Texas A&M Football: 3 takeaways from Week 1 vs. Sam Houston State

2 of 3

Sep 4, 2021; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies offensive lineman Bryce Foster (61) during the first half against the Kent State Golden Flashes at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-USA TODAY Sports /

The offensive line needs to improve

This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who watched the game: the o-line struggled all game against Sam Houston, who, while decently talented (outstanding for their division), should not have been as much of an issue as they were. I predicted in my pregame article that the Aggies would exceed 200 rushing yards; they didn’t come close to that mark, ending the day with only 110 yards on 32 attempts, most of that coming in the second half.

Devon Achane was contained to only 42 yards, and much of his and the team’s struggles fell on the OL’s inability to pick up the constant stunts and twists the Sam Houston front was throwing at them. All too often a defender would be in the backfield unblocked, blowing up the whole play before it got a chance to get off the ground. The OL has to be better than that for this team to play near it’s ceiling.

Luckily, the line has yet to reach it’s final form. Layden Robinson was struggling with a nagging injury and Bryce Foster didn’t play as he continues to recover from mono. Lots of the communication issues that occurred with the line fall on the center position, as he is the one making protection calls at the line; so, the thought goes, that once Bryce returns, those issues will be shored up. Hopefully, once the line is back at full strength, we see much better push and protection up front.