Saturday, October 26
Bryan-College Station
6:30 PM
Texas A&M
vs
LSU
No. 14 A&M, No. 8 LSU Ready to Clash at Sold-Out Kyle Field
Oct 25, 2024 | Football
No. 14 Texas A&M and No. 8 LSU are set to battle under the lights at a sold-out Kyle Field on Saturday night (6:30 p.m., ABC) in a battle of the SEC's top two teams.
COUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF
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Secs(#8) LSU at (#14) Texas A&M
Saturday, October 26, 2024 • 6:44 PM CT
Kyle Field • Bryan-College Station
Weather: mostly sunny, high 80s
WATCH
TV: ABC (Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Holly Rowe)
Watch Live: ESPN App
LISTEN
Radio: Texas A&M Sports Network (Andrew Monaco, Dave Elmendorf, Will Johnson)
1620 AM/94.5 FM (local), SiriusXM 84
Listen Live: 12th Man Mobile App
Spanish Broadcast: Click Here (Pedro Luna, Michel Gonzalez)
102.7 FM (local)
Listen Live: 12th Man Mobile App
FOLLOW
Live Stats: Click Here
Social Media: @AggieFootball on X
LSU Tigers (6-1, 3-0)
- RANKING: AP: #8 / Coaches: #7
- LAST GAME: Oct. 19
- #8 LSU 34, at Arkansas 10
- HEAD COACH: Brian Kelly (Assumption '83)
- Overall Record: 289-104 (35th season)
- at LSU: 26-8 (3rd season)
- vs. Texas A&M: 1-1
Texas A&M Aggies (6-1, 4-0)
- RANKING: AP: #14 / Coaches: #14
- Last Game: Oct. 19
- #14 A&M 34, at Mississippi State 24
- HEAD COACH: Mike Elko (Penn ‘99)
- Overall Record: 22-10 (3rd Season)
- at Texas A&M: 6-1 (1st Season)
- vs. LSU: 0-0
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
- Texas A&M and LSU have traded outcomes with the home team coming out victorious in each of the last seven meetings ... The Aggies took down the top-10 Tigers, 38-23, the last time they came to Kyle Field in 2022.
- The Aggies boast one of the best rushing offenses in the nation, ranking 13th with 218.6 yards per game, while their SEC-best 5.4 yards per carry average as a team is good for 20th in the country.
- Junior RB Le’Veon Moss leads the strong Aggie rushing attack, ranking second in the SEC and 25th nationally with 96.3 yards per game, while his eight rushing scores are the fifth-most in the league ... Moss made it back-to-back games with multiple trips to the end zone with a pair of rushing scores at Mississippi State for his third multi-TD game of the year.
- Sophomore QB Conner Weigman returned for the Aggies in Week 6, leading them to a big victory over top-10 Missouri, connecting on 18-of-22 passes for a season-best 276 yards, and later made it four straight for the Aggies in SEC play with a victory at Mississippi State, marking their best conference start since 2016.
- Texas A&M has been efficient in the red zone as it ranks seventh in the country and second in the SEC with a 96.3 conversion rate ... The Aggies have scored on 26 of 27 trips, including 19 touchdowns.
- Sophomore LB Taurean York became the first Aggie this season to tally double-digit tackles as he posted a career-high 12 in the win at Mississippi State and led the team in the category for the third time this year ... York and fellow linebackers junior Scooby Williams and sophomore Daymion Sanford accounted for 25 tackles, 4.5 for loss, three breakups and a pick in the road win.
- Junior DL Nic Scourton has come on strong in league play, tallying 8.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks through four SEC games and has registered at least 1.0 tackle for loss in six of the team’s seven games this season ... He ranks sixth in the nation and second in the SEC with 11.0 tackles for loss on the season, while his 4.5 sacks are good for eighth in the league..
QUICK HITS
- The Aggies’ offensive line has controlled the battle in the trenches while clearing the way for A&M’s top-15 rushing attack, as the unit ranks second in the SEC and seventh nationally allowing 21.0 tackles for loss and its 7.0 sacks allowed rank second among league teams and 18th in the country.
- Junior RB Amari Daniels has played a key role in the Aggies’ success in the run game, ranking among the top-25 in the SEC with 41.7 yards per game while his five rushing scores are good for 10th in the SEC.
