Texas A&M Football: Has Devon Achane emerged as team’s best RB?

For the Texas A&M football team, the dynamic of the 2021 season shifted drastically after a loss to Ole Miss just over a week ago. A&M went from competing for a longshot College Football Playoff spot to a team that would continue to build for the future.

And while building for the future doesn’t seem nearly as exciting and competing for a National Championship, there are two important factors to remember if you’re an Aggie fan.

1. Jimbo Fisher is still here for nearly a decade.
2. The Texas A&M football team has more than a handful of talented young players — the future is bright in College Station.

Is Devon Achane emerging as the next great runningback for the Texas A&M football team?

In letting go of the concept of finishing with the perfect season, Aggie fans can sit back and enjoy each game more than they did earlier in the year. Instead of fearing a loss in every single contest, Texas A&M fans will likely find it easier to see the positives in each contest.

And one of the primary positives for this Jimbo Fisher-led team has been the running game.

Had I told you that the Aggies’ running game had made a late-season resurgence, accumulating 194.7 yards per contest through this point in the season, you’d likely assume that Isaiah Spiller has been carrying the load. And to an extent, he has been.

Spiller has rushed for nearly 1,000 yards this season (984) and has reached the endzone six times. Somehow, however, a player with a stat line like that with a game still remaining in the year has been overshadowed by a younger back.

While Spiller is still getting the bulk of the carries, Devon Achane is having one of the most efficient seasons we’ve ever seen out of a TAMU runningback. Achane has rushed the ball just 118 times this year. On those 118 rushes, the Aggies’ second option has accumulated 861 rushing yards and has managed to reach the endzone on nine occasions. His yards per carry number ranks him at third in the nation.

If you include his return and receiving numbers, Achane has 11 touchdowns on the year. If you’re looking for an offensive MVP in 2021, why shouldn’t it be Achane?

The best part of this scenario is that Devon Achane could still be here for two more seasons. He’ll definitely return to College Station next year, but if Jimbo Fisher can keep him around for all four years, Achane could put up some record-breaking numbers.

It may be hard to see the vision, but Texas A&M will be a force to be reckoned with in the coming years — Achane is a big part of that.