Aggies Dominate Warhawks, 47-3

Saturday, September 16

Bryan-College Station

3:00 PM

Texas A&M

2-1 , 0-0

ULM

2-1 , 0-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

ULM

Texas A&M

Photo by: Sydney Morriss/Texas A&M Athletics

Sep 16, 2023 | Football

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Athletics Communications

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- The Texas A&M Aggies scored on their first seven drives in a 47-3 rout of the ULM Warhawks Saturday afternoon at Kyle Field.

Texas A&M outgained ULM in total offense yards for the day to the tune of 557-222. Ol' Sarge's charges owned a 399-95 advantage in passing yardage.

Back in the win column. #BTHOulm ? pic.twitter.com/xQzH8tOVfH
— Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) September 16, 2023

Conner Weigman registered his second consecutive 300-yard passing day, going 25-for-29 with 337 yards and one touchdown. He came up one yard shy of his career high. Max Johnson completed 7-of-11 passes for 62 yards and one touchdown off the bench.

Texas A&M's defense held ULM to just eight first downs in the game, including four through the first three quarters. The Aggies held the Warhawks to 1-of-12 on 3rd-down conversions with their first successful attempt coming on the final drive.

Ainias Smith led the receiving corps with seven catches for 127 yards, his first 100-yard game of the season and the fifth of his career. Jahdae Walker added five receptions for 110 yards and one TD. The duo racked up over 100 yards apiece before halftime.

Texas A&M rolled to 359 yards of total offense in the first half, spearheaded by Weigman's passing. The sophomore quarterback connected on 19-of-23 for 287 yards and one TD through the air. He also scampered for a 19-yard score midway through the second quarter as the Aggies staked claim to a 17-3 edge.

about that aggieland action ??#GigEm pic.twitter.com/BTF6Ddqzui
— Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) September 17, 2023

The Aggies' two other first half touchdowns were a 12-yard Weigman-to-Walker aerial strike with 2:26 remaining in the first quarter and a 4-yard Amari Daniels run with :48 remaining in the first half. The Maroon & White led 27-3 at the intermission.

Texas A&M scored on a 21-yard Rueben Owens rush at the 5:54 mark of the third quarter and Johnson tossed a 13-yard pass to Raymond Cottrell early in the fourth quarter for the Aggies' second half touchdowns.

The Aggie ground game averaged 4.8 yards per carry and totaled 158 on the day. Owens led the rushing attack with 51 yards one eight totes. Le'Veon Moss added 46 yards on eight runs.

Randy Bond was 4-for-4 on field goals, including hitting a career-long 52-yarder with 7:11 left in the fourth quarter to cap the game's scoring.

Team Notes

The Aggies finished with 557 yards of total offense, marking the most yards of total offense for the team since putting up 595 yards in the 2021 season opener against Kent State.
Texas A&M saw two receivers rack up over 100 yards in the win as Ainias Smith tallied 127 receiving yards and Jahdae Walker finished with 110, giving the Aggies a 100-yard receiver in three consecutive games for the first time since 2012 when Ryan Swope had 111 at Alabama (11/10), Uzoma Nwachukwu had 160 vs Sam Houston (11/17) and Malcolme Kennedy had 110 in the regular-season finale vs Missouri (11/24).
Three different Aggies recorded a rushing touchdown in the same game for the first time since Nov. 20, 2021, versus Prairie View A&M.
A&M's 132 total points though three games are the most through the first three games of a season since the 2018 campaign.
The Aggies are 27-7 at Kyle Field under head coach Jimbo Fisher, boasting a 14-2 record against non-SEC opponents in Kyle Field since Fisher's arrival.
Since 2010, A&M is 38-2 at Kyle Field against conference opponents.
The Aggies move to 32-5 when scoring first and are 30-2 when leading after the first quarter.
Today's captains against ULM were OL Layden Robinson, DL McKinnley Jackson, DL Fadil Diggs and WR Ainias Smith.

