Texas A&M (No. 20 AP/No. 24 coaches) rides the momentum of a thrilling season-opening overtime win over UCLA into the first-ever meeting against sister school Prairie View A&M on Saturday at Kyle Field.
The Aggies held off a furious Bruin rally before over 100,000 fans last Saturday and claimed a 31-24 victory in the extra frame. The Panthers (1-0) opened their brand-new stadium on campus with a 28-24 defeat of arch-rival Texas Southern.
Kickoff is scheduled for 11:01 a.m. and the game will be televised nationally on the SEC Network's Alternate channel (Roy Philpott, Clint Stoerner, Kevin Weidl). It will air regionally on the Texas A&M Sports Network (
Dave South, Dave Elmendorf,
Will Johnson), and a Spanish broadcast of the game can also be heard regionally on the Texas A&M Spanish Network (Pedro Vela Almaguer, Noel Orellana).
Both Aggie radio feeds can be heard for free worldwide at 12thman.com/allaccess and inside the Texas A&M Athletics app. The TAMU Sports Network broadcast will be available on Sirius Channel 93 / XM Channel 191.
Saturday marks the first time the two system schools, which are separated by just 50 miles.
What to watch for: #PVAMvsTAMU
- The Aggies will be trying to improve to 2-0 for a fourth straight season under Kevin Sumlin, which hasn't been done at Texas A&M since Emory Bellard won consecutive games to open the season from 1974-78
- A win over Prairie View A&M would extend Texas A&M's non-conference home winning streak to 23.
- It will be Texas A&M's first-ever game against Prairie View A&M, and the school's first matchup against a team from the Southwestern Athletic Conference. PVAMU's campus is located just 50 miles southeast from Texas A&M
- A win by the Aggies would be the 38th of Kevin Sumlin's career at Texas A&M and would move him into a tie for sixth-most in school history with Charles B. "Uncle Charley" Moran, who coached the Aggies from 1909-1914 (38-8-4 record).
Game 2 Notables
- In 14 games with John Chavis as defensive coordinator, the Aggies have generated 10 or more tackles for loss five times, including 10 on Saturday vs. UCLA. In the three seasons prior to Chavis' arrival, the Aggies produced double-digit TFLs a total of three times in 39 games.
- Since Chavis' arrival, the Aggies have allowed more than 30 points in a game just once. Alabama scored 41 points in 2015, but were aided by three defensive scores. In the two seasons before Chavis' arrival in Aggieland, Texas A&M opponent scored 30 more points 14 times in 26 games.
- Saturday's win over No. 16 UCLA was Kevin Sumlin's 10th win over an AP Top 25-ranked opponent. The victory moved him into a tie with Jackie Sherrill for second-most AP Top 25 wins by a Texas A&M head coach. R.C. Slocum leads the list with 17 wins vs. ranked opponents.
- Texas A&M is the only team in FBS to open the last three seasons (2014-16) with wins over AP Top 25 opponents.
- Sumlin has won four straight season-openers and is 8-1 in season lid-lifters as a head coach. His lone loss came in his Texas A&M debut – a 20-17 loss to No. 24 Florida in 2012.
- The last Texas A&M head coach to win four straight season-openers was R.C. Slocum, who won his first seven season-openers from 1989-1995.
- The win over UCLA was the Aggies' 22nd straight home victory over a non-conference opponent. It was A&M's first win over a ranked non-conference opponent at Kyle Field since 1994 when the Aggies beat No. 14 Oklahoma, 36-14.
- Saturday's win was the Aggies' first overtime win over a ranked opponent at Kyle Field since beating No. 19 Oklahoma State, 28-25, in 1997.
- Sumlin's record against non-conference teams ranked in the AP Top 25 improved to 5-0 (wins over No. 22 Louisiana Tech and No. 11 Oklahoma in 2012, No. 22 Duke in 2013, No. 15 Arizona State in 2015 and No. 16 UCLA in 2016).
- Aggies used a balanced offensive attack with 203 rushing yards and 239 passing yards against UCLA.
