Three starts in, Reed continues to make 'positive strides forward'
Even as his production regressed, Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed has progressed.
The Aggies (4-1, 2-0) will hope to see more progress on Saturday when they play host to ninth-ranked Missouri (4-0, 1-0) in a Southeastern Conference matchup at 11 a.m. CT at Kyle Field.
Reed’s overall production declined in the Aggies’ 21-17 victory over Arkansas last week.
He accumulated just 176 yards of total offense — almost 100 less than he had in victories over Florida and Bowling Green.
Still, A&M coach Mike Elko at his weekly press conference on Monday said his redshirt freshman quarterback continues to make strides forward.
“He’s still making progress every single week,” Elko said. “We put the film on, we still feel like we see positive strides forward every single week from him.”
Reed had a solid outing against the Razorbacks. He threw two touchdown passes, had zero interceptions and, of course, directed the Aggies to their third consecutive win with him starting in place of injured Conner Weigman.
He almost had an exceptional game. Reed could have had three touchdown passes, but he slightly overthrew Noah Thomas on a throw that likely would have resulted in a 75-yard touchdown.
Connecting on deep throws has been an issue for Reed.
He did hit Cyrus Allen for a 73-yard touchdown against Florida, but also missed Thomas on a post that could’ve been a 63-yard touchdown against Bowling Green.
“Things change in a game. You know, when you get pressured you’ve got somebody in your face you’ve got to move around and stuff like that, the ball’s not always going to be perfect,” Reed said. “I try my best to put it in a place where they can get the ball, but it’s something I have to work at for sure.”
Elko agreed there were various reasons for the inconsistency.
However, Elko also expressed confidence Reed will connect on deep throws with more regularity.
“Certainly, some throws he wishes he had back,” Elko said. “I still think we’re not getting to spacing the right way, so the timing of our route concepts isn’t exactly how we want it to be.
“Sometimes, it’s the offensive line forcing the throw a little bit quicker than we want to throw. It hits at every level.
“Do I think it will get better? Yes. I think we’ve seen it better. We’ve just got to get it to translate consistently onto the field the way he wants to.”
Change for a nickel
Senior BJ Mayes played cornerback at Alabama-Birmingham last year. He’d never before played nickelback.
When he was asked to shift to nickel, Mayes might have been apprehensive.
He might have been, but he wasn’t.
“My response was ‘I’m ready to play,’” Mayes said. “Y’all want to move me to nickel? Let me get the alignment assignment. It’s time to ball. Let’s go play.
“I feel like I’m a gamer. I’m a baller. I can play any position you put me at. Just tell me what to do and I’ll go execute.”
Mayes’ story would explain his confidence. Why worry about changing positions when you’ve changed programs?
Coming out of high school in Houston, Mayes signed with Incarnate Word University in San Antonio. He played two seasons there before transferring to UAB.
After two seasons in Birmingham, he enthusiastically jumped at the chance to move closer to home where his family could attend all his games.
“It was a blessing,” he said of his transfer to A&M. “I came from high school to an FCS school, transferred to a G-5 (Group of Five) school. Now I’m at the biggest stage in college football. It’s a great journey.”
Starting to emerge
Junior receiver Noah Thomas seems to be gaining traction after getting off to a slow start.
Thomas had just five catches for 40 yards in the first three games of the season.
However, in the last two games he’s had 11 catches for 187 yards.
Last week, he had six catches for a career-high 109 yards. That included a 58-yard touchdown.
Elko said the Aggies have been trying to figure ways to get the ball to Thomas more often, but couldn’t give a specific reason for his recent surge.
He suggested it’s just a good player getting results from hard work.
“I think he, to his credit, continues to just work,” Elko said. “He works really, really hard in practice. He’s one of our hardest workers on offense when we go out to the practice field. That’s really good to see.
“He’s continuing to get more and more comfortable in the system, running the routes at the depths that we want him to run. I think it’s paying off for him.”
Reed is certainly impressed with the 6-foot-6, 200-pound Thomas’ size and hands.
“These teams prepare really well for him, so it’s been hard to get the ball to him,” Reed said. “It’s been great these past two weeks trying to get it to him and get some yards. Finally, got a touchdown again this last game, which made me feel good, obviously.
“All these receivers are great. We have a lot of weapons. But, like I said, these teams prepare well for (jersey) number 3.”
NOTES
- Elko said whether Weigman plays on Saturday against Missouri again will be a gametime decision. “It’s just one of those things with the shoulder. He’ll be a gametime decision again this week. We’ll kind of see where it goes,” Elko said.
- Weekly awards from the win over Arkansas: Tackle Trey Zuhn III was named Offensive Lineman of the Week, defensive end Nic Scourton was named Defensive Lineman of the Week, running back Le’Veon Moss was Offensive Player of the Week, cornerback Dezz Ricks was Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in his first game as a starter, punter Tyler White was Special Teams Player of the Week. White was also named the SEC’s co-Special Teams Player of the Week.
- Safety Bryce Anderson did not start and was only involved in 17 snaps vs. Arkansas. Elko acknowledged Anderson was banged up, but indicated he’ll be available vs. Missouri.