Individual Notes

Sophomore QB Conner Weigman registered his second 300-yard passing game of the season and the third of his career, finishing the ULM game with 337 yards through the air. He accounted for two touchdowns, throwing for one and rushing for another.
The game was Weigman's most efficient passing game of his career, connecting on 25-of-29 passes, an 86.2 percent clip, the highest by an Aggie since 1996.
Junior transfer WR Jahdae Walker scored the first touchdown of his A&M career on a 12-yard end zone strike from Weigman to extend the Aggie lead late in the first quarter. He finished with a career-best 110 yards receiving on five catches and a TD.
Graduate WR Ainias Smith recorded the fifth 100-yard game of his career, racking up 127 yards on seven catches. Smith's 23-yard reception in the first quarter gave him 30-consecutive games with at least one reception, which ranks as the 10^thlongest streak in the nation.
Smith became the 20^th Aggie to reach 3,000 career all-purpose yards, doing so on a 32-yard grab in the second quarter. He now has 3,059 all-purpose yards in his career.
Smith made it 30 straight games with a reception, a streak that dates back to the 2019 season. It is the longest streak of games with at least one catch for an Aggie since Christian Kirk (2015-17) had a string of 39 games from 2015-17.
Freshman RB Rueben Owens scored the first rushing touchdown of his career as the led the backs with nine attempts for 51 yards.
Junior PLK Randy Bond's 52-yard field goal in the fourth quarter was a new career long for the Aggie kicker and the second of his career of over 50 yards. His previous career long was a 51-yarder at South Carolina in 2022.
Bond finished with four made field goals, tied for the sixth most in a single game in A&M history. He is now 20-for-26 on field goals in his career and his 76.8 percentage is currently the fourth best field-goal percentage in program history.

Postgame Quotes: Jimbo Fisher
(courtesy Caption Pros)

COACH FISHER: Yeah, guys did a nice job today. Good thing, very efficient day, in my opinion.

In the phases, all three of them, offensive, defensive, special teams. I think we scored the first seven times we had it offensively. Got good balance. Managed the ball. Spread it around, made good decisions. Got the balls to tight ends. Backs, receivers ran the football. Protected pretty well.

Defensively, played well. Gave up three points on the day. They had one deep ball on it. Got down and managed that. And the rest of the day, I thought they did a really nice job.

Special teams, we covered kicks well. Kicked the field goals we hit. Hit one good 53-yarder, which was great to see. We had one punt on the day. Got it down to the 1.

You know, Nik [Constantinou] always does a great job of punting that thing. And he has a way to stick that thing, does a good job. So very efficient day, what we needed. Had a good practice.

And now we got to get ready. Got the season beginning next week with SEC play and got a really good Auburn team coming in.

Proud of the guys. Got to play a lot of guys. Got to play a lot of different guys. Got more reps for guys. It's better to get those guys on the field. The more you get them out there, the better it's going to be as the season goes on because you got to keep building your depth. And you have to play those twos and even those threes as the season goes on in different scenarios. So It was really good to see that.

And some of our young receivers got some nice balls. Jahdae Walker had a really nice day on the day. Great to see. Got the ball in Zero's (Ainias Smith) hands a lot more this week.

Moose [Muhammad] got some balls. Jake Johnson got some balls. So we got it distributed a little bit. Did a nice job.

Q. Wanted to ask how Evan Stewart is doing? And also if you had an update on Noah Thomas?

COACH FISHER: They should be fine. They'll both should be fine.

Q. And Mark Nabou at center over Bryce Foster, what went into that?

COACH FISHER: Well, Bryce [Foster] he was available, but I didn't think he was quite healthy. He didn't feel he was quite healthy enough. It was good, we don't want to take any chances on that. And Mark [Nabou] played center all camp and starting. As a matter of fact, two-thirds of camp, he was our starting center. Did a really nice job in the game. Made calls, it's great. When you got another guy out there doing that, it really helped. And Kam [Dewberry] was playing guard, so it worked out really well.

