GAME PREVIEW: Aggies, Tide Set to Battle at Kyle Field

Oct 06, 2023 | Football

By: Athletics Communications

Gameday: Alabama

Saturday, Oct. 7 • 2:39 p.m. CT
Kyle Field • Bryan-College Station
Live Stats: Click Here

THE MATCHUP

Texas A&M: 4-1, 2-0
last: def. Arkansas, 34-22
Game Notes: Click Here
Alabama: 4-1, 2-0
last: def. Miss State, 40-17
Game Notes: Click Here

RANKINGS

Texas A&M: RV (AP, Coaches)
Alabama: 11 (AP), 10 (Coaches)

WATCH

TV: CBS
Play-by-Play: Brad Nessler
Analyst: Gary Danielson
Sidelines: Jenny Dell

LISTEN

Radio: TAMU Sports Network
1620 AM/94.5 FM (local), SiriusXM 134/192
Play-by-Play: Andrew Monaco
Analyst: Dave Elmendorf
Sidelines: Will Johnson
Listen Live: 12th Man Mobile App

Spanish Broadcast: Click Here
102.7 FM (local)
Play-by-Play: Michel Gonzalez
Analyst: Pedro Luna
Analyst: Alejandra Dorbecker
Listen Live: 12th Man Mobile App

A critical game in the race for the SEC West will take place on Saturday before a sold-out crowd at Kyle Field as Texas A&M welcomes 11th-ranked Alabama to Aggieland. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. and the game will be televised nationally by CBS.

Both the Aggies and the Tide come into the game with identical 4-1 records and both are a perfect 2-0 in league play. A&M's conference wins have come in the form of a 27-10 home win over Auburn and, last Saturday, a 34-22 victory over Arkansas at AT&T Stadium. Bama, meanwhile, has taken out both Mississippi schools--defeating Ole Miss 24-10 in Tuscaloosa and last week trouncing Mississippi State 40-17 in Starkville.

While Alabama has won nine of the 11 meetings between the programs since the Aggies joined the SEC, the Crimson Tide fell in walk-off fashion in their last visit to Kyle Field--losing 41-38 in 2021. Last season's meeting came down to the final play as A&M dropped a 24-20 decision at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Saturday's forecast predicts a perfect fall Saturday--sunny and low 70s at kickoff with a North breeze.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

Texas A&M and Alabama meet for the 16th time in program history, with each team claiming victory at home in the most recent meetings ... The Aggies topped then-No. 1 Alabama 41-38 in 2021 at Kyle Field before falling just short in Tuscaloosa last season, 24-20.
Sophomore QB Max Johnson made his first start of the 2023 season and fourth of his career in the Maroon & White, guiding the Aggies to a 34-22 victory over Arkansas ... Johnson threw for 210 yards and two touchdowns, adding 57 yards on the ground to notch A&M career highs in all three categories.
Graduate WR Ainias Smith is 45 receiving yards away from becoming the first 2,000-yard receiver in SEC history with at least 250 career rushing, punt return and kick return yards ... Smith is coming off a career-best 202 all-purpose yards, thanks to his 82-yard punt return for a touchdown against Arkansas.
Junior LB Edgerrin Cooper has been a beast for the Aggies in SEC play, tallying 5.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks through the first two league games ... Cooper leads the SEC and ranks seventh nationally with 9.0 TFL and is tied for 10th among league players with 3.0 sacks on the year.
Junior DL Shemar Turner has been a consistent disruptor on the line this season, recording at least 1.0 tackle for loss in every game while also getting to the quarter back at least once in four of the team's five games ... Turner ranks among the top six in the SEC with 3.5 sacks and 6.5 TFL on the year.
The Aggie defense has shut down opponents on third down early this season, ranking third nationally with a 23.4 opponent conversion percentage ... The unit also ranks fifth in the country allowing just 13.2 first downs per game.
The defense has not allowed an opponent to get over 100 yards through the air and on the ground in a game this season, most recently limiting the Razorbacks to just 172 yards of total offense, including only 42 yards on the ground ... The well-rounded Aggies lead the SEC in total defense (253.8 y/g), tackles for loss (49.0) and pass break ups (23).

