Texas A&M Football fans will primarily be focused on their first-year quarterback in Haynes King leading up to the first game of the season on Saturday. Rightfully so too, as King was recently announced as the team’s starter after a long offseason wait.
But while King is receiving a bulk of the late offseason attention, there is a player on the Texas A&M Football team who may have the best game one of any Aggie. Heck, he might even have the best season of anybody on the team.
That player is Isaiah Spiller, who is set for an explosive performance against the Kent State Golden Flashes.
Texas A&M Football RB Isaiah Spiller could be set up for a legendary week one performance
Before we dive into Haynes King’s first performance, it’s important to look into the Aggies’ first opponent in Kent State. On the surface, this Golden Flashes team could actually be somewhat threatening. Kent State led the country last season in yards per play, total offense, scoring offense, and a handful of other statistics. I’m not saying that as an exaggeration, either. They’re number one on most offensive lists.
Why weren’t they among the best teams in the country then? Defense.
Their defense wasn’t as bad as their offense was good (if that makes sense), but it was a year to forget for the Golden Flashes on that side of the ball. In just four games against subpar opponents, Kent State allowed 424 yards per game, which was 80th in the country, and 21 touchdowns.
If you take a closer look, however, their passing defense was actually good. Like, really good.
The Golden Flashes finished with the 8th-ranked passing efficiency on the defensive side of the ball, only allowing two touchdowns through the air to three interceptions. In four games, somehow they stifled opponents to just 648 yards. What does this mean?
Primarily, it means that their rushing defense is absolutely terrible. Specifically, they ranked 123rd in the country (255 YPG) in rushing defense in the country, a number that will make you ask “wait, how many teams are there in college football?”
The answer is 127, which means that Kent State was, quite literally, one of the worst rushing defenses in college football. This could see slight improvements in the upcoming season but the safe bet here is to say that Isaiah Spiller will be running all over the Golden Flashes. Projected first-round draft pick vs. one of the worst rushing defenses in the country? I’ll take the former any day of the week.
The Texas A&M Football team was already destined to run the football at an abnormally high rate with four new offensive linemen and a new quarterback, so that workload will only continue to go up. This will also open the door for a strong, confidence-building game from Haynes King.
In short, expect Isaiah Spiller to have a huge performance and even put himself on the Heisman map early in the year.