Former Texas A&M wide receiver Ryan Swope joined Thursday morning's edition of TexAgs Radio to discuss the Aggie offense as the Maroon & White prepare to travel to South Carolina. According to Swope, going up-tempo could help the Ags put more points on the board.
Key notes from Ryan Swope interview
- We're doing good. These boys are three wild little dudes, but they're a lot of fun. They're keeping us pretty busy. It's always good to hear that your kids are well-behaved. You never know if people are being real or sarcastic when they tell you that, though.
- I don't know what to expect this week, unfortunately. I wish I did. This team has had struggles on offense and putting the ball in the end zone. I truly don't know what to expect. I'm a little nervous. Going to South Carolina, they are 3-1 at home. Of those three wins, who have they played? Probably nobody. We have question marks and a banged-up football team. There are a lot of uncertainties, but I am hoping for the best.
- From what I've seen, #1 (Evan Stewart) and #7 (Moose Muhammad) have really flipped the switch. It's a matter of getting those two guys the ball in the game plan every week. I hope we get them the ball in space, and I really hope we can utilize more of the simple throws to get the ball out of Haynes King's or Conner Weigman's hands to get the ball to these guys and let them do their thing. Our offensive line is banged up, so one way to deal with that is to make sure the quarterback is not holding the ball too long. Throw a bubble screen or get the ball to your playmakers in space, and do so quickly. I haven't seen a lot of that, and I hope we implement that into our game plan more moving forward.
- It has surprised me how difficult it has been for them to score this year. It has been frustrating as an offensive player watching this year and the last couple of years. We've struggled as a group to punch the ball into the end zone. When Mike Sherman got fired, we went 6-6 that year but were averaging 480 yards per game and averaging two receiving touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns. We're hovering around 320 right now. We have to find a way. Offensively, we're not going to win football games if we cannot put the ball in the end zone. Bottom line. It's very hard. Our defense has bailed us out, and you can't rely on them that heavily. You have to find a way to execute and put the ball in the end zone. If we can’t do that, we can’t win here.
- I would love to see them go up-tempo. Have you ever played golf? It's a similar scenario in that you're out there on the course, have ten golf carts on one hole and are backed up. You lose your rhythm and can't find it again. If you go out to Miramont, there are like five golfers out there. You can haul butt, find a rhythm and look up to see you're 5-under par. Less thinking and more doing leads to executing. If we can do that, we'd look up and see more points on the board. It would give our defense a spark. Things would start clicking if we could go out there, play and have fun. Keep it simple and put your foot on the gas. Let's go. I know that Jimbo Fisher's offense is all management and who has the ball last, and I know it works in certain situations. You have to handle the circumstances you're given.
- I would love to see him throw some tempo at Haynes King. If King could get going, he'd probably thrive in a high-pace offense. I thought he did a fine job vs. Alabama, and he put us in a situation to almost upset the No. 1 team in the country. We're close. I think King should walk away from that game with confidence. He can compete in this league, and I hope he's healthy this week. If he's not, let Conner free. Whatever Fisher decides, we'll be in a fine situation and just need to execute.
- Spencer Rattler is a fantastic football player. I'm curious to see how he does vs. A&M. It goes back to executing. We have to continue to play fast on defense against him.
- South Carolina has a good team, but I think we have a better team. I know we have a lot more talent. Rattler is a good quarterback, but if we can get to him early, we can rattle him. If we can do that, we will be fine. Offensively, it's a matter of putting the ball in the end zone. It won't be easy by any means, but we can come out of there with a win.
- I'm going with #7 (Muhammad) to get it done this weekend. I like how he plays. He's great at catching the football. He's great in space. He knows how to run routes. He's fun to watch. He’s becoming our safety blanket.
- Our offensive line is banged up, so if I'm going to sell anybody, it's going to be them. It's tough when you don't have a group that is meshing well. With some injuries, it never helps to be banged up on the offensive line. If we can get the ball to some of these receivers in space with quick throws, we should be OK.
- Donovan Green is a special talent. Get the ball to him in space. He has great speed and lateral quickness. Hopefully, we can find a way to get him the football.
- I do think they take care of business this weekend, but I think it's somewhat of a close game. I have the Aggies winning by 10 points, but I don't think they score more than 24 points.