Q. Jimbo, how pleased have you been with Conner [Weigman]'s deep ball this season?

COACH FISHER: Very well. Good decision making, getting the ball out, being efficient and getting his feet right. When his feet are right, and he drives it down the field and being more accurate with it.

Q. When you look at the running back position, today you had all three guys have eight carries or more. How confident are you with the running back by committee?

COACH FISHER: I like him. And we're going to keep doing it. Some guys will get hot at times and they won't. But it's good to get the reps early in then the season. Guys are getting quality reps or picking up blitzes or catching -- and also they're catching balls out of the backfield. They're all caught balls out of the backfield. They're doing a good job there. So it's great. And as you know, that position is a physical position. And you got to have numbers there to get through the season, especially in SEC.

Q. You mentioned [Jahdae] Walker earlier. What do you think was the key today?

COACH FISHER: He's played that way since he's been there, in camp, in spring. He's been that guy. He's got a lot of juice, a lot of energy. He's got size, ball skills. He's just been a very efficient guy for us and played just a matter of him getting through the jitters and getting on the field and playing. And getting him going is big. Because he's got size, speed, athleticism. He's a really good player.

Q. Jimbo, on Conner [Weigman], again, even though the competition probably is a step down from last week, do you look at him from week to week, Can you see significant growth?

COACH FISHER: Yeah, and I think even calls, like protection calls and blitzes and getting your line slid to pick things up and different looks. A lot of things that don't show up in a box. You know what I mean, like a completion or a touchdown or things like that. Managing the game. Checks, seeing coverages, numbers and getting us in the right runs, getting us in the right protections. The quarterback has a lot of responsibility in that regard. Sometimes when you guys blame a line, which it looks like and I get it, sometimes they need to slide the protection the other way to help to get the calls. And each week there's a lot of things and just his knowledge and picking things up and how quick he's doing it just gets better and better and better, and his efficiency goes up.

Q. Such a dominant win today. I know you always say you got to look at film. I get it. Is there anything off the top of your head you're uneasy with or you said, "I wish we were better here"?

COACH FISHER: I think we could have scored a couple more touchdowns and kicked a couple field goals and got tied up in the red zone there a little bit. We had some, but I thought we had a couple of opportunities there. I thought we should have scored one or two more in what we did.

Hopefully you don't give up any deep balls, but when people throw one-on-ones on you, you're going to get one every now and then. Try to get those eliminated.

No, for the most part, I mean, the efficiency of not turning guys loose. Missed blocks. And they're unorthodoxed on defense. They do some different things that are different than a lot of folks that really make you test from the mental aspect of how you do things. But those things right now just thinking about it.

Q. Just to clarify, Evan Stewart was an injury?

COACH FISHER: Mm-hmm.

Q. And two more, Tyreek Chappell and Chase Bisontis.

COACH FISHER: Tyreek was knicked up, too, and just didn't feel good.

Chase was good. Got knicked up there at there at the end. And we held him and playing [Dametrious] Crown (Crownover) anyway, because Crown was playing so well. We knew it. And he was playing really well. And he got knicked up there right before half. So we said shut him down and give Crown some work.

Q. And how would you rate -- how did you like how your defense came back from last week's game to --

COACH FISHER: I thought they did a really nice job. We tackled well. We played well up front.

The two plays that got me going on the fourth down, they switched the blocking look and how we fit it on the outside. On the quarterback, we got two guys on the back and one should have been on the back and one on the quarterback. Other than that, I thought we played -- just off the top of my head, a really good day.

Q. Jimbo, you talked him about a little bit, but [Dametrious] Crownover getting in, in the second half and then --

COACH FISHER: He played some in the first two.

Q. And then [Mark] Nabou, how do you think those two guys played?

COACH FISHER: Oh, great. Nabou, he was starting center for probably two-thirds of camp. So he was in there doing and playing guard with us.

