Texas A&M is opening the 2025 season against the UTSA Roadrunners at Kyle Field this Saturday under the lights, with kickoff set for 6 PM central time. Though not quite the same level of opponent as last year's opener in Notre Dame, the Ags will still have to be on their toes for this opener.
The Roadrunners have a veritable who's-who of names on offense that A&M fans should be aware of heading into this game. First up is quarterback Owen McCown, who after some offseason silliness looks like he's primed for a huge year leading the Roadrunner offense.
Then, a name that fans will recognize: former LSU RB John Emery, Jr., will be in the backfield for the Roadrunners. An erstwhile five-star prospect, Emery was a decent player for the Tigers before transferring out of Brian Kelly's program, and he has now found himself in San Antonio late in his career.
Deadly UTSA offense should give Aggie fans pause headed into opening game
Those two, along with some senior receivers and tight ends, should be names that Aggie fans keep in mind headed into this game. It's the strength of this UTSA offense, after all, that has given rise to the strange proliferation of predictions that the Roadrunners will be victorious in this game.
On defense, too, there's a couple of names that diehard Aggie fans will know: Johnny Bowens III, a defensive lineman and former Aggie commitment, is in San Antonio after starting his career at Oregon. Bowens didn't play in Eugene very much, registering only one career tackle so far, and is still listed as a freshman.
Then, the Roadrunners boast Shadrach Banks and Kendrick Blackshire at linebacker: the former is a one-time Aggie enrollee, and the latter spent some time at Alabama after a five-star designation in high school. Banks was only part of the Aggie program for a few months, coming in as a receiver prospect, but following a quick weight gain and transfer to TCU, he began playing linebacker.
All this to say that there is some legitimate talent on this UTSA team that the Aggies need to be aware of. They'll have a better chance against the Roadrunners defense, given that all 11 starters will be new, but this is a team that many have predicted to win their conference— so you can't sleepwalk through this game.
I still think A&M will win, but this is a disciplined and experienced offense for the Roadrunners. If they move the ball on offense, it's not necessarily a huge indictment on the Aggie defense. Combine that with the fact that this is a coach for the Roadrunners who is highly motivated— a guy who wanted the A&M job when it was open, but was passed over for Elko— and this will be a fired-up squad.