- On a day when QB Trevor Knight attempted 42 passes (22-42 for 239, 1 TD), the Maroon Goons gave up zero sacks and just one QB hurry. The Aggies piled up 83 total plays, but only had two plays that lost yardage.
- Defense limited UCLA to 5-of-18 (27.8 percent) on third-down tries. Last year, UCLA ranked No. 23 nationally with a 45.1 conversion rate.
- Defense allowed just one touchdown while facing six redzone chances.
- Making their maroon and white playing debuts, RBs Trayveon Williams and Keith Ford combined to rush for 159 yards on 29 carries (5.5 per attempt).
- Stepping in for record-setting Drew Kaser at punter, junior Shane Tripucka averaged 47.3 yards on seven boots with a pair of 50-yard plus efforts, two punts that were downed inside the UCLA 20 and no touchbacks. Tripucka's net average against the Bruins was a salty 42.7.
- Freshman Braden Mann had three touchbacks on five kickoffs and UCLA averaged 16.5 on its two returns. Last year, UCLA averaged 22.5 on kickoff returns.
- In just his second career start and first since early in 2014, junior CB Nick Harvey posted a game-high 11 tackles and matched Daeshon Hall and Myles Garrett with a game-high 1.5 tackles for loss.
- Five Aggie defenders produced five QB sacks and nine Aggies produced 10 tackles for loss.
Biggest goons ever...
Calling themselves the
Maroon Goons since 2012, the projected starting lineup of
tackles Jermaine Eluemenor and Avery Gennesey, guards Colton Prater and Connor Lanfear and center Erik McCoy weigh in at 1,555 pounds, or 311.0 pounds per goon. Collectively, they are the heaviest starting five in school history, just edging out the 2011 group that tipped the scales at 310.6 pounds per player.
Here's the Beef
(Starters/Possible Starters by career starts)
Football Facts
- Junior DE Myles Garrett is the first SEC player (and Texas A&M player) to post double-digit QB sacks in his freshman and sophomore seasons.
- Junior DB Armani Watts' 83 unassisted tackles in 2015 were more than any other Aggies' total tackles, which hadn't been done at Texas A&M since 1998 when Dat Nguyen's 102 solo stops were more Cornelius Anthony's total of 100 tackles.
- QB Trevor Knight is the first upperclassman to start at Texas A&M under head coach Kevin Sumlin (with an asterisk). * -- Then junior Matt Joeckel started the 2013 season-opener because Johnny Manziel was suspended for the first half.).
- Knight, a graduate transfer from Oklahoma, is the first graduate to start at QB for the Aggies since Ryan Tannehill started all 13 games in 2013.
- Sophomore WR/RS Christian Kirk led the SEC with a 14.3 yards per touch average in 2015.
- Kirk was also the only SEC player ranked among the conference's top 45 all-purpose yardage producers to have stats in all four statistical categories -- rush, receiving, punt returns and kickoff returns.
- Four transfers from FBS schools made their maroon and white debuts against UCLA: QB Trevor Knight and RB Keith Ford (both from Oklahoma), CB Priest Willis (UCLA) and TE Kalvin Cline (Virginia Tech).
Random Facts
- Junior WR Ricky Seals-Jones and NFL 2,000-yard rusher Eric Dickerson (both from Sealy, Texas) are cousins ... Redshirt freshman C Erik McCoy and former A&M and NFL running back Jorvorskie Lane (both from Lufkin, Texas) are cousins.
- Senior WR Josh Reynolds and freshman DB Moses Reynolds are brothers ... Freshman OLs Austin and Riley Anderson are identical twins (most recent set of twins to play for the Aggies were Luke and Matt Joeckel).
- Junior DE Qualen Cunningham's father, Rick, was a 290-pound offensive lineman for the Aggies from 1988-89 and played eight seasons in the NFL. ... Freshman walkon LB Jordan Driver's father, Trent, lettered for the Aggies from 1994-97 and ranked third on the team with 82 tackles as a senior in 1997. ... Junior TE Tanner Schorp's father, Greg, was a two-time all-conference tight end for the Aggies in 1992 and 1993. ...