And I've told you the whole time, Crownover, to me, is a starter. I've considered Crownover a starter since camp began. This guy, since spring and camp, has done a great job and feel extremely comfortable with him in the game and playing and doing really well.

Q. How would you assess the pass rush? It was something you talked about last game.

COACH FISHER: They were a little different in that they were an RPO team so you had to play the run to RPO. We got two or three sacks, got some pressures on him, got a couple good hits. Seemed it was pretty god. Again, I'll look at the film to judge it totally.

But I think they had -- we did a good job controlling the pocket. And they had some designed bootlegs, which gets extra guys and tried to move the pocket. We seemed to get good pressure on him, and he stayed under pressure most of the day. I'll re-evaluate when I look at the film.

Q. Do you feel like Conner [Weigman] has gotten a lot more comfortable, not just taking off to run-for-yards purposes, but in terms of knowing how to kind of manage his body?

COACH FISHER: You got to run for a reason. You don't just run to run and when it's there and do things.

And there's a couple things. Again, as efficient as he played, there's still two or three little things that we could have really cleaned up a couple little things and almost been a perfect day. He'll be the guy that will tell you that. But he's doing a really good job. Just has a good feel for the game and pocket presence and things that go with that.

Q. Coach, did you see today what you wanted to see since you got SEC play that starts next week?

COACH FISHER: We were efficient. There's always things you want better. But I think where we're at, I think our mental game as far as where we're at in competing and our psychological disposition of our team was in a good place. I liked how we came out in the game. I liked how we practiced all week. I like the focus we have.

Now, got to take to it the field and got the SEC schedule coming. So the gauntlet is coming.

Q. Jimbo, your connections with the Bowdens are obviously well-documented. What was it like going against Terry today?

COACH FISHER: It was fine. It wasn't as awkward as I thought it would.

Listen, he's a competitor, too. That guy's one, and I'm a competitor. We do it and then afterwards, just like in practice, if I was running the scout team, he was running the good team, we would be over there going at it. That's the way it was back in the old days.

It was great. And they got some good players. They got some skill guys and receivers and guys that can make some plays. They ought to do good in that league.

Q. Did you guys share any memories? Did he share any words of wisdom?

COACH FISHER: Just family and friends, just people and a couple things. No really stories or anything like that. Just wishing each other good luck. And glad we're still able to be doing it at the age we're doing, and that goes back to 1983. We've been doing it a long time. And very fortunate to do what you love to do for a long period of time.

Postgame Quotes: Fadil Diggs

Q. Fadil, how do you think you guys on the defensive bounced back after last week's disappointment in Miami?

FADIL DIGGS: I thought we did a great job just doing our assignments this week. Started off in practice, that first day back, we told ourselves, everybody got to do their 1:11. And I think that's the best thing we did this week. And also stopping the run and defending the pass.

Q. What was the message set by the veterans this past week in practice?

FADIL DIGGS: Just put how you want to play on film. Because, like, last week, going into Miami, it was a bad testament, punching them out basically. And we wanted to put our effort on film and change that so other people can think different of us.

Q. You guys held them to 1 of 12 on third down. How do you carry that same mentality over to next week against a team that also is known for being able to run it on the ground?

FADIL DIGGS: Because, like, just keep the quarterback in the pocket, constrict the pocket. Just get them uncomfortable and get them to make tough throws.

Q. Fadil, Coach [Fisher] talked about in terms of getting pressure on the quarterback with the RPO game that they lean on heavily. What was that like for you guys as a unit, obviously, shut the run down first but try to keep the quarterback uncomfortable? Seemed like you did for the most part today.

FADIL DIGGS: I would say it was pretty good for us. Because our game plan this week was we were more aggressive up front. We tied it down, make sure we stop the run, like you said. And getting the ball. It was giving us more freedom, basically, to play aggressive.

Q. Fadil, did you get the answers that you wanted and the good feeling you felt like you need to get ready for SEC play that starts next week?

