It certainly wasn’t pretty, but the Texas A&M football team started SEC play with a 26-20 win over Bowling Green on Saturday night at Kyle Field.
Here are five insights from the duel:
The Aggies have a lot of cleanup to do at the start of conference games
Saturday’s game was viewed primarily as a warm-up game for A&M before the bulk of its conference play begins. However, Bowling Green had other plans, as the Falcons forced the Aggies to fight to the end. A&M has learned that it is far from a complete team, and those mistakes will need to be corrected soon before its game against Arkansas next week.
The Aggies never had a chance against the Falcons and seemed surprised by Bowling Green’s 65-yard touchdown early in the second half. The score was still three points early in the fourth quarter and the Falcons were just one onside kick away from a miracle win.
“I’m proud of our guys for making enough plays to win the game,” coach Mike Elko said. “When you get into those moments and situations and you feel like everything is getting out of control, you see that a lot of teams can’t find a way to win this football game. Our guys found a way to win it, and you have to give them credit for that. Other than that, there are so many things to fix and clean up. We have to get back to work on Monday.”
Bowling Green is a very good team that gave Penn State problems a few weeks ago, and against the Aggies they showed why.
A&M’s defense must step up in the second half
Following teams like Notre Dame, McNeese State and Florida, Bowling Green’s offense has been most productive in the second half. A&M has allowed at least 10 points in the final 30 minutes of every game this season, with the Falcons scoring 14 points in the third quarter alone.
After gaining 50 passing yards and 102 total yards in the first half, Bowling Green found its rhythm after the break. The Falcons found the end zone twice and managed 237 yards, but sophomore kicker Jackson Kleather’s missed 28-yard field goal attempt seemed to turn the momentum in the Aggies’ favor.
A depleted A&M defense allowed two long touchdown runs in the second half of its season-opening loss to Notre Dame. Against Florida, the Aggies allowed three touchdowns in the second half. That can’t happen if A&M gets involved in an SEC battle later this season.
Marcel Reed reminded us that he is still a newbie
With redshirt sophomore quarterback Conner Weigman still recovering from an AC sprain in his throwing shoulder, redshirt freshman quarterback Marcel Reed was again called upon to lead the Aggies’ offense. His numbers were similar to last week’s start against Florida, with 173 passing yards for two touchdowns and 91 yards on the ground against the Falcons.
“I thought he made some plays with his feet, he kept some drives going,” Elko said. “I thought he made some good shots. … There were just moments in the middle of the game where we just didn’t execute like we should have. That was partly Marcel’s fault, partly other guys’ fault. We just have to find ways to make him a little more comfortable with some of the things we did tonight.”
Still, Reed showed the signs of a player who is getting into his first few games with a lot of play. He threw to several receivers and spent a little too much time in the pocket. However, he received good protection from his offensive line, which continues to impress.
Randy Bond proves to be an asset to the Kicker
Never underestimate the luxury of having a reliable kicker. Graduate K Randy Bond is developing into that type of player, and his four field goals on Saturday may have been the difference between victory and defeat for A&M. The Plano product completed passes of 28, 29, 34 and 42 yards, improving his record to 9 of 11 through four games.
“Offensively, it was so uneven at times,” Elko said. “We couldn’t finish the drives in the red zone. … You get three touchdowns, you get two touchdowns, that kind of changes the game, but we couldn’t finish the drives.”
The Aggies will certainly find themselves in close matchups throughout the conference, and Bond’s consistency will be a weapon in such games. With Bond and Southlake’s redshirt freshman punter Tyler White, A&M could have one of the best teams in the nation if the duo can keep this up.
The Aggies are waiting for a receiver who stands out from the others
Who would have thought that sophomore tight end Theo Melin Ohrstrom would lead the Aggies in touchdown passes through the first four games of the season? And yet he has, after the Swede’s 27-yard touchdown pass on A&M’s opening drive. Senior wide receiver Jahdae Walker got in on the act with a 5-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
The Aggies have a lot of talent in the receiver room, although one has yet to emerge as the go-to guy. Junior WR Noah Thomas had the most catches on the team with five for 38 yards, but Walker led the team with 45 yards on three catches. Louisiana Tech WR Cyrus Allen impressed with 153 yards between McNeese State and Florida, but didn’t have a single catch against Bowling Green.
There’s nothing wrong with having a selection of strong receivers, but A&M is still looking for that one receiver it can fall back on when the game is on the line.
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