It certainly wasn’t pretty, but Texas A&M football entered SEC play with a 26-20 win over Bowling Green Saturday night at Kyle Field.
Here are five takeaways from the matchup:
The Aggies have plenty to clean up as conference play begins
Saturday’s game was largely looked upon as a tuneup game for A&M ahead of the start of the bulk of conference play. Bowling Green had other plans, though, as the Falcons forced the Aggies to battle until the end. A&M learned it’s far from a complete team, and those mistakes will need to be remediated soon ahead of next week’s matchup with Arkansas.
“Offensively, it was just so choppy at times,” Elko said. “We didn’t finish drives in the red zone. ... You put three touchdowns in there, you put two touchdowns in there, it kind of changes the makeup of the game, but we couldn’t finish drives.”
The Aggies were never able to establish their will over the Falcons and looked caught off guard by Bowling Green’s 65-yard touchdown to open the second half. It was a three-point game at the start of the fourth quarter, and the Falcons were an onside kick away from pulling out a miracle victory.
“Proud of our guys for making enough plays to win the game,” coach Mike Elko said. “When you get into those moments and those situations and it feels like it’s spiraling out of control, you see a lot of teams not find ways to win that football game. Credit to our guys that we found a way to win it. Other than that, just so many things to fix and clean up. We’ve got to get back to work Monday.”
Bowling Green is a very good team that gave Penn State fits a couple weeks ago, and it showed why against the Aggies.
A&M’s defense needs to show up in the second half
Following the likes of Notre Dame, McNeese State and Florida, Bowling Green’s offense was at its most productive in the second half. A&M has allowed at least 10 points in the final 30 minutes of each game this season, with the Falcons striking for 14 points in the third quarter alone.
“I think some guys got loose,” Purdue transfer defensive end Nic Scourton said. “I think we’ve got to stay focused and come out with more intensity in the second half, because that’s when it’s important.”
After picking up 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 ate up 237 yards, but sophomore kicker Jackson Kleather’s missed 28-yard field goal attempt seemed to flip the momentum in the Aggies’ favor.
“We held them under 100 yards rushing,” Elko said. “I thought we pressured the quarterback again. I thought we were good on third down again. We’ve got to find ways to cover people better.”
A worn-down A&M defense surrendered two long touchdown runs in the second half of a season-opening loss to Notre Dame. Against Florida, the Aggies allowed three second-half touchdowns. That can’t happen if A&M finds itself in an SEC rock fight later this season.
“If you ever relax in this game, this game will find a way to humble you instantly,” Elko said. “That is across the board. You can look at college, NFL, good teams, bad, like, across the board. If you ever think you’ve got this game, you don’t. That’s human nature sometimes.”
Marcel Reed reminded us that he’s still a freshman
With redshirt sophomore quarterback Conner Weigman still working his way back from an AC sprain in his throwing shoulder, redshirt freshman QB Marcel Reed was again called upon to lead the Aggies’ offense. His numbers resembled those of last week’s start against Florida, with 173 passing yards for two touchdowns and 91 yards on the ground versus the Falcons.
“I thought he made some plays with his feet, he kept some drives going,” Elko said. “I thought he made some good throws. ... There were just times through the middle of the game where we just didn’t operate the way we needed to. Some of that was on Marcel, some of that was on other people. We’ve just got to find ways to get him a little bit more comfortable operating on some of the stuff we were doing tonight.”
Yet, Reed still showed the signs of a player experiencing his first few games of significant action. He overthrew a number of receivers and spent a bit too much time in the pocket. However, he received nice protection from his offensive line, which continues to impress.
Randy Bond is proving to be an asset at kicker
Never underestimate the luxury that a reliable kicker provides. Graduate K Randy Bond is turning into that type of player, as his four field goals Saturday may have been the difference between a win and a loss for A&M. The Plano product connected on boots of 28, 29, 34 and 42 yards, improving his mark to 9-of-11 through four games.
“I thought that was critical,” Elko said. “He went out, he made the ones that he needed to make. It was really good for him to go out in the fourth quarter and make the big one. Obviously, in the fourth quarter, we had a couple of chances last week to kind of put the game a little bit further in line, and then that’s where it didn’t go right. It was good to see him bounce back the way he did. I thought he was a big part of the game tonight.”
The Aggies will surely find themselves locked in close matchups through conference action, and Bond’s consistency will be a weapon in such games. Between Bond and redshirt freshman punter Tyler White of Southlake, A&M may boast one of the best sets of legs in the nation if the duo can keep it up.
“We just got to play better and finish,” Kansas transfer right guard Ar’Maj Reed-Adams said. “We talk about this every week. Since fall camp, we talked about finishing in the red zone, being better on third down. So we just got to take our opportunities and do the most with them.”
The Aggies are waiting on a receiver to stand out above the rest
Who would have thought sophomore tight end Theo Melin Ohrstrom would be leading the Aggies in touchdown passes through the first four games of the season. Yet, here we are, after the Swede’s 27-yard touchdown reception on A&M’s opening drive. Senior wide receiver Jahdae Walker got in on the action with a 5-yard score in the third quarter.
The Aggies boast a bevy of talent in the receivers room, although one has yet to make their mark as the go-to guy. Junior WR Noah Thomas had a team-high five catches 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 had no catches against Bowling Green.
There’s nothing wrong having with a committee of strong receivers, but A&M is still looking for the one that it can turn to with the game on the line.
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