Game preview: Texas A&M's offense vs. Samford's defense
AggieYell.com begins its 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 breakdown of the Aggie offense against the Bulldogs defense
Where, when, weather and TV:
Where: Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
When: Saturday, Nov. 22, 11 a.m. central time
Weather: Overcast with a 50% chance of showers; high of 78
TV: SEC Network+ (Clay Matvick (play-by-play), Chase Daniel (analyst), and Marilyn Payne (sideline reporter))
Texas A&M offensive depth chart
QB: #10, Marcel Reed (6-1, 185, R-So.)
#16, Miles O’Neill (6-5, 220, R-Fr.)
#13, Brady Hart (6-4, 195, Fr.) OR #9, Jacob Zeno (6-2, 215, Gr.)
RB: #8, Le’Veon Moss (5-11, 210, Sr.)
#4, Rueben Owens II (5-11, 215, R-So.)
#5, Amari Daniels (5-8, 197, R-Sr.) OR #23, Jamarion Morrow (5-9, 205, Fr.) OR #22, EJ Smith (5-11, 211, Gr.)
WR: #7, KC Concepcion (5-11, 190, Jr.)
#18, TK Norman (6-0, 182, Fr.)
WR: #1, Mario Craver (5-9, 165, So.) OR #2, Terry Bussey (5-10, 195, So.)
#0, Izaiah Williams (5-11, 185, R-Fr.)
WR: #3, Ashton Bethel-Roman (6-0, 185, R-Fr.) OR #2, Terry Bussey (5-10, 195, So.)
#11, Kelshaun Johnson (5-11, 168, Fr.)
TE: #17, Theo Melin Öhrström (6-6, 257, R-Jr.) OR #87, Nate Boerkircher (6-4, 250, Gr.) OR #84, Amari Niblack (6-3, 235, Sr.)
#88, Micah Riley (6-5, 257, R-Jr.)
#21, Kiotti Armstrong (6-5, 275, Fr.)
LT: #60, Trey Zuhn III (6-6, 319, Gr.) OR #76, Reuben Fatheree (6-7, 333, Gr.)
#79, Lamont Rogers (6-6, 337, Fr.)
LG: #71, Chase Bisontis (6-5, 315, Jr.)
#73, Ashton Funk (6-6, 322, R-Fr.) OR #77, Tyler Thomas (6-4, 329, Fr.)
C: #54, Mark Nabou (6-3, 322, R-So.) OR #60, Trey Zuhn III (6-6, 319, Gr.)
#61, Koli Faaiu (6-3, 333, Sr.)
RG: #55, Ar’maj Reed-Adams (6-5, 325, Gr.)
#52, Blake Ivy (6-3, 336, R-Fr.)
RT: #78, Dametrious Crownover (6-7, 336, Gr.)
#70, Robert Bourdon (6-6, 318, R-Fr.)
Texas A&M offensive statistical leaders
Passing: Reed, 179-291 (61.5%), 2,632 yards, 22 TD, 8 INT
O’Neill, 4-7, 101 yards, 1 TD
Rushing: Owens, 99 carries, 581 yards (5.8 YPC), 5 TD
Reed, 76 carries, 391 yards (5.1 YPC), 6 TD
Moss, 70 carries, 389 yards (5.6 YPC), 6 TD
Receiving: Concepcion, 47 catches, 787 yards (16.8 YPC), 8 TD
Craver, 47 catches, 781 yards (16.6 YPC), 4 TD
Bethel-Roman, 16 catches, 381 yards (23.6 YPC), 3 TD
Samford defensive depth chart
DE: #44, Corey Warren (6-0, 257, Jr.)
#94, Joseph Shannon (6-2, 226, Jr.)
NOSE: #95, Maxton Woodward (6-2, 336, Sr.)
#99, Tyler Durant (6-3, 270, Fr.)
DE: #90, Conroy Cunningham II (6-3, 260., Gr.)
#35, Deuce Caldwell (6-0, 270, Sr.)
DOG: #88, Donovan Grayson (6-3, 240, So.)
#92, Kelton Crisp (6-2, 225, Fr.)
WILL: #30, Carson Sloan (6-2, 220, Fr.)
#48, Jacob Johnson (6-2, 230, So.)
MIKE: #5, Jaden Mosley (6-2, 230, Sr.)
#34, Malik Gaither (6-2, 230, Gr.)
STAR: #27, Gumbo Gaskins (6-1, 190, Jr.)
#14, Keshawn Washington (6-2, 200, Gr.)
CB: #1, Dee Newsome (6-3, 170, So.)
#21, Malik Thornton (6-0, 165, Sr.)