FADIL DIGGS: Yes, sir. Just getting this win is great for us going into the SEC schedule because, you know, giving us confidence, giving the guys on offensive and defensive side, just that juice going into the week.

Q. Little bit of a different question for you, but I just wonder, even though you're on defense, do y'all have an opportunity, do you ever have that opportunity to watch what Conner [Weigman] is doing when he's out there? And if so, do you have any reaction to what you see?

FADIL DIGGS: After we make adjustments, yeah, we get time to watch Conner [Weigman] just work. And I already know how Conner is going to play every week because I see it in practice firsthand. So yeah, it's just amazing watching him play and just having fun out there. That's my reaction.

Q. Anything specific that got your attention today?

FADIL DIGGS: He get my attention every week. He just plays great football.

Q. How do you stay fresh, with a weather delay like there was today, especially not knowing when y'all will get a chance to come out and play without knowing the exact time?

FADIL DIGGS: We got to control what we can control. You know, we can't control the weather, obviously. We just make sure we all stay focused and go over our notes that we have to go over and just wait for our time for our number to get called.

Postgame Quotes: Trey Zuhn III

Q. How did you feel that you guys performed as a unit after what you went through last week in Miami? And what did you guys really focus on this week in practice after seeing the film?

TREY ZUHN: I think we played really well. I think played our game, the standard. We held ourselves up to the standard. Last week, we didn't play up to the standard for ourselves. In practice this week, we really focused on playing our game, being confident, playing with confidence, playing for each other. So that's what we focus odd lightning this game.

Q. Just looking back from fall camp to now, where have you seen the most improvements in the run blocking?

TREY ZUHN: I think as a whole, we've just gained confidence in each other that we know where we're going. We know they're going to take the right steps, they guys next to us. So I think just the confidence to be able to run off the ball and move people.

Q. How do you carry that motivation over in practice next week going into conference play?

TREY ZUHN: Now that we go into conference play, the margin of error shrinks down quite a bit. So we need to stay focused and be ready to play our game next week.

Q. In building from last week, when you have a sub at the center position, what are the challenges? Or is it easy to kind of continue to build that chemistry and that continuity with a little bit of a different lineup in there?

TREY ZUHN: I think we didn't really have any struggle at all. We all have faith in the guys -- we know who can play. We've got seven or eight guys who can go in at any moment. So we have faith in those guys that they know what they're doing and that they'll get the job done.

Q. Jimbo [Fisher] talked about this a little bit, but how do you think Conner [Weigman] did today as far as stuff like sliding protections and just knowing where everything is, as compared to what he was like the last couple weeks?

TREY ZUHN: I think he did great. He really studied. He knew where pressures would be coming from, and we did as well. So I don't get to see Conner work very much. He's always behind me. I just have faith he's going to do what he does because I see him work every day in practice.

Q. You probably don't get to really look at [Mark] Nabou and [Dametrious] Crownover and now how well they're doing. But just what you have seen from them today and also in practice this off-season?

TREY ZUHN: Like I said, we've got seven or eight guys, we know those are the guys that work their butt off in practice every day. So we have faith that they can go in and not drop the rope at all and not leave anything on the table.

Q. Coach talked about a little, if you were to get nitpicky with today's game in the red zone, kind of close to the end zone, some good drives, some drives that stalled out. Where do you feel like y'all are in terms of progressing in those areas? And how would you evaluate everything today?

TREY ZUHN: Just something we need to work on this week in practice, finishing those drives. There were a couple drives we either got to the red zone and had to settle for three points instead of a touchdown. Or we didn't get those points. So we just need to work on finishing those drives out. And keeping it all gas, no brakes.

Q. Talking about all gas and no brakes, I guess, maybe your ability -- Conner [Weigman] throws the ball well, and you've got really good receivers. But on the flip side, being able to run the ball when you need to, do you feel like that's where you're at going into SEC play?

