Payne, who stands at 6-9 and 255 pounds, Payne averaged an impressive 10 points and 6.1 rebounds during his 2023 sophomore season while shooting 60% from the field. Payne is a dominant inside presence, bringing elite athleticism and plenty of offensive upside. He also averaged 1.4 blocks in 2023.

With plenty of talent remaining in the transfer portal, especially at guard, the expectations have just been heightened.

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Texas A&M lands a commitment from former ECU TE Shane Calhoun

Texas A&M has landed a verbal commitment from former ECU tight end Shane Calhoun

Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko has done what Jimbo Fisher failed ever to do: Utilize the transfer portal. After re-opening this spring, the Aggies’ Maroon & White spring game proved that depth issues remain at various postion groups, and as of Monday, several new additions will make their way to College Station.

Earlier in the day, former Pitt linebacker Solomon DeShields announced his intentions to transfer to A&M, shoring up the rotation alongside All-SEC LB Taurean York while placing a bandage over the loss of future NFL linebacker Edgerrin Cooper.

Now, announced on Monday night, the Aggies have added their third tight end from the portal, as former ECU TE Shane Calhoun looks to play his final collegiate season for Texas A&M after hauling in over 63 receptions, 594 receiving yards, and six touchdowns from 2020-2023.

Joining tight ends Garrett Miller (Purdue) and Tre Watson (Fresno State), Texas A&M is currently over the 85-player scholarship limit. Expect more movement in the coming months to meet the number, as Elko has more than proven his ability to maneuver the ins and outs of the offseason thus far.

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Former Pitt LB Solomon DeShields will transfer to Texas A&M

Texas A&M picks up a productive ACC player in former Pitt linebacker Solomon DeShields

Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko is getting a dose of competition in the defensive room to pair with All-SEC backer Taurean York with a productive linebacker out from Pitt.

Defensive coordinator Jay Bateman quickly added another highly active defensive player when former Pitt linebacker Solomon DeShields committed to the Aggies on April 22. DeShields brings some good size standing at 6’3″ weighing in at 225 pounds and had had his most productive year in 2023 recording 58 tackles, 8 TFLs, with 2 sacks.

With the spring portal now open, expect more names to flow in and out of College Station as players start to key in on where they might fall on the roster. No doubt Elko is keeping his ear to the portal streets looking for ways to improve his team.

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Texas A&M receiver Noah Thomas might see a lot of time in a new spot

Noah Thomas showed out while playing a majority of the spring game in the slot position

The cool thing about watching spring games, especially when there is a new coaching staff, is seeing how certain players are being used in a new system. With the games being open to the public, the play calling will no doubt be guarded, so personal groupings and alignments can give us an idea of what the coaches have been working on to this point.

One of the more interesting tidbits came from Carter Karels, who does a fantastic job covering the Aggies. He pointed out that junior wide receiver spent almost every single one of this spring game snaps from the slot positions. This really stood out because it was a significant increase percentage-wise over last season.

There must be something new offensive coordinator Collin Klein sees in Thomas’s skill set and size that made the move worth considering during the spring game. The initial conclusion is that it was a smart decision. Thomas hauled in 7 catches for 82 yards and two touchdowns on a rainy afternoon, with a few of those being contested attempts.

The 6-6 200-pound receiver has shown flashes of how good he can be when he gets the opportunities and has all the traits to develop into a No. 1 receiver this fall. Head coach Mike Elko is very high on him and believes he can maintain the progress so far; we can see big things from him.

“He has tremendous size. He has a large catch radius. He has gotten heathly. It will be important for him to have a strong summer. He has all the makings of a guy we can use as a top target.”
The sky is the limit for Thomas and we all got a glimpse of that on April 20.  With his size and athleticism, putting him in the slot would make him a match-up nightmare with any defender anywhere on the field. We hope to see more of the same when the Aggies suit up to face Notre Dame on August 31 at Kyle Field.
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Post game recap: Texas A&M’s Maroon & White spring game ends with a 24-10 Maroon team victory

Texas A&M’s spring game concluded with a 24-10 Maroon team victory

Texas A&M’s annual Maroon & White spring game concluded on what turned out to be a rainy latter half of the afternoon. The Maroon team defeated the White team by a score of 24-10 behind the arm of backup quarterback Marcel Reed and the hands of junior wide receiver Noah Thomas.

As I noted ahead of the game, nearly 20 players, mostly presumed 2024 starters, did not play, including several starters on the offensive line.

Head coach Mike Elko had a plan for all three quarterbacks going into the game. Starter Conner Weigman is still recovering from surgery after a 2023 foot injury sidelined him after four games, but he still made the start for the White team.

Lacking his usual mobility, Weigman only completed 5-14 passes for 47 yards. Still, none of this should be surprising due to the lack of blocking up front and a lack of receiving options compared to the Maroon team.

Quarterbacking the Maroon, sophomore Marcel Reed (10-14, 84 yards, 1 TD) shared reps with senior Jaylen Henderson (8-13, 100 yards, 1 TD) as both found the endzone. Yet, Reed’s mobility and accuracy have made this offseason battle even more intriguing down the stretch.

Making waves offensively, junior wide receiver Noah Thomas has now made his case as the Aggies’ No. 1 wide receiver next season. He led the game with seven receptions, 82 yards, and two touchdowns, including a diving endzone grab for his final score.