CB: #3, Nahil Perkins (6-0, 178, Gr.)
#16, Dylon Henderson (5-10, 175, Fr.)
SS: #17, Amari Wansley (6-0, 183, Sr.) OR #9, Lashon Young (5-11, 175, So.)
FS: #6, Jalen Nelson (6-1, 185, Jr.)
#8 Luke Wattenbarger (6-0, 195, Sr.)
Samford defensive statistical leaders
Tackles: Mosley, 97
Sloan, 71
Nelson, 41
Tackles for loss: Grayson, 10
Mosley, 9.5
Sloan, 5
Sacks: Grayson, 7
Woodward, 3
Mosley, 2.5
Interceptions: Young and Gaskins, 2
Four players with 1
Forced Fumbles: Five players with 1
Fumble recoveries: Three players with 1
Injury update
Texas A&M: RB Le’Veon Moss (ankle) is out.
Wide receiver Mario Craver (ankle) and OL Ar’maj Reed-Adams will likely be held out.
Samford: No reported injuries
Head to head: Texas A&M’s offense vs. Samford’s defense
| Category | Texas A&M | National/SEC rank | Category | Samford | National (FCS)/SoCon rank |
| Scoring offense | 37.1 PPG | 14th/4th | Scoring defense | 37 PPG | 115th/9th |
| Total offense | 465.1 YPG | 16th/4th | Total defense | 452.8 YPG | 117th/7th |
| Rushing offense | 190.8 YPG | 28th/3rd | Rushing defense | 165.4 YPG | 69th/5th |
| Passing offense | 273.3 YPG | 24th/4th | Passing defense | 287.5 YPG | 125th/8th |
| First downs | 231 | 26th/8th | First downs allowed | 230 | 85th/3rd |
| 3rd downs converted | 41.3% | 59th/10th | 3rd down defense | 35.7% | 31st/4th |
| Red zone offense | 86% | 60th/11th | Red zone defense | 85% | 87th/6th |
| Sacks allowed per game | 1 | 12th/1st | Sacks per game | 1.73 | 74th/7th |
| Tackles for loss allowed per game | 3 | 1st nationally | Tackles for loss per game | 5 | 79th/8th |
| Turnovers allowed | 12 | 54th/7th | Turnovers forced | 11 | 93rd/7th |
| Turnover +/- | -3 | 97th/14th | Turnover +/- | -16 | 125th/9th |
| Time of possesion | 31:21 | 17th/4th | Time of possession | 29:54 | 94th/6th |
What A&M wants to do
Be efficient, don’t turn the ball over and get the starts off the field as quickly as possible. The Bulldogs have given up 30 or more points in nine of their 11 games while A&M has scored at least 30 points in all but one game, so this matchup looks extremely one-sided.
Samford’s pass defense is abysmal — next to last in all of FCS. The quarterbacks for Austin Peay and East Tennesee State threw for 265 and 261 yards, respectively, in their last two outings. This could be a game where Marcel Reed gets a chance to work on the deep ball, likely with KC Concepcion, Ashton Bethel-Roman and Terry Bussey being the primary targets (with Mario Craver likely sitting this one out).
Samford’s rush defense is considerably better, but this is an opportunity for the linemen to work on their technique and possibly some new blocking schemes against live fire. Rueben Owens may get early carries and then get out of the game, so EJ Smith, Jamarion Morrow and Amari Daniels could go the rest of the way.
Coach Mike Elko said Monday that he wants the team to play up to their standard. Normally, A&M doesn’t bury teams they should crush, but South Carolina may have given a wakeup call that will last the rest of the season.
This game should be an effort to fine-tune the offense, get the ridiculous but still necessary style points and get the starters off the field. When one of the best offenses in FBS goes up against one of the worst defenses in FCS, you get an idea where things are probably going.
How Samford may try to counter
You know the odds are seriously stacked against you, so why not play aggressive and see if you can force some turnovers? Samford has done a pretty good job in that department, forcing 11, and A&M showed last weekend that, if they’re not ready to go, they can be turnover prone.
Samford’s linebackers are the strong points of their defense, with Mosley and Sloan leading the team in tackles and tackles for loss. It would not all be a surprise to see Samford blitz these two frequently, hoping to make a play, be it a tackle for loss, a sack, or a more serious mistake by the Aggies.
The Bulldogs definitely want to limit Marcel Reed’s ability to throw the ball down the field against the absolute worst secondaries in the sport. So, throw the kitchen sink at them: stunts, twists, blitzing linebackers, blitzing safeties, go all out. They’ve got to do something different, because what they have done has gotten them lit up by teams with significantly less firepower than Texas A&M has.
