Defeat. The feet. A feat.
Those have been hot topics regarding Texas A&M football this week.
Aggies continue to lament the 23-13 season-opening loss to Notre Dame.
Much blame for that defeat was the footwork of quarterback Conner Weigman. If that problem is corrected, there is hope the Aggies could bounce back strong and maybe even reach the College Football Playoff, which, of course, would be a remarkable feat.
The Aggies also need receivers with fleet feet.
Therefore, they should work hard to feature (feet-ure?) freshman Terry Bussey.
In a postgame press conference, A&M coach Mike Elko expressed concern for the inability of Aggie receivers to get separation against a heralded Notre Dame secondary.
“We tried to do some different things to create some (separation with) rubs and picks,” Elko said. “That didn’t get it going.”
Two days later, Elko said the inability to separate wasn’t just a receiver issue.
“When you talk about separation, that’s not just on the wide receiver,” Elko said. “Some of it is the routes we’re calling, how we’re running them against the leverages we’re seeing, making sure that we’re running the right routes against the right leverages. That’s a piece of it.
“Some of it is just play speed. I think we have to play faster at wide receiver. It certainly looked at times we were still feeling our way through some of it. That’s something we’ve got to get cleaned up and fixed.”
Nothing creates separation like high-end speed, which Bussey apparently has. As a true freshman who started August camp on defense, Bussey is obviously green and limited.
Still, it would seem wise to devise a package of plays — maybe just three — for Bussey to master. Just the threat of Bussey might stretch defenses in ways that haven’t been seen at A&M probably since Josh Reynolds was averaging 17 yards a catch.
“Terry is a talented kid,” Elko said. “We’re getting him going to the best of our ability and the best of his ability.
“I told you he’s going to impact the season. We saw it a little bit in the return game. You saw us try to get the ball in his hands. We’ll continue to do that.
“But we still have confidence in the guys we’re playing at that position.”
Quite frankly, Louisiana Tech transfer Cyrus Allen looked pretty good against Notre Dame.
Noah Thomas, perhaps A&M’s top receiver, was open on a few occasions, but the football didn’t get to him.
Jahdae Walker has been consistently productive since getting into the lineup midway through last season.
Also, Troy transfer Jabre Barber, the star of spring, could be recovered from a foot injury and in the lineup before September ends.
Add Bussey’s athleticism, and the Aggies’ passing game might improve quickly. There’s certainly reason to expect as much.
Need more reasons? Well, consider A&M doesn’t figure to play another secondary as good as Notre Dame’s.
Last season, Notre Dame was third in the nation in passing defense. Only four remaining opponents were ranked among the nation’s top 40.
Bowling Green was 12th in pass defense last season. Auburn was ranked 31st, Arkansas was 32nd, and Mississippi State was 34th. But Bowling Green played against a lower level of competition, while opponents just opted to capitalize on the vulnerable run defenses of Auburn, Arkansas and Mississippi State.
Indeed, five remaining opponents were ranked 70th or worse in pass defense, including Florida (70th), South Carolina (101st), New Mexico State (106th), Texas (116th) and LSU (118th).
Improved footwork by Weigman. More fleet-footed receivers. Less dominant secondaries.
Hopefully, that will all combine to help the Aggies avoid another defeat.
Aggie2 said:
CW's feet are not the problem. They are guided by his head. Therein lies the problem.
TAM85 said:Aggie2 said:
CW's feet are not the problem. They are guided by his head. Therein lies the problem.
Yep, kind of how I see it. What is going on between the ears is manifesting in the foot work. The fix is above the shoulders.
