Second to last paragraph -- they were instead of the were...
Photo by Alex Parker, TexAgs
Texas A&M Football
Texas A&M defense looking to get back on track in tilt with Gamecocks
Records: Texas A&M (3-1, 1-0); South Carolina (3-1, 1-1)
Kickoff: 6:30 p.m. at Kyle Field
TV: SEC Network
Line: Texas A&M -8.5
Weather: Sunny, high of 86, zero chance of precipitation, North-Northeast wind 8 MPH
Only a dozen FBS college football teams run less effectively than South Carolina. Therefore, run defense might not be a major concern when Texas A&M (3-1, 1-0) faces the Gamecocks (3-1, 1-1) on Saturday night at Kyle Field. Except for two reasons:
• Last week, A&M allowed 226 rushing yards to Arkansas. That’s almost as much as the Aggies had allowed in their first three games combined (230).
• Last season, South Carolina scored on a 75-yard touchdown run on its first play against A&M.
Even though A&M has shown a tendency to give up big pass plays — especially in the fourth quarter — neutralizing the Gamecock rushing attack remains vital for the Aggies to capture their fourth consecutive victory.
Sure, so does the continued growth of A&M freshman quarterback Kellen Mond, along with the Aggies' own productive running game and big-play threat Christian Kirk.
The first step in stopping that trend may be making South Carolina’s offense one-dimensional. That way, A&M’s surprising pass rush, which has already amassed 13 sacks, can aggressively attack South Carolina’s suspect offensive line.
That pressure, at least in theory, could fluster South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley and provide some help to A&M’s young cornerbacks.
The question is whether the Aggies can make South Carolina one-dimensional. Even though the Gamecocks haven’t run efficiently, they still have good running backs in Rico Dowdle, Ty’Son Williams and A.J. Turner.
The Aggies acknowledge they must defend against the run better than they did against Arkansas.
“In my opinion, we did a pretty poor job stopping the run,” defensive end Jarrett Johnson said. “It becomes a discipline thing. When it comes to stopping a team like that, you really have to have some gap integrity, and we failed on that.”
Considering A&M’s recent history of struggling in run defense, that failure raised red flags. Was A&M’s previous success in run defense merely a byproduct of facing opponents that were poor-running teams? Johnson maintained that A&M’s problems last week were of its own making.
“It’s not such an extreme difference between them and us,” he said. “That wasn’t the reason they got those spurts and those big plays. Mainly, when we looked back at the film, it was on us – whether that be run fits or coming off a block effectively, just using good technique in there. When you correct those little mistakes, which are easily corrected, you’ll see a big cut back in those explosive plays.”
Margaret Connett, TexAgs
Texas A&M defensive tackle Kingsley Keke thinks the Aggies have the talent to stop SEC offense. He says they just have to communicate more efficiently.
Defensive tackle Kingsley Keke, who had his best game according to coach Kevin Sumlin, concurred.
“We’ve got the talent. We have to focus on the little things coaches preach,” he said. “The miscommunications we had … we’ve got to work on that.”
Of course, the Aggies have to work on their pass defense, too. A&M has allowed an average of 300.5 passing yards per game. In the fourth quarter alone, the Aggies have given up six pass plays that covered 31 yards or more.
That has to be concerning when facing Bentley, who most recently passed for 304 yards and two touchdowns against Kentucky and 295 yards and a touchdown against Louisiana Tech. He lost his most explosive receiver, Deebo Samuel, to a knee injury but has reliable targets in wide receiver Bryan Edwards and accomplished tight end Hayden Hurst.
A&M, by the way, has had trouble covering tight ends.
“Jake Bentley is an experienced quarterback. They've got three capable backs. Their attack is similar to ours,” Sumlin said. "They have some RPO (run-pass option) schemes with big receivers. They've evolved their offense with him. He can run. He's made some great throws. He's been in big games before.”
Last season Bentley did not play in A&M’s 24-13 win over South Carolina, which wasn’t assured until a Daniel LaCamera field goal with 1:41 remaining.
The Gamecocks’ opening long touchdown run on a left end sweep was a big reason the were competitive. Their running game — good or bad — figures to be a major factor again. In fact, Keke says he expects the Gamecocks to open the game with the same play. He said the results won’t be the same, though.
