Three takeaways from Texas A&M's game against Utah State: Elko's method to tune up games and more
Texas A&M notched another dominant win this week as the Aggies took down Utah State. Though some fans can quibble or have qualms with the way certain things went, A&M did what they needed to.
In fact, as part of the takeaways from this game, I think we have something that may address those qualms. Of course, people will believe what they want to believe, but we learned something about this Aggie program that will help calibrate these discussions going forward.
Let's jump in and talk takeaways.
Mike Elko treats tune up games as true tune ups
We have enough data by this point to understand that Mike Elko approaches tune up games in a different way than ceratin other coaches. While you may see Lane Kiffin, Sam Pittman, Steve Sarkisian, and others attempt to run up the score as much as possible against overmatched opponents, Mike Elko has approached these games in a different way.
Elko has shown that he has no qualms about treating these games as the warm-ups that they really are. Style points matter less than ever against these squads, so he's used it to test out different personnel and offensive concepts more than usual.
If you don't believe me, just go back to the game tape and watch how often he was rotating players in that game. Not just in the positions where you might expect, like defensive line, but along the offensive front and in defensive backfield.
The man is trying stuff out— and it's a legitimate strategy. Fans may not be the happiest with this, as they would rather see blowouts (especially when other teams are doing so), but it's better for the team. Expect things to look far different on that front against Notre Dame and others going forward.
Marcel Reed still has room for growth
Reed ended the day with a really solid stat line, but there were still a few plays that were questionable for the Aggie starting quarterback. He missed KC Concepcion again open way downfield after pulling the ball down and running for a short gain, and there were a few throws where he missed open receivers high.
That said, for most of the day, he was keyed in on his receivers. He delivered several great balls, including a beautiful throw to Terry Bussey that was right on target as he headed into the end zone.
His usage of his legs was on point for a lot of the game as well. Aside from missing Concepcion downfield, he did a good job of picking up yards on the ground when the situation called for it. it didn't feel as though he was bailing too early at any point.
There's still things to work on here, but I'm quite interested to see how he'll do against the Fighting Irish next week. He brings an element with his legs that any DC would hate to deal with, and after all the speculation last year about whether or not he would have won the game rather than Conner, it's high time he gets to prove himself.
Cashius Howell's game-wrecker potential is real
Cashius Howell achieved something against Utah State that no player at any level has done in ten years. He sacked a quarterback on three straight plays, igniting Kyle Field with a massive run of pass-rush explosion.
Plenty of teams have played plenty of cupcakes in those ten years, but none of them have done this— not Myles Garrett, not Will Anderson, not anyone. You can't use the opponent to denigrate this achievement, in other words.
That in mind, Howell could be en route to his full breakout. We've been waiting to see if he can live up to the promised potential, but have not yet been sure— now, his time may be here.
He'll get a chance to show his stuff against Notre Dame next week. CJ Carr was under constant pressure against Miami, so if the A&M defensive line can replicate that, it could be a great week for Aggie fans everywhere.