- The A&M defense has brought the pressure, especially on third down, ranking 16th in the country as it holds opponents to just a 30.9 conversion rate and also ranks among the top-20 in the country holding teams to just 17.7 points per game.
- The Aggies have held their opponents to 100-or-fewer yards on the ground in four of the last five games, most recently limiting Missouri to just 68 yards ... A&M has not allowed a rushing score in its last two games and its five touchdowns allowed on the ground this season are the 11th-fewest in the nation.
- The Maroon & White have disrupted the opposition’s aerial attack, tallying eight picks on the season, which is tied for third in the SEC and 26th nationally, while their 38 passes defended rank among the top-20 in the country and top-five in the league.
- Junior DB Will Lee III has brought veteran leadership to the secondary and ranks eighth nationally with nine passes defended while his eight breakups are the seventh-most in the country ... He ranks second on the team with 28 tackles, 26 of which are solo takedowns which are good for 14th in the SEC.
- Graduate K Randy Bond tallied 10 points in the win at Mississippi State, marking the 11th time in his career he has scored 10-plus points in a game ... Bond ranks 11th nationally with 13 made field goals this season while his 64 total points are good for 21st.
MILESTONES TO WATCH FOR
- Sophomore QB Conner Weigman continues to climb the Texas A&M record books and is in need of three touchdown passes to crack the top-15 all-time, entering the game with 19 career scoring strikes.
- Junior RB Le’Veon Moss is 84 rushing yards away from moving into the top-40 all-time at A&M with 1,272 to-date.
- Graduate WR Moose Muhammad III ranks 14th in career touchdown receptions at Texas A&M with 11 entering the week and his next scoring grab will move him into a tie with Chad Schroeder (2003-06) for 13th ... Muhammad is also five catches and 44 receiving yards away from cracking the top-30 all-time at A&M.
- Junior WR Noah Thomas is looking for a touchdown catch to move into the top-14 all-time at A&M, entering the week with 10 to-date.
- Graduate K Randy Bond ranks among the top-10 on A&M’s career fields made, extra points made, kicker-only scoring and overall scoring lists ... His 52 made field goals are just four away from fourth all-time ... Bond is eyeing Josh Lambo’s 109 career extra points as he sits in 10th with 98 and his 254 career points are 11 shy of Terry Venetoulias (1990-93) for ninth on the overall scoring list and sixth among kickers only.
QUARTERBACK ROOM
- The Aggies boast proven depth in their quarterback room with three players that have made multiple starts in their A&M careers and each thrown for at least 290 yards and multiple touchdowns in a game.
- Sophomore Conner Weigman began the year as the starter and recently returned after battling an early injury to guide the Aggies to a landslide victory over No. 9 Missouri in Week 6 and made it four straight in league play with a road win over Mississippi State.
- Weigman connected on 18-of-22 passes for a season-best 276 yards, leading the Aggies to victory over a top-10 team for the second time in his career ... In the win over McNeese, Weigman guided the Aggies to touchdowns on all five drives he was in on in the first half, helping A&M take a 38-0 lead into the half.
- Freshman Marcel Reed has filled in nicely for Weigman, leading the Aggies to three straight victories ... In his three starts, Reed was responsible for eight touchdowns while compiling 514 yards through the air and 187 on the ground ... In the win over Bowling Green, Reed became the first Aggie quarterback to rush for 75-or-more yards in back-to-back games since Kellen Mond in 2019.
- Reed garnered SEC Freshman of the Week honors for his performance at Florida after throwing for 178 yards and two scores to go along with 13 carries for 83 yards and a touchdown.
- Junior Jaylen Henderson started the final four games of the 2023 campaign, accounting for four touchdowns in the lopsided win over Mississippi State in his first start for the Maroon & White ... He has completed 53-of-78 passes for 715 yards and six touchdowns as an Aggie, while also adding 104 yards on the ground and two scores.
MAROON GOONS
- The Texas A&M offensive line has been winning the battle in the trenches, playing with great consistency despite having to lean on its reliable depth ... The Maroon Goons have helped the Aggies boast one of the best rushing offenses in the country while also holding strong to protect their quarterbacks.
