The long, hot summer wait is over, and Aggie Football is finally here.

Texas A&M kicks off the 2023 season on Saturday night under the lights at Kyle Field when New Mexico comes to town. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. and the game will air nationally on ESPN.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

• With the temperature expected to reach triple digits on Saturday, Texas A&M Athletics reminds fans to be prepared for the heat and humidity at Kyle Field. >> READ MORE
• Home to the largest stadium in the SEC and some of college football's greatest traditions, Texas A&M Athletics continues to enhance and provide an unrivaled gameday experience for those in attendance at Kyle Field. >> KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

• Texas A&M and New Mexico meet for the second time in the last three seasons and the sixth time in program history, with the Aggies coming out victorious in all five previous meetings.
• DB Demani Richardson and WR Ainias Smith embark on their fifth seasons as key role players in Aggieland  as Richardson has tallied 43 starts since 2019 and led the team last season with 73 tackles and Smith returns as A&M's most versatile asset on offense and special teams.
• Richardson put his veteran leadership and versatility on display last season, after closing out the year making his 26th consecutive start in the secondary... He paced the Aggies with 73 total tackles on the year and ranked 11th in the SEC with 49 solo takedowns on the season, while also adding a pair of defensive touchdowns.
• The A&M defense finished last season with the No. 1 passing defense in the nation (156.2 y/g), while also ranking fourth in the SEC and in the top 25 nationally in scoring defense (21.2 ppg) ... Nine Aggies return for 2023 that started at least six games for the impressive unit a year ago.
• Sophomore WR Evan Stewart impressed in his debut season, ranking among the top 10 in the SEC catching 53 passes and averaging 64.9 yards per game ... He led all league freshmen in both categories, also ranking as the top newcomer nationally in yards per game.
• Junior WR Moose Muhammad III led the offense with 75 yards on three receptions against UMass, including a career-long 45-yard grab ... His 57.3 receiving yards per game average is good for 11th among SEC receivers.
• The Aggies are 16-2 in season openers at home since 2000 and have gone 9-2 in their first game of the year since joining the SEC in 2012.
• Coach Fisher owns a 12-1 record in season openers, including a perfect 9-0 mark when beginning the year at home.

QUICK HITS

• Texas A&M is the only team in the FBS with two quarterbacks returning that did not throw an interception while attempting 70-or-more passes in 2022 ... Sophomores Connor Weigman and Max Johnson were two of only four QBs in the FBS that didn't suffer an INT while attempting 70 or more passes.
• Senior DL McKinnley Jackson leads an experienced and deep defensive line after hitting a stride midway through the 2022 season ... He made at least five tackles in five of the eight games he played in, including a 12-takedown performance against Ole Miss ... Jackson filled out the stat sheet at Auburn, posting six tackles, 2.0 TFL, 1.0 sack and a fumble recovery.
• Juniors DB Jardin Gilbert and DB Tyreek Chappell were key contributors for the Aggies last year in their first seasons as starters ... After making multiple tackles in a game just three times in 2021, Gilbert tallied at least five takedowns in nine of the 11 games he played in last season, while Chappell ranked 10th in the SEC with eight pass breakups on the year.
• The Aggies forced 15 fumbles on the season in 2022, which led the SEC and ranked sixth nationally ... A&M's 12 fumble recoveries tied for the second-most among league teams and were tied for 12th in the country.
• Junior PK Randy Bond enters his second season as A&M's primary kicker after ranking 12th overall in the SEC in scoring last season, connecting on 13-of-17 field goal attempts and all 25 PATs last season to tally 64 points on the year.
• The Aggies are 25-7 (.781 win pct.) at Kyle Field under Coach Fisher ... In the five seasons prior to Fisher's arrival, the Aggies were 23-12 on their home turf (.657).
• Graduate LB Sam Mathews was named the 12th Man for the 2023 season, becomming just the fifth student-athlete in program history to hold the season-long honor of the century-long tradition.

   

MILESTONES TO WATCH FOR

• Graduate WR Ainias Smith aims to continue his climb through the A&M record books in his return to the field after suffering a season-ending injury early last season ... Smith needs just two receiving touchdowns to move into the top five all-time as he enters the year with 17 scoring receptions.
• Already among the top 10 in A&M history, Smith looks to pass Jhamon Ausbon (2017-19) on the Aggies' all-time career receptions list as Ausbon totaled 147 in his career and Smith enters the year with 127 catches.
• Smith 93 yards away from breaking into the top 10 on the A&M all-time career receiving yards list with 1,612 to-date ... He is chasing Jamar Taylor's (2001-03) mark of 1,705 career yards.
• Smith is 30 punt return yards away from cracking the all-time top-10 list in the category, starting the season with 551 on 61 returns ... He also needs 288 yards to get his name on the career all-purpose yards list, with 2,804 entering the game..
• Junior Moose Muhammad III is on the verge of moving into the top 25 of A&M's all-time career receiving touchdowns list, in need of just one score through the air to join Speedy Noil (2014-16) and Jimmy Teal (1982-84) at 24 with nine career TD grabs.
• Senior DB Demani Richardson is just five tackles away from 250 for his career, entering the season with 245.

