March 16, 2002
Texas A&M Head Football Coach R.C. Slocum will put the Aggie football team through the first of 15 scheduled spring drills on Monday, March 18.
"We are anxious to get started," Slocum said. "Spring is a time for experimenting and we will do quite a bit of that in regards to our personnel to get our best players on the field. There should be good competition on both sides of the football and that is good. I sense our players are excited about getting back on the field."
Texas A&M is coming off an 8-4 record in 2001 and a 28-9 bowl victory over TCU in the Galleryfurniture.com Bowl in Houston.
The Aggies return 10 starters on offense, but the one loss was four-year starter Seth McKinney who made 50 starts at the center position. Sophomore Geoff Hangartner from New Braunfels has backed up McKinney and is expected to compete for that spot.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Aggies return seven starters. A&M lost two defensive lineman in Evan Perroni and Rocky Bernard, as well as outside linebacker Christian Rodriguez and free safety Jay Brooks.
The Aggies will welcome back wide receiver Bethel Johnson who was lost for the season after only two games in 2001. Johnson suffered a ruptured spleen and had it removed last fall but should be back at full speed in the spring.
A couple of players who are expected to miss spring drills due to knee surgeries are linebacker Jared Morris and defensive back Jonte Buhl. Morris made 10 starts at inside linebacker last season and Buhl saw a lot of action in the secondary.
The Aggies will work on March 18, 19, 21, 22, 25, 26 and 28, then on April 1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 10, 11, and 12. Practices should begin around 4 p.m. and are open to the public.
On Saturday, April 6, the Aggies will hold ground-breaking ceremonies for the new south endzone football and academic complex prior to The Maroon & White Game which is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at Kyle Field.