Game preview: Samford's offense vs. Texas A&M's defense
AggieYell.com continues is look at the matchup between No. 3 Texas A&M (10-0, 7-0 SEC) and Samford (1-10, 1-7 Southern Conference) with a look at the Bulldogs offense against the Aggie defense.
Samford offensive depth chart
QB: #12, Charlie Gilliam (6-3, 200, So.) OR #2, Quincy Crittendon (5-11, 200, Sr.) OR #15, Brady Strober (6, 185, Fr.)
RB : #0, C.J. Evans (5-10, 180, Sr.)
#22, Ken Cherry (5-11, 202, So.)
WR (Z): #13, Calvin Jones (5-10, 185, Sr.)
#25, Jadon Loving (5-10, 160, Fr.)
WR (Y): #4, Preston Bird (5-10, 170, So.)
#85, Nick Bookman (5-9, 160, Fr.)
WR (H): #33, Teddy Davenport (5-10, 175, Sr.)
#37, Jack Schwing (5-10, 175, Sr.)
WR (X): #84, Sam Pickett III (6, 180, Fr.)
#86, Nick Crayton (6-3, 215, Fr.)
TE : #31, Maddox McKim (6-4, 225, Fr.)
#39, Ryan Skinner (6-1, 208, Fr.)
TE: #49, Vance Nicklaus (6-5, 240, Sr.)
#45, Cannon Pigg (6-4, 235, Fr.)
LT: #65, Kaleb May (6-4, 270, So.)
#76, Michael Snow (6-5, 295, Fr.)
LG: #74, Tyler Douthit (6-4, 280, So.)
#52, Wesley Graham (6-3, 300, Fr.)
C: #58, Wil Turner IV (6-3, 295, Fr.)
#72, Josh Lovett (6-3, 295, Fr.)
RG: #78, Duncan Johnson (6-5, 275, So.)
#77, Kaleb Pearley (6-5, 304, So.)
RT: #57, Web Davidson (6-6, 310, Fr.)
#70, Crosby Mullins (6-3, 305, Jr.)
#73, Justin Perritt (6-2, 300, Jr.)
Samford offensive statistical leaders
Passing: Crittendon, 168-241 (69.7%), 1,625 yards, 6 TD, 6 INT
Stober, 122-195 (62.6%), 1,240 yards, 7 TD, 7 INT
Gilliam, 25-41 (61%), 258 yards, 5 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Evans, 81 carries, 233 yards (2.9 YPC), 2 TD
Cherry, 56 carries, 188 yards (3.4 YPC), 1 TD
Bland, 36 carries, 142 yards (3.9 YPC), 1 TD
Receiving: Jones, 59 catches, 652 yards (11.1 YPC), 6 TD
Bird, 52 catches, 590 yards (11.4 YPC), 4 TD
Pickett, 32 catches, 456 yards (14.3 YPC), 3 TD
Texas A&M defensive depth chart
DE: #50, Dayon Hayes (6-3, 264, Gr.) OR #18, TJ Searcy (6-5, 255, Jr.)
#30 Solomon Williams (6-1, 250, RS-Fr.) OR #92 Sam M’Pemba (6-3, 252, RS-So.)
DT: #5, DJ Hicks (6-3, 295, Jr.) OR #11, Tyler Onyedim (6-3, 295, Gr.) OR #17, Albert Regis (6-1, 317, Gr.)
#55, Dealyn Evans (6-4, 314, RS-Fr.) OR #99, Landon Rink (6-2, 294, Fr.)
NT: #17, Albert Regis (6-1, 317, Gr.) OR #5, DJ Hicks (6-3, 295, Jr.) OR #11, Tyler Onyedim (6-3, 295, Gr.)
#88, DJ Sanders (6-3, 315, Fr.) OR #99, Landon Rink (6-2, 294, Fr.)
DT: #11, Tyler Onyedim (6-3, 295, Gr.) OR #17 Albert Regis (6-1, 317, Gr.) OR #5, DJ Hicks (6-3, 295, Jr.)
#59, Chace Sims (6-3, 294, Fr.) OR #99 Landon Rink, (6-2, 294, Fr.)
JACK: #9, Cashius Howell (6-2, 248, R-Sr.)
#15, Rylan Kennedy (6-3, 239, RS-So.) OR #10, Marco Jones (6-5, 258, Fr.) OR #92, Sam M’Pemba (6-3, 252, RS-So.)
LB: #21, Taurean York (5-10, 227, Jr.)
#54, Jordan Lockhart (6-1, 229, So.) OR #27 Daymion Sanford (6-2, 222, Jr.)
LB: #0, Scooby Williams (6-2, 230, Sr.)
#27, Daymion Sanford (6-2, 222, Jr.) OR #23, Noah Mikhail (6-2, 223, Fr.)
NICKEL: #7 Tyreek Chappell (5-11, 180, RS-Sr.)