TREY ZUHN: I think so, definitely. I have faith in our O-line, our receivers, our running backs, our quarterback. We can damage them all over the field. We can run the ball, pass the ball, do whatever we need to do.

Postgame Quotes: Bryce Anderson

Q. What was the message set by the defense? Mainly the veterans, on how to game plan for this week after last week's performance?

BRYCE ANDERSON: Really about focusing on the little details, the little things on offense Monday through Friday. We have to prepare well. We can't do the things we did last week. We have to fix the things we didn't do last week and do those this week. So that was the message, to focus on the little details and play with maximum effort.

Q. And when you look at the secondary, not having the two main guys with Tyreek [Chappell] and Jordan [Jefferson], how different was it? And how well do you feel confidently about the guys filling in for them?

BRYCE ANDERSON: The guys like Jacoby [Mathews] came in. I feel like he played very well. Me and him been playing together since sophomore high school, seven on seven. So we got this chemistry and bond going. But I feel like I click great with whoever is playing in the game. All those guys are great. All those guys play different roles, but they all play real good football.

Q. Yeah, to kind of piggyback off that, how early in the week did you know there was going to be depth guys coming into the game? Yeah, how early in the week did you know that?

BRYCE ANDERSON: Monday we knew that. Monday we had the depth going, and we just stayed focused on, This is what we did. This is how we're going to play no matter who is in the game. We're going to play up to the standard.

Q. And after last week's game, do you feel like the secondary took a step forward? And is there challenges to doing that when you're playing a lot of depth guys?

BRYCE ANDERSON: Most definitely. We have to meet the standard every game. We got Auburn next week, Arkansas after that. I think, we have to meet the standard of those guys day in, day out, starting Monday through Friday.

Q. What have you seen from Jahdae [Walker] since his time being here?

BRYCE ANDERSON: It takes some guys even from big programs to big programs to adjust. For him to jump up all these levels and make himself available to be the factor he was today, Bryce since day one, he's been that guy, basically. He's been a big-hype guy, big-effort guy. Leading the team. Very vocal. It was just a matter of time before y'all seen what he can do. But it's been since day one, since he's been there.

Q. And you touched on it, he's the player on the team who gets more hyped after any play he makes or the team makes. Seems like he brings the energy. And how would you rate his celebration?

BRYCE ANDERSON: Every day he makes us match his energy, his level of excitement, his level of enthusiasm for the game. We're very happy for him. And we're excited that he's getting his chance.

Q. Bryce, can you kind of talk about maybe how exciting it is for you guys to start SEC play. And do you feel like that you're ready after today's performance?

BRYCE ANDERSON: I definitely feel like we're ready. Like I said, as long as we prepare the right way Monday through Friday, I feel like there's no team in the nation that can play with us.

Q. Bryce, just when you look back and you get the opportunity, do you ever feel enamored by the way Conner [Weigman]'s played?

BRYCE ANDERSON: What do you mean by that?

Q. Do you feel like there's a wow factor?

BRYCE ANDERSON: Yeah, Conner brings a different level to the game. No matter how the game is going, he's on the sideline, keeps his head up. If he threw a pick, we tell him, We got you. We feed off of each other, I feel like.

Postgame Quotes: Ainias Smith

Q. Just looking back from the start of fall camp to now, where have you seen the most growth and the confidence in Conner [Weigman]?

AINIAS SMITH: Man, there's a lot of things that I can say about C-weg. You know what I'm saying? I feel like his growth has showed up more in his leadership. You know what I'm saying?

I always talk about how he is as a leader. He's definitely grown up a lot. I don't know if y'all can see, but on the sideline, he's trying to make sure everybody is staying where he is.

And his energy is always high. It's always on go. And I feel like that's his biggest improvement to me, just being able to take, I guess you could say, negative energy and turn it into positive energy. When things aren't going right, his energy is always going to be high. When things are going good, his energy is always going to be high. You know what I'm saying?