- Freshman walkon TE Luke Laufenberg's father, Babe Laufenberg, was a record-setting QB for Indiana under then-head coach Lee Corso and went on to a long career in the NFL. He currently serves as the color analyst for the Dallas Cowboys Radio Network.
- Junior punter Shane Tripucka's grandfather was the legendary Notre Dame and Denver Broncos signalcaller, Frank Tripucka, who was the first pro QB to pass for 3,000 yards in a season. Shane's uncle, Kelly Tripucka, played 10 seasons in the NBA for the Detroit Piston and Utah Jazz and was a two-time All-Star.
Year 2 Under Chief
The Texas A&M defense will be entering his second season under the direction of longtime SEC defensive coordinator John "Chief" Chavis after making huge strides from 2014 to 2015.
Comparing 2015 to 2014
| Stat Category |
2015 (FBS RK) |
2014 (FBS RK) |
| Total Defense |
380.0 (#51) |
450.8 (#104) |
| Pass Defense |
166.3 (#4) |
234.8 (#83) |
| Run Defense |
213.7 (#108) |
216.0 (#111) |
| Scoring Defense |
22.0 (#28) |
28.1 (t#77) |
| Tackles for loss |
111 (t#3) |
76 (t#60) |
| 3rd D % Against |
33.0% (#16) |
40% (#67) |
Sumlin vs. Top 25
In his ninth season as a head coach, fifth-year Aggie coach
Kevin Sumlin has a career record of 12-12 against teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 (10-11 at A&M).
- Sumlin's five road wins and eight wins away from Kyle vs. AP Top 25 squads are already the most by any coach in school history.
- Sumlin's record against non-conference teams ranked in the AP Top 25 is a perfect 5-0 (wins over No. 22 Louisiana Tech and No. 11 Oklahoma in 2012, No. 22 Duke in 2013, No. 15 Arizona State in 2015 and No. 16 UCLA in 2016).
- Saturday's win over No. 16 UCLA was Kevin Sumlin's 10th win over an AP Top 25-ranked opponent. The victory moved him into a tie with Jackie Sherrill for second-most AP Top 25 wins by a Texas A&M head coach. R.C. Slocum leads the list with 17 wins vs. ranked opponents.
Sumlin vs. the AP Top 25 (at TAMU)
| Opponent, Year |
AP rank |
Result |
| Florida, 2012 |
No. 24 |
L, 20-17 |
| vs. Louisiana Tech, 2012 |
No. 22 |
W, 59-57 |
| LSU, 2012 |
No. 6 |
L, 24-19 |
| at Mississippi State, 2012 |
No. 17 |
W, 38-13 |
| at Alabama, 2012 |
No. 1 |
W, 29-24 |
| vs. *Oklahoma, 2013 |
No. 11 |
W, 41-13 |
| Alabama, 2013 |
No. 1 |
L, 49-42 |
| Auburn, 2013 |
No. 24 |
L, 45-41 |
| at LSU, 2013 |
No. 18 |
L, 34-10 |
| at Missouri, 2013 |
No. 5 |
L, 28-21 |
| vs. Duke, 2013 |
No. 22 |
W, 52-48 |
| at South Carolina, 2014 |
No. 9 |
W, 52-28 |
| at Mississippi State, 2014 |
No. 12 |
L, 31-48 |
| Ole Miss, 2014 |
No. 3 (tie) |
L, 20-35 |
| at Alabama, 2014 |
No. 7 |
L, 0-59 |
| at Auburn, 2014 |
No. 3 |
W, 41-38 |
| vs. Arizona State, 2015 |
No. 15 |
W, 38-17 |
| Mississippi State, 2015 |
No. 21 |
W, 30-17 |
| Alabama, 2015 |
No. 10 |
L, 23-41 |
| Ole Miss, 2015 |
No. 24 |
L, 3-23 |
| UCLA, 2016 |
No. 16 |
W, 31-24 (OT) |
Sumlin vs. the AP Top 25 (at UH)
| at East Carolina, 2008 |
No. 23 |
W, 41-24 |
| Tulsa, 2008 |
No. 25 |
W, 70-30 |
| at Oklahoma State, 2009 |
No. 5 |
W, 45-35 |
| Southern Miss, 2011 |
No. 24 |
L, 49-28 |
Nightmare for QBs, OCs
Junior DE
Myles Garrett is, arguably, the nation's most feared pass rusher.