SWISS ARMY KNIFE

• Graduate WR Ainias Smith has been called a "Swiss Army Knife" by head coach Jimbo Fisher because of his do-it-all ability on the field.
• Smith has recorded seven multi-touchdown games in his career, catching multiple TD passes in a game five times ... Against Sam Houston last season, Smith hauled in a 63-yard scoring pass to put the Aggies up 17 points at the half and extended the lead in the fourth quarter with a 43-yard TD grab.
• Dating back to the 2019 LSU game, Smith has caught a pass in 27 consecutive games.
• A true quadruple threat, Smith has gained more than 250 yards as a rusher (384), receiver (1,612), punt returner (551) and kick returner (257) ... Among Aggies already in the 3,000-yard club, only six players even have stats in all four categories and just two -- Dante Hall and Larry Stegent -- had 250+ in all four.
• In 2021, Smith became the third player in SEC history to rack up 1,000 receiving yards while also gaining 250+ yards as a rusher and returner (punt and kickoff) ... The others are Kentucky's Randall Cobb (2008-10) and LSU's Skyler Green (2002-05).
• A&M's go-to on punt return, Smith finished the 2021 season 11th in the nation with an 11.3 yards-per-return average, good for third in the SEC ... He recorded the first special teams TD of his career on A&M's first possession of the game against South Carolina when he posted the sixth-longest punt return in SEC history, going 95 yards to the house.

 

MOOSE STEPPING UP

• With the Aggies looking for a spark at wide receiver after the loss of senior leader Ainias Smith to injury last season, junior WR Moose Muhammad III stepped up and consistently produced for the Aggies.
• In his second career start at Mississippi State, Muhammad led the Aggies with 119 receiving yards on six receptions, also grabbing his first TD catch of the 2022 season.
• He registered the second 100-yard game of his career, racking up 112 yards on eight catches, including a 3-yard touchdown reception, against Ole Miss.
• On the season, Muhammad's 61.0 receiving yards per game in 2022 were good for 11th among SEC receivers.
• Muhammad also stepped in Smith's role at punt returner against MSU, with 22 yards on a pair of returns, including a 20-yarder.
• He is the son of longtime NFL wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad II, who enjoyed a 14-year professional career with the Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears from 1996-2009. He was a two-time Pro Bowler and earned first-team AP All-Pro honors in 2004 when he led the NFL with 1,405 yards and 16 receiving TDs on 93 catches.

STEWART MAKES IMPACT

• Sophomore WR Evan Stewart has become a favorite target for Aggie quarterbacks and made an immediate impact in his debut season.
• Stewart ranked eighth among all SEC receivers, averaging 64.9 yards per game last season, which led all FBS freshmen nationally ... He was also tied for 10th overall and led all freshmen in the league with 53 receptions.
• As a newcomer, he registered two 100-yards games, catching eight passes for 106 yards at Alabama and eclipsing the century mark with 120 yards on eight receptions against Florida.
• Stewart scored the first touchdown of this career on a 10-yard grab to put the Aggies on the board in the win over No. 10 Arkansas.
• A highly-touted recruit in A&M's top 2022 signing class, Stewart was an Under Armour All-American that was also a track standout ... He earned top-two finishes at the Texas 5A state championships in the long jump and triple jump, while also helping his 4x400m and 4x200m relay teams to medal finishes.

MAROON GOONS

• The Texas A&M offensive line returns great experience from last season ... Led by graduate Layden Robinson, who has been a staple at right guard over the last two seasons, the Aggies return three of five starters from a year ago.
• Robinson is in his third year as a starter after helping clear the way for one of the top running back tandems in the nation in 2021 and a 1,000-yard rusher last season ... He was a key reserve in 2020 when A&M became the first school in the last 10 years to lead the SEC in sacks allowed (0.7), tackles for loss allowed (3.8) and yards per carry (5.45) in the same season.
• Robinson is joined by two-year starter Reuben Fatheree II, who started all 12 games at right tackle in 2022, and sophomore Trey Zuhn III, who missed just one start in his debut season after securing the job at left tackle.
• Sophomore Bryce Foster aims to make his return after missing much of last season due to illness and injury ... Foster had an impressive debut season for the Aggies in 2021, earning the starting job at center.
• In 2022, the Maroon Goons cleared the way for current Miami Dolphin, De'Von Achane, who racked up 1,000 yards on the ground in his final season and rushed for over 100 yards five times on the year, including a 215-yard, two-touchdown game in the win over No. 6 LSU.
• Sophomore Kam Dewberry will add great experience on the line after logging five starts and playing in seven games as a freshman.