#19, Bravion Rogers (5-11, 188, Jr.) OR #8, Jordan Shaw (5-11, 182, RS-So.) OR #14, Jayvon Thomas (5-11, 196, Jr.)
CB: #4, Will Lee III (6-1, 189, Sr.)
#6, Julio Humphrey (6-1, 195, R-Jr.)
#14, Jayvon Thomas (5-11, 196, Jr.)
CB: #2, Dezz Ricks (6-1, 188, R-So.)
#6, Julio Humphrey (6-1, 195, R-Jr.)
Texas A&M defensive statistical leaders
Tackles: York, 55
Ratcliffe, 53
Sanford, 45
Tackles for loss: Howell, 12.5
Sanford, 8.5
Hicks, 6
Sacks: Howell, 11.5
Hayes, 4.5
Sanford, 3.5
Interceptions: Scooby Williams, Sanford and Brooks, 1
Forced fumbles: Sanford, 2
Seven players with 1
Fumble recoveries: Brooks, 2
Four players with 1
Injury update
Samford:
No reported injuries
Texas A&M:
Safeties Bryce Anderson and Tom Tom Johnson are out.
LB Scooby Williams (ankle) is questionable.
Head to head: Samford’s offense vs. Texas A&M’s defense
| Category | Samford | National (FCS)/SoCon rank | Category | Texas A&M | National/SEC rank |
| Scoring offense | 15.9 PPG | 116th/9th | Scoring defense | 23.6 PPG | 62nd/12th |
| Total offense | 359.8 YPG | 66th/5th | Total defense | 324.4 YPG | 31st/7th |
| Rushing offense | 72.6 YPG | 126th/9th | Rushing defense | 127.6 YPG | 38th/6th |
| Passing offense | 287.2 YPG | 9th/3rd | Passing defense | 196.8 YPG | 38th/5th |
| First downs | 217 | 50th/5th | First downs allowed | 171 | 21st/4th |
| 3rd down conversion percentage | 33.7% | 99th/7th | 3rd down conversion defense | 24.4% | 1st nationally |
| Red zone offense | 71.4% | 113th/9th | Red zone defense | 96.6% | 132nd/16th |
| Sacks allowed per game | 4.64 | 126th/9th | Team sacks per game | 3.8 | 1st nationally |
| Tackles for loss allowed per game | 8.9 | 125th/9th | Team tackles for loss per game | 8.3 | 3rd/2nd |
| Turnovers | 27 | 125th/9th | Turnovers forced | 9 | 106th/13th |
| Turnover +/- | -16 | 125th/9th | Turnover +/- | -3 | 97th/14th |
| Time of possession | 29:54 | 94th/6th | Time of possession | 32:21 | 17th/4th |
What Samford wants to do
Just try to get some positive plays, move the ball down the field and limit mistakes. And keep their quarterbacks upright.
Samford’s offense is very one-dimensional, with a lot of quick, short passes thrown. In spite of that, the Bulldogs have still given up 51 sacks, the most in FCS. And they’re going up against the team who averages the most sacks per game in the FBS. That sounds like a recipe for utter disaster, but Samford’s going to have to throw the ball to be effective. Their running game, like their pass blocking, is the worst in the FCS.
Crittendon is the starter, but they could use multiple quarterbacks against the Aggies. Samford likes to run an up-tempo, spread offense with four wide receivers, but they do have tight ends they use, more as blockers than receivers (including Jack Nicklaus’s grandson, Vance). With the ferocity of A&M’s pass rush, they may need to keep a tight end on the field at all times to pass block.
Samford throws a lot and dinks and dunks their way down the field, but they get yards and not points. in spite of A&M’s pass rush, they may have to push the ball down the field more than they have at any point this season. This is an extremely difficult task for them.
How A&M may want to counter
Attack. Blitz heavily. Your corners and nickel are going to be able to handle their receivers in man coverage, and Samford is significantly undersized up front, with the exception of right tackle, and their interior linemen will especially be giving up size and strength to A&M’s defensive ends. Cashius Howell should have a massive advantage against whoever he’s lined up against, and when you add in blitzers, it’s going to force Samford’s quarterback to make extremely quick decisions.
This could be a very busy afternoon for the linebackers, as they’ll be used near the line of scrimmage to stop the quick passes and screens Samford relies on. If A&M doesn’t help out with missed tackles in space, it’s hard to fathom any Samford receiver breaking off a big play. Pickett seems to be the receiver most likely to charge downfield, but Tyreek Chappell will likely have him.
Look for the safeties, Brooks and Ratcliffe, move around a lot, from deep in the secondary to near the line of scrimmage. They could help against the run, but more likely would be used to get after the passer. They did that a lot against South Carolina last weekend, with Ratcliffe sprinting up late to blitz (to little effect), while Brooks stood in his now familiar spot off the left should of the left tackle (and got a sack). Moving them around will add additional confusion to an offense that will likely be overmatched.
The Aggies need to cover well in pass defense and take full advantage of Samford’s struggles protecting the quarterback. If they do that, the Bulldogs could be in for a very long day.