Defensively, former Purdue Edge Nic Scourton looks like the team’s best overall player going into the fall, credited with five tackles, 2.5 sacks, 3.5 tackles for loss, and a pass breakup for the Maroon defense. In comparison, junior Shemar Stewart was equally impressive for the White team, with seven tackles, a sack, and a tackle for loss on the afternoon.

From what I saw today, Texas A&M’s transfer portal-heavy cornerback room is filled with length, speed, and, most importantly, experience at a postion group that struggled throughout the 2023 season.

Overall, the offense showed flashes, especially his improvement at running back, as Le’Veon Moss and Rueben Owens both ran for touchdowns. At the same time, the defense looks like the Aggies’ predominant strength heading into the season opener vs. Notre Dame on Saturday, Aug. 31.

Final Stats: 

White Team: 

  • Total yards: 128
  • Rushing yards: 70
  • Passing yards: 58
  • 1st downs: 6
  • Turnovers: 0
  • Time of possession: 20:51

Maroon Team: 

  • Total yards: 364
  • Rushing yards: 180
  • Passing yards: 184
  • 1st downs: 21
  • Turnovers: 1
  • Time of possession: 39.09

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What offensive senior analyst Scotty Ohara can bring to Texas A&M

New senior analyst Scotty Ohara looks to aid development at the wide receiver position

One of the knocks on the Texas A&M football team in recent years has been their issues developing the wide receiver talent they have been able to get on campus. Some of that could be attributed to injuries or the play calling, but whatever the overall problem, it needed to be addressed.

Texas A&M added former UTEP offensive coordinator and wide receiver coach Scotty Ohara to the staff in March. Even though the team record for the Miners hasn’t been great over the past few seasons, Ohara has been successful in helping produce a quality receiving core during his time in El Paso.

Some proof of that was helping Tyrin Smith and Jacob Cowing to be the first back-to-back receivers to reach 1,000 yards for the first time in the team’s history. Smith was also one of three receivers in Conference USA to reach 1,000 yards in 2022. Matrix Analytical Solutions recently included the combination of Texas A&M WR coach Holmon Wiggins and Ohara as a top coaching duo in the country.

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The rosters for the Aggies legends flag football game have been announced

The Aggie legends teams have been announced for the Spring game halftime event

Part of the scoring game is the annual Texas A&M tradition of the Aggie Legends game. The event is a flag football game with two rosters of Aggie favorites on each team and one quarterback throwing for both teams. The team generally takes players from a few eras and places them, similar to the spring game, into a Maroon and White team; however, they are named after two Aggie Legends, David Crow and Bill Pickard.

Team Crow (Maroon) will be coached by Cullen Gillaspia and Terrence Murphy. Team Pickard (White) will be coached by Jake Matthews and Trayveon Williams. Jake Hubenak will be the quarterback for both teams when they take the field during halftime of the Spring game on April 20. Below, you can find the full rosters posted by Carter Karels.

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Texas A&M’s Maroon & White spring game rosters have been revealed

The Maroon & White teams have been announced for the spring game next week and the rosters give us an idea one what battles will take place.

We are a few days out from seeing what the new regime under head football coach Mike Elko has been cooking up this spring. Granted, we won’t see a full playbook, but we will get an idea of the depth chart, blocking scheme, and play style. Texas A&M football recently released the rosters for the Maroon & White team for the game on April 20.

The Maroon team captain will be offensive lineman Trey Zuhn and the captain of the White team will be linebacker Taurean York. A few notable absences are the following:

  • OL senior – Bryce Foster (Track & Field for the spring)
  • OL freshman – Blake Ivy
  • OL junior – Dorian Hinton
  • WR senior – Jabre Barber
  • DE junior – Malick Sylia
  • LB junior – Martrell Harris Jr.

The full rosters are below via the Texas A&M official X account.

 

 

Based on how the rosters are broken down, it will be interesting to see how starting quarterback Conner Wiegman plays in the game. The Maroon Team has both Jaylon Henderson and Marcel Reed, along with what most people think will be the starting wide receiver core next season.

I believe the reason is that Henderson and Reed will get plenty of opportunities with quality receivers to compete for the backup position behind Weigman.

Henderson showed that he can play up to par in the SEC but needs to improve his accuracy. Reed showed a lot of promise during the bowl game, but there is still some concern with his size, only 180 pounds on a good day.

The other two positions to watch are the offensive line and defensive backfield. We saw a number of transfers, so there is bound to be great competition for those spots.

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Texas A&M HC Mike Elko names his captains for the 2024 season

Texas A&M HC Mike Elko has named linebacker Taurean York and left tackle Trey Zuhn as the 2024 season captains.

On Monday afternoon, just five days before Texas A&M’s annual Maroon & White spring game, head coach Mike Elko, along with defensive coordinator Jay Bateman and offensive line coach Adam Cushing, presented the jerseys to the two young men selected as the 2024 captains.

The recipients, sophomore linebacker Taurean York and redshirt sophomore left tackle Trey Zuhn III, were by far the most deserving candidates due to their leadership in the locker room and consistent play on the field in 2023.

York finished second on the team in tackles with 74, including three sacks. At the same time, Zuhn, who has fought through injuries throughout his career as a starter, was the top-graded offensive lineman for the Aggies throughout last season.

Before leaving to become Duke’s head coach after the 2021 season, Mike Elko, who served as the Aggies’ defensive coordinator (2018-2021), helped recruit both players, helping further ease his transition before Texas A&M opens the 2024 season vs. Notre Dame on Aug. 31.

Congratulations to both young men!

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