- Garrett led the SEC with 12.5 QB sacks, 19.5 tackles for loss and five forced fumbles. He also has 59 tackles, 10 QB hurries, a blocked punt and an interception on his 2015 resume.
- Garrett was a finalist for the Rotary Lombardi Award (college lineman of the year), the Hendricks Award (top DE), a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award (defensive POY) and was a quarter-finalist for the Lott IMPACT Trophy.
- Garrett was named the SEC DL of the Week twice in 2015 (MSU and ALA).
- Garrett tied a career-high with 3.5 sacks vs. NEV in 2015 despite having his wisdom teeth removed less than a week previously.
- Nevada schemed for the challenge of facing Garrett by having its scout team defensive ends line up offsides in practice to simulate Garrett's quickness, according to the SEC Network TV crew.
- His older sister, Brea Garrett, was a NCAA Champion thrower for the A&M track and field team. His older brother, Sean Williams, has played for several NBA teams and currently plays basketball overseas.
- Among his measurables are: 40-yard dash: 4.46; broad jump: 9 feet, 5 inches; vertical jump: 38.5 inches; power clean: 372 pounds; deadlift: 528 pounds; incline bench press: 355 pounds; leg press: 1,100 pounds.
- Described as a "dino-geek," Garrett says of his post-football life: "I want to be a paleontologist, whether it's amateur or professional." (Sports Illustrated, July 27, 2015)
Racing to the QB
Senior DE
Daeshon Hall emerged as one of the SEC's most disruptive defenders with 7.0 QB sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss in 2015.
- Hall and Myles Garrett combined to average 1.50 QB sacks per game, which was more than any other tandem in the SEC in 2015.
- Garrett said of the pair's friendly competition to get to the quarterback, "It's a race to get to the quarterback every time."
- Hall came to Texas A&M on his recruiting visit in 2013 as a 208-pound "basketball player," according to head coach Kevin Sumlin. He has bulked up to 270 pounds as a junior.
- Hall's nickname is "Dae Dae."
- Hall moved from Seattle, Wash., to Lancaster, Texas in high school. His high school coach Chris Gilbert got his first glimpse of Hall playing basketball. "He was just like hammering dunks," Gilbert said. "He was a little thin, but I could tell he was strong. He said, 'Coach, I love basketball but everybody tells me they think I can play on Sundays, and I think I can.' '' (Dallas Morning News, Sept. 12, 2014)
- Hall's four-sack effort vs. ASU in 2015 tied for second-most in a single game in school history, trailing only the five-sack performance by Alex Morris vs. Houston in 1987. Hall matched the sack total of three first-team All-Americans: Jacob Green, Ray Childress and John Roper.
Tackling Machine
Junior FS
Armani Watts had a record-setting season in 2015 with six double-digit tackle games, including a 20-tackle effort vs. Ole Miss, and he ranked No. 2 in the SEC with 126 tackles (9.7 per game).
- With 126 tackles, Watts was the first Aggie to hit the century mark since LB Michael Hodges had 115 in 2010. Only a handful of Aggie DBs have reached 100 tackles in a season, most recently Jaxson Appel had 135 in 2003.
- Watts led the SEC with an amazing 83 solo tackles.
- His 20-tackle game vs. the Rebels was the second-most prolific tackle game by a DB in school history. Safety Larry Horton matched the overall school record with 24 tackles vs. Baylor in 1990 (originally set by LB Larry Kelm in 1985).
- Watts finished 2015 tied for 14th nationally with 126 tackles.
- A consensus 4-star recruit out of North Forney HS, Watts earned all-state honors at safety and was an all-district pick on offense and defense and as a return man.