QUICK HITS

The A&M running game has picked up speed in SEC play, racking up over 200 yards on the ground in each of the team's league games ... The tandem of sophomore Le'Veon Moss and junior Amari Daniels currently rank among the top-13 backs in the SEC averaging 69.0 and 54.0 yards per game, respectively, after Daniels put up career numbers against Auburn and Moss registered the first 100-yard game of his career with 107 yards against Arkansas.
Sophomore WR Evan Stewart hauled in a 32-yard touchdown pass to score his fourth TD of the season and give the Aggies an early lead on Arkansas ... Stewart ranks sixth in the SEC and leads the Aggie receiving corps, averaging 89.3 yards per game.
The A&M offense averages 37.4 points per game on the season, good for 20th nationally, while its 14 passing touchdowns put the unit in a tie for 13th.
Junior Tyreek Chappell and graduate transfer Josh DeBerry have been staples at corner for the Aggies early this season and help the team lead the league with 23 break ups ... DeBerry is tied for third in the SEC with six passes defended, while Chappell ranks sixth in the league with four PBU.
On the heels of posting 7.0 QB sacks in the SEC opener against Auburn, the Aggie defense rolled to 7.0 sacks for a total loss of 41 yards ... The 14.0 sacks are the most in consecutive games since the Aggies joined the SEC in 2012.
Junior PK Randy Bond is tied for third in the country with 54 total points and is tied for fourth averaging 10.8 points per game ... His 11 made field goals on the season are tied for the most nationally.
A&M has given up just one offensive touchdown through the last 12 quarters of play, holding both ULM and Auburn to 10-or-fewer total points.
The Aggies boast a 28-7 (.800 win pct.) record at Kyle Field under Coach Fisher.
Quick starts have been a key to Aggie victories in the Jimbo Fisher era ... The Aggies are 33-5 when scoring first and are 32-2 when leading after the first quarter.

MILESTONES TO WATCH FOR

Graduate WR Ainias Smith continues his climb through the A&M record books and needs just two receiving touchdowns to move into the top five all-time, currently sitting in a tie for seventh with Mike Evans (2012-13) at 17 scoring receptions.
Smith enters the week with 149 career receptions and his next four catches will move him through the top 10 all-time and put him within reach of the top five as he chases Josh Reynolds' (2013-16) 164 career receptions.
Already sitting in eighth all-time at A&M with 1,955 career receiving yards, Smith is in need of 45 yards through the air to become the eighth Aggie in program history to reach the 2,000 yard mark.
Reaching the 2,000 career receiving yards mark would make Smith the only player in SEC history to hit that milestone while also racking up at least 250 rushing, punt return and kick return yards.
Smith is 47 punt return yards away from moving into sixth on A&M's all-time career list ... He made a huge jump into the top-15 on A&M's career all-purpose yards list with a personal-best 131 punt return yards against Arkansas, which upped his career AP yards to 3,384 and put him within 78 yards of Ryan Swope (2009-12) at 13th.
Junior WR Moose Muhammad III is on the verge of moving into the top 20 of A&M's all-time career receiving touchdowns list with nine career scoring receptions, while he is also 168 receiving yards away from reaching the 1,000-yard mark for his career.
Sophomore WR Evan Stewart, who eclipsed the 1,000 career receiving yards mark in the win over Arkansas, is 196 receiving yards and nine receptions away from cracking the top 30 all-time at A&M in each category.