He's never the type -- me personally, I haven't seen him try to joke around. Even at the end of the game, he was still making sure, like, people are staying in the game, encouraging everybody. So just a great leader.

Q. And then you guys are really well loaded at the wide receiver position in terms of depth purposes. But when you look at last year with Devon [Achane] and then this year with three different guys who are averaging the same amount of carries but each of them finding the success, are you happy by with how the run game has looked so far?

AINIAS SMITH: First, give props to the O-line. You know what I'm saying? Them boys have worked all through spring, all the way up until to now, and they are still working now. You know what I'm saying? Coach [Steve] Addazio has gotten them boys right.

The communication up front has definitely helped, you know what I'm saying, those guys be able to get the ball in space and just create plays with that.

But man, I'm loving the way that the rotation is going. All of them boys had the potential to do great things. You know what I'm saying? And as you seen today, all three of them have the ability to go turn up with it at any moment.

So I mean, I'm happy for all of them. I'm glad that, you know what I'm saying, all them boys are being able to touch the rock a little bit more and being used. But I'm just glad to see them boys eat.

Q. All week one of the refrains was, Got to get Zero (Ainias Smith) the ball. Got to get Zero the ball. How do you feel about getting the ball?

AINIAS SMITH: I feel good. I just want to make the team win, help the team win. You know what I'm saying?

I definitely feel good though, can't lie. I touched the rock a little bit today. I think Coach (Jimbo Fisher) had told me I had like seven for, like, 120-something. So I mean, it definitely feels good. I'm definitely honored. You know what I'm saying? It felt good. I'm just blessed. That's all I can say, for real. I'm just blessed.

Q. After the loss last week, how big was it for you guys to come in and play a good game and get back on-track before SEC play started?

AINIAS SMITH: Man, our mindset was, like, this is the SEC. You know what I'm saying? We got to start preparing for the SEC this week. It was huge.

If we would have came out slow and all of that, if we put all of that on film, then Auburn would have been able to take advantage of that in any way they could have or whatever on the film.

But I'm glad we came out the way we did. The whole mentality was really just, let's go ahead and attack this week. Let all of that go in the past. You know what I'm saying? It's in the past now. We're not able to worry about it. So we have to move forward, and I feel like that's what we did today.

Q. Just two questions on Jahdae [Walker]. First off, what stood out to you in terms of him coming in and jumping all these levels in classification and having the impact he had early? And side note, you touched on with it Conner [Weigman], but it seems like the energy he brings, especially to that receiving corps, is kind of unmatched. What's it like playing with a guy like that? And how would you rate his first touchdown celebration?

AINIAS SMITH: Man, Jahdae [Walker] been the dog. You know what I'm saying? I remember first meeting him. It's a crazy backstory. I was in tempo working in the off-season, I believe last year, before last season. And I was watching him work then. And I'm like, This guy got energy. Like, Where is he from? What school did he go to? I didn't know. You know what I'm saying?

But then I had saw that he had got an offer from us. And I'm like, Oh, yeah? Like, I got to hit that boy up. And then he hit me up. He was like, what you think? I'm like, Bro, come on, what you mean?

So yeah, he had got on the squad and whatnot. And first day, energetic. You know what I'm saying? Just being who he was. I'm like, okay, yeah, we can do something with this. You know what I'm saying? And he ain't never switched up. So I'm excited for him.

I was excited for him when he had scored. The celebration was tough. We were talking about it. I wish I was on the field with him so we can do a handshake into the celebration. But it was all good. He turned up, so I'm proud of him for sure.

Q. With the way you guys ran the ball and how Conner [Weigman] distributed with the receivers, do you feel like you're giving Auburn something to think about when they come in here next week?

AINIAS SMITH: Man, I'm pretty sure every team, you know what I'm saying, is thinking about us. We try to not look forward. But I know Auburn is our next opponent and whatnot. And I know they're definitely, I guess you could say -- I know they're studying their film. You know what I'm saying?