2015 SEC Tackles Leaders
| Rk |
Player, Pos., School |
Total |
Avg. |
| 1. |
Kentrell Brothers, LB, MIZZ |
152 |
12.7 |
| 2. |
Armani Watts, DB, TAMU |
126 |
9.7 |
| 3. |
Johnathan Ford, DB, AUB |
118 |
9.1 |
| 4. |
Skai Moore, LB, SC |
111 |
9.3 |
| 5. |
Richie Brown, LB, MSU |
109 |
8.4 |
2015 SEC Solo Tackles Leaders
| Rk |
Player, Pos., School |
Total |
| 1. |
Armani Watts, DB, TAMU |
83 |
| 2. |
Kentrell Brothers, LB, MIZZ |
73 |
| 3. |
Zach Cunningham, LB, VU |
69 |
|
Skai Moore, LB, SC |
69 |
| 5. |
Johnathan Ford, DB, AUB |
68 |
Record-Setting Reynolds
Junior WR
Josh Reynolds led the SEC with a 17.8 per catch average among players with more than 35 catches in 2015. Reynolds finished his junior year with 907 yards and five touchdowns on 51 catches.
- Reynolds had four 100-yard games in 2015 -- 3 for 106 vs. Arkansas, 7 for 141 vs. Mississippi State, 3 for 105 vs. Vanderbilt and 11 for 177 vs. Louisville in the Music City Bowl.
- Reynolds scored on a 95-yard TD catch and run against Vanderbilt, which ranked as the second-longest pass play in school history.
- Reynolds' 13 receiving TDs in 2014 broke the school record of 12 originally set by Jeff Fuller in 2010 and matched by 2014 NFL first-round pick Mike Evans in 2013.
- Overlooked by FBS programs out of HS, Reynolds went to Tyler JC as a full qualifier and then transferred to A&M with three years of eligibility in 2014. The FB coaching staff was tipped off to Reynolds by TAMU T&F coach Pat Henry, who had recruited Reynolds as a high jumper.
- Reynolds' younger brother, Moses, is a true freshman defensive back for the Aggies.
TAMU Career Receiving TDs
Honey Badger Redux
Junior nickel back
Donovan Wilson has drawn comparisons to former LSU playmaker Tyrann Mathieu or the "Honey Badger" because of his penchant for making big plays.
- Wilson ranked third in the SEC with five interceptions in 2015, which matched the entire Texas A&M team's output in 2014.
- Texas A&M defensive coordinator John Chavis says of Wilson, "We need that catalyst and he's been that catalyst force. He's made big play after big play. (Former LSU All-American Tyrann Mathieu) had the 'it' factor. We're starting to see some of that with Donovan." (Bryan-College Station Eagle, Oct. 7, 2015)
2015 Wilson (13 gms) vs. 2011 Mathieu (13 gms)
| Player |
TFL |
QBS |
INT |
PBU |
FR |
FF |
| Wilson |
8.5 |
2.0 |
5 |
3 |
2 |
3 |
| Mathieu |
7.5 |
1.5 |
2 |
9 |
5 |
6 |
- Wilson fills the stat sheet like few other defenders. He ranked No. 4 on the team in tackles (63), had 8.5 TFL, 2.0 QBS, three FF, two FR and three PBUs, along with his five INTs last season.
- In regard to "turnover involvement," which tracks INTs, fumbles forced and fumble recovered, Wilson's 2015 season among some of the great names in Wrecking Crew history (stats incomplete prior to 1976).
TAMU Turnover Involvement
| Player, Pos, Year |
INT/FF/FR |
Total |
| Domingo Bryant, DB, 1985 |
4/4/5 |
13 |
| Dat Nguyen, LB, 1996 |
3/6/3 |
12 |
| Kevin Smith, CB, 1989 |
9/1/1 |
11 |
| Donovan Wilson, DB, 2015 |
5/3/2 |
10 |
| Several with nine |
- A late addition to the Aggies' 2014 signing class, Wilson led the Shreveport, La., area with 13 interceptions while earning All-City Defensive POY (Shreveport Times) and Louisiana Class 4A all-state honors.