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.
A true quadruple threat, Smith has gained more than 250 yards as a rusher (389), receiver (1,955), punt returner (768) and kick returner (272) ... 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.
Smith is on the verge of becoming the only 2,000-yard receiver in SEC history to also rack up at least 250 rushing, punt return and kickoff return yards in their career ... The other 1,000-yard receiver to hit the 250-yard mark in rushing and returns was Kentucky's Randall Cobb, who posted 1,661 receiving yards along with 1,313 rushing yards, 619 punt return yards and 1,081 kickoff return yards from 2008-10.
Smith has etched his name into Aggie history as he has climbed into the top 10 on A&M's career receiving touchdowns (17), receiving yards (1,955), receptions (149) and punt return (73-768) lists, while also recently becoming the 20th Aggie in program history to rack up 3,000 all-purpose yards in their career.
Smith put his dependable versatility on display in the win over Arkansas, returning a punt 82 yards to the house in the fourth quarter to lengthen the Aggie lead and eventually total a career-high 131 punt return yards and 202 all-purpose yards ... This marked the second special teams touchdown of Smith's career after taking a punt 95 yards to the end zone in 2021 against South Carolina.
Dating back to the 2019 LSU game, Smith has caught a pass in 32 straight games ... This streak is the 10th-longest active streak in the nation, sixth among Power 5 receivers, while it is also the longest streak by an Aggie since Christian Kirk (2015-17) had a string of 39 games.
Smith recorded the fifth 100-yard game of his career when he led the offense with 127 yards on seven catches in the win over ULM.
Smith has registered seven multi-touchdown games in his career, catching multiple TD passes in a game five times ... In the 2021 season opener, he 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.

JOHNSON TAKES OVER AS QB1

Sophomore QB Max Johnson has stood ready for the Aggies and returned to the starting lineup under center Week 5 against Arkansas.
In the win over the Razorbacks, Johnson set new A&M career marks with 210 passing yards and 57 yards on the ground, while his two touchdown passes matched his previous best as a Aggie.
Johnson, who has played in 26 games as an SEC quarterback, was thrown into action in the second half of the Auburn game with A&M up 6-3 at the break after an injury to Conner Weigman and immediately tossed a pair of scoring passes in the third quarter to distance the Aggies and position the team for victory.
In his first season in Aggieland, Johnson led the Aggies to back-to-back victories over AP top-15 teams, topping No. 13 Miami 17-9 at Kyle Field in his first start for the Maroon & White before knocking off No. 10 Arkansas, 23-21 at AT&T Stadium ... Johnson's stint as the A&M starter was cut short the following week after suffering a season-ending hand injury at Mississippi State.
Johnson compiled an 8-6 record as the starter at LSU, surpassing the 300-yard plateau in passing yards six times in his two seasons in Baton Rouge, including career bests of 435 yards against Ole Miss in 2020 and five touchdowns against Central Michigan in 2021.

STEWART MAKES IMPACT

Sophomore WR Evan Stewart has become a favorite target for Aggie quarterbacks after making an immediate impact in his debut season and continuing to shine this year.
In just his 14th career game, Stewart eclipsed the 1,000 career receiving yard mark, which ties him with Ryan Tannehill (2008-11) as the third-fastest Aggie to reach the millennium mark ... Only Mike Evans (2012-13) and Christian Kirk (2015-17) did it faster with Evans reaching it in 12 games and Kirk in 13.
Stewart made it back-to-back 100-yard games as he set career highs with 11 catches for 142 yards against Miami ... He became the first A&M receiver to catch 10-plus passes in a game since the 2017 season and the first to record back-to-back 100-yard games since the 2019 season.
Stewart started his sophomore season in a big way, registering the third 100-yard game and first multi-touchdown game of his career, racking up 115 yards on eight catches and a pair of touchdown receptions against New Mexico.
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-yard games, catching eight passes for 106 yards at Alabama and eclipsing the century mark with 120 yards on eight receptions against Florida.
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.
The Aggies rank fourth in the SEC, only allowing 7.0 sacks so far this season ... They are also among the top-five in the league, allowing 22.0 TFL on the year.
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.
The Aggies have seen Robinson, Trey Zuhn III, Mark Nabou Jr. and Chase Bisontis start all five games so far this season, while Bryce Foster, Kam Dewberry and Dametrious Crownover have had key roles on the line early on.

