Texas A&M football: Position battles to watch in spring practices

Center & right guard

Right now I’m working with the assumption Jared Hocker will continue to start at left guard as he did last season. There is little to suggest he won’t keep his starting job save for injury. Also, Dan Moore and Carson Green should be the starting tackles in the spring. The main threat to their jobs is true freshman Kenyon Green who won’t be arriving to campus until this summer.

Erik McCoy is another major loss from the Aggies starting offense. He entered his name in the 2019 NFL Draft and had a brilliant NFL Combine. He could be the first Aggie off the board come April. Keaton Sutherland was a solid starter as a senior, but he’s not irreplaceable. Several talented recruits are available to replace him at the right guard spot.

But who will that be? Ryan McCollum has starting experience at center and seems the most likely candidate to replace McCoy, but does he offer as much upside? Luke Matthews is an Aggie legacy, son to NFL Hall of Famer Bruce and brother to fellow Aggies Jake and Mike, both of whom currently play in the NFL. Tank Jenkins and Grayson Reed were each 4-star recruits as well and are brawlers who could play inside.

I expect McCollum to line up with the starters at first, but wouldn’t be surprised if some combination of Matthews, Tank and Reed end up starting Week 1.