Do-it-All Kirk
Sophomore WR/RS
Christian Kirk burst onto the scene in 2015 as one of the most dangerous and versatile players in the nation. He was named SEC Freshman and Newcomer of the Year in 2015 and was a preseason All-SEC pick as a receiver, return specialist and all-purpose.
- Kirk led all SEC freshmen in touchdowns (8), receptions (6.2/G), receiving yards (77.6/G), punt return average (24.4), all-purpose yards (1,789).
- Kirk averaged 14.3 yards per touch, which was tops in the SEC.
- He set the freshman school record with 1,789 all-purpose yardage and was just off the overall school record of 1,806 set by Cyrus Gray in 2010.
- Kirk earned SEC weekly honors twice -- Freshman POW honors after the ASU win and Special Teams POW after ARK.
- His four 100-yard receiving games in 2015 were the most by any freshman in A&M history.
- Kirk was a game-breaker for the Aggies as a punt returnerwith two returns for touchdowns and an NCAA-best three returns of 50 yards or more (tie).
- A consensus 5-star recruit out of Saguaro HS in Scottsdale, Ariz., Kirk was an early enrollee at Texas A&M in January of 2015.
Tough Matchup
At 6-foot-5 and 240 pounds, junior WR
Ricky Seals-Jones ranks as one of the toughest matchups for defensive backs in the nation.
- Seals-Jones has been consistently praised as one of the team's top blockers on the perimeter.
- Seals-Jones has been the team's third-leading receiver the past two seasons with 49 catches in 2014 and 45 in 2015.
- His receptions single game high is 10 catches vs. Mississippi State in 2014, which ranks as one of five double-digit catch games by a freshman.
- RSJ played in two games as a true freshman in 2013 before suffering a season-ending injury. In his first career game, Seals-Jones reeled off a 71-yard TD catch and run against Rice that remains his career long.
- The early-season showdown of future Texas A&M signees Seals-Jones of Sealy HS and QB Kohl Stewart of St. Pius in 2012 was the first destination of the "Swag-copter" when head coach Kevin Sumlin used a helicopter to get from College Station to St. Pius' Parsley Field in Houston.
Graduate Transfer QB
Graduate transfer
Trevor Knight is pencilled in as the *first upperclassman QB starter of the
Kevin Sumlin era at Texas A&M (* -- Junior
Matt Joeckel started the 2013 season-opener vs. Rice in place of
Johnny Manziel, who was suspended for the first half).
- Knight joined the Aggies in January as a graduate transfer after playing three seasons at the University of Oklahoma.
- Knight was named the QB starter after spring drills.
- At OU, Knight started 15 games, including two bowl games. He passed for more than 3,000 yards and had 25 career touchdowns in three seasons, while also rushing for more than 800 yards.
- Knight had four 300-yard passing games and two 100-yard rushing games at OU.
- His fraternal twin brother, Connor, is a senior fullback for the Sooners.
- Knight earned his bachelor's degree in finance at OU and is pursuing his master's degree in management at Texas A&M.
- Knight helped spearhead the Aggies' humanitarian trip to Haiti last summer, and had made previous trips to the impoverished nation while at OU.
Ball Hawk Safety
Senior SS
Justin Evans has a well-earned reputation as one of the SEC's biggest hitters. He added ball-hawk to his repertoire with a pair of pickoffs vs. highly-touted UCLA QB Josh Rosen.
- Evans was spectacular in the season-opener against UCLA with a pair of interceptions, another broken up pass, a 21.0 average on kickoff returns and eight tackles.
- Evans ranked No. 3 on the team with 78 tackles in 2015, and he also contributed an interception and three broken up passes.
- He had a season-high 10 tackles in SEC games against Alabama and Vanderbilt.
- Evans joined the Aggies as an early enrollee after transferring from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.
- Was also a standout baseball player in high school, batting .495 as a senior at Wiggins High School.
