Instant reaction: Reed saves Texas A&M football's bacon, Elko sends Nuss to the gulag

Texas A&M football took firm control of the SEC tonight thanks to a huge QB decision and some vintage Elko second-half adjustments.
Oct 26, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies running back Le'Veon Moss (8) runs the ball into the end zone for a touchdown during the first quarter against the LSU Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images.
Oct 26, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies running back Le'Veon Moss (8) runs the ball into the end zone for a touchdown during the first quarter against the LSU Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images. / Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images
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Texas A&M football rebounds from listless first half to spike LSU's head off of the Kyle Field turf, take control of the SEC

Early in the second half, Texas A&M football was in a bad way. Much like the ignominious first game against Notre Dame, the pass game with Conner Weigman was spinning its wheels—though the run game was showing some promise, it wasn't quite consistent enough to put a drive together.

There were fits and starts, of course—the Aggies looked good on the one touchdown drive they had, but receiver drops and some inaccurate passing from Weigman on the rest of A&M's drives had given LSU the upper hand.

But the Aggies needed a big spark—and they got it. A BJ Mayes interception—the first of two, as it would turn out— gave the Aggies the ball in plus territory. It was at that moment that Mike Elko made a huge call.

Instead of the struggling Weigman, it was Marcel Reed who trotted out with the offense, facing a 10-point deficit. Only a few plays later, the Aggies were in the end zone.

Then, it was another Mayes interception... and another Reed score.

Marcel would lead five scoring drives on the next five possessions—buoyed by a resurgent defense that turned over the Tigers three times in the second half, the Aggie offense ran the veer to perfection against a suddenly-hapless LSU defense.

All of this resulted in the Aggies putting up 31 points in the second half—and, poetically, the final margin was exactly the same as it in Brian Kelly's first visit to Kyle Field two years ago.

It's hard to know where to start with this one. That was an absolutely masterful call by Elko to make that QB switch in a huge moment. There were some absolutely dynamite second-half adjustments by the Aggie head man on defense.

How about this: the Aggies are now 5-0 in the SEC for the very first time, and they stand alone atop the conference. There will be so much more to break down from this game over the course of this week, including some questions about the QB position, but that's a heck of a win, and a heck of a position for the Aggies to be in.

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