“We’ll stop that for sure,” Keke said. “We’re going to come in ready to go from the get-go. I can promise you that.”
Kickoff: 6:30 p.m. at Kyle Field
TV: SEC Network
Line: Texas A&M -8.5
Weather: Sunny, high of 86, zero chance of precipitation, North-Northeast wind 8 MPH
Only a dozen FBS college football teams run less effectively than South Carolina. Therefore, run defense might not be a major concern when Texas A&M (3-1, 1-0) faces the Gamecocks (3-1, 1-1) on Saturday night at Kyle Field. Except for two reasons:
• Last week, A&M allowed 226 rushing yards to Arkansas. That’s almost as much as the Aggies had allowed in their first three games combined (230).
• Last season, South Carolina scored on a 75-yard touchdown run on its first play against A&M.
Even though A&M has shown a tendency to give up big pass plays — especially in the fourth quarter — neutralizing the Gamecock rushing attack remains vital for the Aggies to capture their fourth consecutive victory.
Sure, so does the continued growth of A&M freshman quarterback Kellen Mond, along with the Aggies' own productive running game and big-play threat Christian Kirk.
A&M has allowed more than 40 points in both its games against Power Five opponents. The first step in stopping that trend may be making South Carolina’s offense one-dimensional.
But A&M has allowed more than 40 points in both its games against Power Five opponents.The first step in stopping that trend may be making South Carolina’s offense one-dimensional. That way, A&M’s surprising pass rush, which has already amassed 13 sacks, can aggressively attack South Carolina’s suspect offensive line.
That pressure, at least in theory, could fluster South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley and provide some help to A&M’s young cornerbacks.
The question is whether the Aggies can make South Carolina one-dimensional. Even though the Gamecocks haven’t run efficiently, they still have good running backs in Rico Dowdle, Ty’Son Williams and A.J. Turner.
The Aggies acknowledge they must defend against the run better than they did against Arkansas.
“In my opinion, we did a pretty poor job stopping the run,” defensive end Jarrett Johnson said. “It becomes a discipline thing. When it comes to stopping a team like that, you really have to have some gap integrity, and we failed on that.”
Considering A&M’s recent history of struggling in run defense, that failure raised red flags. Was A&M’s previous success in run defense merely a byproduct of facing opponents that were poor-running teams? Johnson maintained that A&M’s problems last week were of its own making.
“It’s not such an extreme difference between them and us,” he said. “That wasn’t the reason they got those spurts and those big plays. Mainly, when we looked back at the film, it was on us – whether that be run fits or coming off a block effectively, just using good technique in there. When you correct those little mistakes, which are easily corrected, you’ll see a big cut back in those explosive plays.”
Margaret Connett, TexAgs
Texas A&M defensive tackle Kingsley Keke thinks the Aggies have the talent to stop SEC offense. He says they just have to communicate more efficiently.
“We’ve got the talent. We have to focus on the little things coaches preach,” he said. “The miscommunications we had … we’ve got to work on that.”
Of course, the Aggies have to work on their pass defense, too. A&M has allowed an average of 300.5 passing yards per game. In the fourth quarter alone, the Aggies have given up six pass plays that covered 31 yards or more.
That has to be concerning when facing Bentley, who most recently passed for 304 yards and two touchdowns against Kentucky and 295 yards and a touchdown against Louisiana Tech. He lost his most explosive receiver, Deebo Samuel, to a knee injury but has reliable targets in wide receiver Bryan Edwards and accomplished tight end Hayden Hurst.
A&M, by the way, has had trouble covering tight ends.
“Jake Bentley is an experienced quarterback. They've got three capable backs. Their attack is similar to ours,” Sumlin said. "They have some RPO (run-pass option) schemes with big receivers. They've evolved their offense with him. He can run. He's made some great throws. He's been in big games before.”
Last season Bentley did not play in A&M’s 24-13 win over South Carolina, which wasn’t assured until a Daniel LaCamera field goal with 1:41 remaining.
The Gamecocks’ opening long touchdown run on a left end sweep was a big reason the were competitive. Their running game — good or bad — figures to be a major factor again. In fact, Keke says he expects the Gamecocks to open the game with the same play. He said the results won’t be the same, though.
“We’ll stop that for sure,” Keke said. “We’re going to come in ready to go from the get-go. I can promise you that.”
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