10 Things for Tuesday
Here’s this week’s edition of 10 Things for Tuesday:
1. There was a lot of discussion about the progression of Marcel Reed as a quarterback at SEC Media Days, and there’s reason to believe what his teammates (and coach Mike Elko) were saying about him. I can think of two things that would lead in this direction: familiarity and reps.
For one thing, Reed is the unquestioned QB1 this year. There’s no Conner Weigman to compete with. Jacob Zeno has a defined role as the backup. Miles O’Neill is still developing. This is his offense, and he’s now into a second year operating it. Starters get more reps, and the offensive scheme will be tinkered with to play to his strengths. Reed played pretty well down the stretch last year, so there’s certainly something to build off of as 2025 approaches.
2. Ar’maj Reed-Adams was one of the Aggies at SEC Media Days last week, and he didn’t shy away from high expectations for the offensive line. He said the Joe Moore Award, which goes to the best offensive line in the nation, is real possibility for the 2025 Aggies. If he’s right, A&M’s going to be really good this year. The last Aggie offensive line to be nominated for the award was in 2020, and we know what happened that year.
3. Reed-Adams took some flak from the people in Austin because he didn’t just roll up into a quivering ball of Jello at the mention of the names Colin Simmons and Anthony Hill. He said, in essence, that the offensive line wasn’t worrying about any one player — common speak for any offensive lineman. But that caused a great uproar among the Texas delegation. Which is, of course, ridiculous.
4. If there’s a team this A&M bunch doesn’t like (beyond Texas and LSU), it’s probably Auburn. All three players at Media Days mentioned how they are still steamed over losing that game in four overtimes last year. It would not be a stretch to say that game is being looked at as a chance for revenge.
5. That Scooby Williams racked up 43 tackles, 8 tackles for loss and an interception last year is impressive in and of itself. But when you add in the fact that he tore the meniscus in one of his knees five plays into the season and still racked up those numbers in 11 games is even more impressive. A healthy Williams next to Taurean York could be the best linebacker pairing the Aggies have had in a while.
6. I’ve said this before but I’ll say it again because I believe it: this is a more Collin Klein-ish offense than the one A&M had last year. You’ve got the same personnel up front and in the backfield (with the addition of Rueben Owens), but the tight end and wide receiver groups are almost totally different. They may not be as tall at receiver, but they’re much faster. And Klein wants guys who can get open quickly over the middle and can get separation deep.
7. The Aggie roster for this season is up and A&M has exactly 85 scholarship players, as expected. One of the more interesting ones is wideout Jerome Myles, who was the only true freshman not on campus this spring. He is wearing #80 and is listed at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds.
Keep in mind that Myles is also the state record holder for the fastest 100-meter dash with a time of 10.36 seconds — and he broke a record that had stood since 1981. It’s pretty easy to see why he’s one of the players people are most interested in seeing this fall.
8. When asked which of their teammates are being overlooked heading into the season, York, Will Lee and Reed-Adams mentioned Cashius Howell, Dayon Hayes and Dalton Brooks as three players to watch. If those three meet their teammates’ expectations, the Aggie defense will be really good.
9. On Thursday, the Aggie basketball team will have a practice that will be opened to the media. Coach Bucky McMillan will also talk to the media. If that sounds unusual, it’s because it is. It’s the first open practice I can recall A&M ever having, dating as far back as Mark Turgeon.
10. Former coach Jimbo Fisher has a new job on the ACC Network. I’ve said for a while that I think he would be a good analyst, because he picks up on things quickly when he’s watching, he’s got a lot of historical knowledge and, goodness knows, he can fill airtime.
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An Austin native, Brent lives in Round Rock where he and his wife have raised four boys. Brent works for Don Quick and Associates, Inc. in Round Rock, TX and can be reached at [email protected].
