Recovery and health key to A&M's preparation for Texas Bowl

Texas A&M football coach Kevin Sumlin hinted on Friday that quarterback Trevor Knight will be healthy for the upcoming Texas Bowl.

The Aggies (8-4) face Kansas State (7-5) at 8 p.m. on Dec. 28 at NRG Stadium.

Knight missed games against Ole Miss and Texas-San Antonio with a sprained shoulder and then sustained an unspecified knee injury during a loss to LSU on Thanksgiving Day. But Sumlin said Knight was moving well during their return from Atlanta for the College Football Awards.

“I was just flying with (Knight) and he said he was feeling good,” Sumlin said during a press conference at NRG Stadium. “He was walking pretty good last night. He got up on the plane, I can tell you that. He came up the stairs. After the last game he couldn’t even get out of the building. So, he’s better than he was. We’ll see where he is.”

Sumlin didn’t offer any updates on other injured players, specifically safety Armani Watts.

“We’ve been lifting and conditioning over the last couple of weeks,” Sumlin said. “We have our first real practice today. We’ve got finals going on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Then we’ll get back into bowl preparation. I’ll have a better handle on where our health is by the end of the weekend. I’ll know more then, but it doesn’t mean I’ll say anything.”

Sumlin did say that he’s been analyzing the defense to ascertain why the Aggies were so much more vulnerable in the second half of the season.

A&M was ranked 64th in the nation in total defense and allowing an average of 388.2 yards through five games. The Aggies are now ranked 91st and allowing 444.2 yards.

“We’ve had some discussions about two things. We talked about schematics and we talked about personnel,” Sumlin said. “Some things that were a problem schematically have been addressed. Some things from a personnel standpoint that we’re somewhat limited in and the number of plays our guys are playing.

“It’s not just one thing. It's a combination of things that manifested itself at the end of the year.”

Sumlin pointed out that A&M’s defense played more snaps than any other team in the SEC.
The Aggies defense was on the field for 974 snaps. Missouri was the only other SEC team with more than 900 defensive snaps. The Tigers were on the field for 949 snaps.

By comparison, LSU had 731 defensive snaps. Alabama had 817.

Sumlin pointed out that A&M’s defense played about two more games worth of snaps than many of its SEC rivals.

“I think we were worn down towards the end of the year,” he said. “Our rotation system was not what we needed it to be. Injuries are part of the game, so that’s not an excuse. But we have to find a way in many critical situations to get off the field on third down, and we didn’t do it.“

A&M allowed opponents to convert 39.2 percent on third down.

The Aggies will have to do a much better job against Kansas State, which is ranked 18th in the nation in third down conversions. The Wildcats had a more than 46 percent success rate on third down.

“You’re going to get a well-disciplined football team,” Sumlin said. “They line up the right way. You’re going to have to execute because they’re not going to beat themselves.”

The Aggies need to find a way to win the Texas Bowl. Their midseason collapse was bad enough, but losing to an opponent from the reviled Big 12 would be an even more bitter pill to swallow for many Aggies.

Sumlin seems to realize that.

“It’s a great matchup. I think over the last few years, the SEC-Big 12 matchups are good. Regionally, we’re right on the edge of both, so for our fans there is some relevance and some recognition of opponent. Anytime you have that where there’s a previous opponent and a past conference alignment, I’m sure there will be a little more interest from our fans.”