STEADY BACKERS

The Aggie linebacker trio of junior Edgerrin Cooper, true freshman Taurean York and senior Chris Russell Jr. have come into their own and sparked an aggressive A&M attack in SEC play.
Cooper has been a dominating force in SEC play, racking up 5.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks in A&M's pair of league victories as he paces the Aggies with 30 total tackles on the season ... His 9.0 TFL on the year lead all SEC players and are tied for seventh nationally, while his 3.0 sack total is tied for 10th in the SEC.
York has immediately stepped into a leadership role as a true freshman, quarterbacking the defense at mike linebacker ... His 27 tackles on the season are second on the team, while ranking second among Power 5 true freshman linebackers and sixth among all freshman defensive players ... York was named SEC Freshman of the Week after leading the A&M defense with 11 tackles, 2.0 for loss, in the win over Auburn.
Russell has given the Aggies reliable production off the bench this season, tallying 12 tackles, including 2.0 TFL and 2.0 sacks ... In the win over Arkansas, Russell scored the first touchdown of his career when he got ahold of a tipped pass and returned it 16 yards to the end zone to lengthen A&M's lead in the third quarter.
As a unit, the linebackers accounted for more than half of A&M's tackles for loss and sacks in the win over Auburn, as they tallied 6.5 of the team's 15.0 TFL and 4.0 of the team's 7.0 sacks.

NO FLY ZONE

The A&M secondary has shut down the opposition's passing game, landing the Aggies among the nation's best in total defense, passing defense and pass breakups ... Veteran leader and fifth-year starter Demani Richardson leads the group with 19 total tackles on the season.
Graduate transfer Josh DeBerry burst on the scene in the season opener, filling out the stat sheet and leading the way in his first game in the Maroon & White ... DeBerry matched his single-game career highs from Boston College with 10 tackles, a solo sack, a pick and a hurry.
A&M is first in the SEC and 10th in the country with 23 pass breakups on the season ... DeBerry leads the way as he is tied for third among league players with six passes defended, while junior Tyreek Chappell is tied for sixth in the SEC with four breakups on the year.
The Aggies currently lead the league in total defense (253.8 y/g), boasting the No. 9 passing defense in the nation as they allow just 157.6 yards per game through the air, good for second in the SEC, and have held four of their five opponents to less than 135 passing yards.
Under Coach Fisher, the Aggies have limited their opponent to less that 100 passing yards on 10 occasions, recently holding Auburn to just 56 yards through the air in the SEC opener after allowing just 95 passing yards in the win over ULM.
Richardson leads all defensive players with two career touchdowns, recording 82- and 27-yard fumble returns to the end zone in the wins over No. 10 Arkansas and No. 6 LSU, respectively, last season.

DEPTH ON THE D-LINE

A&M boasts one of the most talented and unpredictable defensive lines in the nation this season, led by the veteran experience of senior McKinnley Jackson on the inside and consistent production from junior Shemar Turner on the outside.
Jackson and Turner have been joined in the starting lineup by junior Fadil Diggs and sophomore Walter Nolen in four of the five games so far this season, while the Aggies have consistently used a full second rotation in every game this season that played in at least 11 games a season ago.
The line plays a vital role in the Aggies leading the SEC and ranking in the top five in the country in total defense (253.8 y/g), tackles for loss (49.0) and sacks (20.0) ... In its pair of SEC victories, A&M made it back-to-back games with 15.0 TFL and 7.0 sacks.
A&M ranks 21st in the nation in rushing defense (96.2 y/g) and has given up just one rushing score all season .. The line has been successful in limiting the run game early this season, holding both New Mexico (91) and Miami (77) to less than 100 yards on the ground, marking the first time the Aggies have done so since the 2021 season.
As a unit, the defensive line has been a key part of the Aggies' success in shutting down their opponents on third downs as they lead the league and rank third nationally allowing just seven conversions on 34 attempts this season, good for a 23.4 conversion percentage.
Individually, Turner leads the team and ranks sixth in the SEC with 6.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks ... Nolen has earned a starting job in SEC play and leads all Aggie defensive linemen with 19 tackles on the year, while his 6.0 TFL tie him for seventh in the SEC.