They're definitely going to have to look into what we have on the offensive side because we definitely have, you know what I'm saying, some guys on the offensive side that can make some plays.

I don't know what Auburn is going to do. I haven't looked at their film yet. I'm going to be doing that tonight, as a matter of fact. So we'll see.

Q. Is there something to be said with the catches you put and the yards you put up today about kind of getting into a rhythm like that in a game like this? That gives you a little momentum moving forward?

AINIAS SMITH: You can always say that games like this will move you forward and give you confidence and whatnot. But at the same time, we got to go on to the next week. So definitely give -- I'm glad that Conner [Weigman] was able to give me the ball. I'm pretty sure that gave him a little bit more confidence in me. And we just got to keep moving forward. So when it comes to next week, I mean, we just got to execute just like we did today. It's not really too much to say about it. You just got to execute.

Q. When you first met [Jahdae] Walker in Tampa, what was it that stood out about his game? And how has he even grown since then too?

AINIAS SMITH: When I first met him, he had like a shirt tied around him. I'm not able to explain it right now. But it was like a long-sleeved shirt. Almost looked like he was part of the Taliban in a way. But he was tall. He was a tall guy. You know what I'm saying? And I was like, man, this dude can move. You know what I'm saying, for him to be that tall. And then he had sure hands. Every time I saw that boy, he was out there, no gloves, catching everything, one-hand, all types. I'm like, yeah, he's got some juice to him.

And once he got here, it was like, he was on top of everything. He was staying extra hours with Coach (Jimbo Fisher) trying to make sure he learned the playbook. Staying extra hours by himself, getting extra jugs, doing everything it took to be great. Proof is in the pudding.

Q. What was working with the deep ball tonight? And talk about the chemistry between you and Conner [Weigman]?

AINIAS SMITH: Man, I already try to tell my coaches since I've been here that I was a deep threat. I already told them boys that I can go deep. It's something we've been working on all camp since [Bobby] Petrino got here, it was like we were going deep a little bit more. So we had to work on it more. And the more we worked on it, the more confidence that all of us got in Conner [Weigman] and all the guys, you know what I'm saying. We just knew that it was destined for us to go deep.

Q. And then there were some first-year receivers like Jordan Anthony, Raymond Cottrell getting good catches out there. What's it like to see them get the playing time and make the receptions?

AINIAS SMITH: Man, I'm proud of them boys. All of them. Micah Tease, Ray, Jordan (Anthony), man, they've grown so much. And I'm just glad to see that the work is being shown. The boys got their opportunity. And they capitalized, so I'm proud of them.

Q. Two questions for you. I don't know if you knew this, but today's game brought you to top 10 all-time in career receiving yards at A&M? Did you know that? And how much does that mean to you?

AINIAS SMITH: I didn't know that. That's crazy. Top 10? I'm going for one. Forget all that 10 stuff. Keep giving me the rock, Coach. I'm going to turn up with it.

And then what did you say?

Q. The other part was just coming off the Miami loss, y'all's response to it, how different was y'all's response to that compared to how y'all would respond to losses last year?

AINIAS SMITH: Oh, man, I feel like the urgency was there. Coach (Jimbo Fisher) was always talking about we got to bring more urgency. The first couple days, a few of our guys, I'm not going to lie, had their heads down just because they're coming off a loss.

And both myself and Coach Jimbo, we were trying to get to the team, like, don't feel bad for yourself or, like, don't victimize yourself. We got to go. Like forget all that.

And like going back to when you had asked me, like, this week was -- we were taking it as an SEC week. So we wasn't able to look back and be down on ourselves and feel sorry for ourselves just because we took an L. Everybody takes Ls. But it's about the bounce back. And that was our whole message. We got to come harder than hard. And I feel like that's what we did.

We still made some mistakes. I feel like we can come even harder, so we're going to see. Thank y'all and God bless. Gig 'em.