SEASONED SECONDARY

• A&M boasts a seasoned secondary that returns great experience from a year ago, led by fifth-year starter Demani Richardson who has started a team-best 43 games ... Juniors Jardin Gilbert and Tyreek Chappell each made double-digit starts in 2022, while sophomores Bryce Anderson, Jarred Kerr and Jacoby Mathews all appeared in 10-or-more games.
• The A&M defense finished the 2022 season with the No. 1 passing defense in the nation as it gave up just 156.2 yards through the air, including an average of 5.7 yards per pass which ranked fourth nationally ... The Aggies also boasted a top-25 scoring defense, which was fourth among SEC teams, allowing 21.2 points per game.
• Richardson, who led the Maroon & White with 73 total tackles, was tied for 11th in the SEC with 49 solo takedowns last season, while Gilbert was tied for eighth in the SEC with a pair of picks and Chappell's eight pass breakups tied him for 10th among league players.
• Richardson and Chappell teamed up against Arkansas for the Aggies' first defensive touchdown of the season after Chappell scooped up a loose fumble and later handed it off to Richardson, who took it 82 yards to the house.
• Under Coach Fisher, the Aggies have limited their opponent to less that 100 passing yards on eight occasions with three of those coming in 2022 ... A&M started the season giving up just 91 yards through the air as it shut out Sam Houston and later allowed just 60 yards at Auburn and 55 against UMass.

DEPTH ON THE D-LINE

• After entering the 2022 season with little experience but an abundance of talent on the defensive line, the group has remained intact for the 2023 season and has a full season of experience together under its belt.
• Senior McKinnley Jackson and juniors Fadil Diggs and Shemar Turner were all in their first year as starters last season ... The trio of upperclassmen combined to total 15.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks as each started at least eight games to help A&M boast the No. 1 passing defense in the nation and a top-25 scoring defense.
• Jackson came into his own last season, having a breakout game against Ole Miss as he racked up 12 tackles, including a solo sack for a loss of 9 yards.
• Diggs' season was cut short due to injury, but he made the most of the time he had on the field ... Diggs showed out at Alabama making six tackles, 3.0 for loss, while taking down the quarterback on two occasions and forcing two fumbles.
• In their debut seasons in 2022, Shemar Stewart, LT Overton and Walter Nolen made an immediate impact as each Aggie appeared in at least 11 of the team's 12 games and made the start on three-or-more occasions.
• Junior Isaiah Raikes and sophomore Albert Regis will also provide the A&M defensive line with depth and great experience after Raikes logged three starts and appeared in all 12 games last season, while Regis started the Miami game and saw the field in 11 games as a redshirt freshman.

FAMILY TIES

• Sophomore QB Max Johnson and sophomore TE Jake Johnson arrived in Aggieland together in January of 2022 .... Max transferred to A&M after two seasons at LSU, one as QB1, while Jake was a top-rated tight end in A&M's historic 2022 signing class ... They are the sons of Brad Johnson, a 17-year NFL veteran and two-time Pro Bowler that helped the Tampa Bay Buccaneers win Super Bowl XXXVII ... They are also the nephews of former Georgia and Miami head coach Mark Richt.
• Junior WR Moose Muhammad III is the son of two-time Pro Bowler and 14-year NFL veteran Muhsin Muhammad II, who was selected in the second round of the 1996 draft by the Carolina Panthers, where he spent the first nine years of his career.
• Sophomore DL LT Overton, who reclassified and graduated high school early to join the 2022 signing class, is joined on the team by his brother graduate DL Micaiah Overton, who transferred from Liberty ahead of the 2022 season ... Their father, Milton Overton, spent seven years at Texas A&M as an associate athletics director overseeing the Aggies' technology growth and services and currently serves as the AD at Kennesaw State.
• Freshman DL Cody Polk is the son of former Texas A&M linebacker Scott Polk (1980, 81, 82, 83, 84), who is best remembered for his drama scoop-and-(nearly) score in the Aggies' 37-12 win over Texas in 1984.
• Offensive line coach Steve Addazio is in his second year in Aggieland and is joined by his son and former player Louie Addazio, who spent the final three years of his playing career at Boston College before joining the coaching ranks.