- The Maroon & White rank seventh in the country and second in the SEC, allowing 21.0 tackles for loss on the year, while their 7.0 sacks allowed are good for second in the league and 18th nationally.
- With the help of the o-line clearing the way, the Aggies rank 13th nationally and second in the SEC averaging 218.6 rushing yards per game and have racked up over 200 yards on the ground in three games this season.
- The line is anchored by junior Trey Zuhn III, who was named a season-long team captain prior to the season and has been a staple at left tackle over the last two years.
- Zuhn started all 13 games last season and has logged 31 career starts as he helped clear the way for a 1,000-yard rusher in 2022 and helped A&M rack up over 400 yards of total offense in eight games last year.
- In the offseason, sophomore Chase Bisontis made the move to left guard after starting all 12 regular season games he played in at right tackle and the bowl game at right guard as a freshman in 2023 ... The Aggies added veteran experience with junior transfers Ar’maj Reed-Adams, who made 15 starts in 31 games played at Kansas and Kolinu’u Faaiu, who played in 16 games with eight of those being starts at center through three seasons at Utah.
- Offensive line coach Adam Cushing joined head coach Mike Elko in Aggieland after two seasons at Duke where his o-line kept its quarterback protected, ranking 12th among Power 5 schools allowing just 17.0 sacks and seventh nationally giving up just 51.0 tackles for loss in 2022 ... Duke also ranked in the top-18 among Power 5 schools in sacks and tackles for loss allowed in 2023.
ELEVATING THE RUN GAME
- Junior running backs Le’Veon Moss and Amari Daniels have made big improvements in the offseason and have been a dynamic duo in the backfield to give the Maroon & White one of the best rushing attacks in the nation.
- Moss ranks 25th nationally and second in the SEC averaging 96.3 yards per game, while his 6.4 yards per carry average is good for third in the SEC ... Moss always battles for the extra yard, racking up 479 yards after contact this year and averaging 4.6 yards after contact per carry which ranks 10th in the country ... A top-20 scorer in the SEC, Moss’ eight rushing scores are good for fifth among league backs.
- At Mississippi State Moss’ two rushing scores marked this third multi-touchdown game of the year, while he also made it back-to-back weeks with multiple scores after making a career-best three trips to the end zone in the win over Missouri ... Moss also registered his third 100-yard game of the season and fourth of his career in the win over the Tigers, tallying a career-high 138 rushing yards.
- Moss had a strong start to his third season in Aggieland, setting a new career high in every category through the first three games of the year ... He posted 20 carries against Notre Dame, scored two touchdowns in the McNeese win and tallied 110 yards in the victory at Florida.
- Daniels recorded his second multi-touchdown game of the season and of his career with a pair of 1-yard scores in the first half against Missouri and joined the 1,000 career yards club with 68 yards on 13 carries in the win at Florida ... He ranks among the top-25 in the league with 41.7 y/g while his five touchdowns are good for 10th in the SEC.
- As a team, the Aggies are No. 13 in the country and second in the SEC in rushing offense, averaging 218.6 yards per game, and their league-best 5.4 yards per carry as a team are good for 20th nationally.
- After eclipsing the 300-yards mark in Week 2, the Maroon & White tallied 310 yards on the ground in the win at Florida, marking the first time they have tallied 300-plus rushing yards in back-to-back games since the 2012 season.
- In the win over McNeese, A&M racked up 333 yards on the ground and five rushing scores, marking the most rushing yards in a game for the Aggies since rushing for over 500 yards against Northwestern State to start the 2018 season and the most rushing scores since reaching the end zone five times on the ground in the Orange Bowl win over North Carolina to cap off the 2020 season.
STEADY BACKER
- Sophomore LB Taurean York immediately stepped into a leadership role as a true freshman in 2023, quarterbacking the defense at mike linebacker, and was selected as a team captain by his teammates ahead of the 2024 season.
- In the win at Mississippi State York led the defense with a career-high 12 tackles, registering the second double-digit tackles game of his career ... He has tallied a team-best total in tackles in three games this season, including nine in the season opener against Notre Dame.
- York’s efforts against the Bulldogs also led an impressive outing from the entire linebacker unit, as junior Scooby Williams recorded his first career interception and returned it 32 yards to set up an A&M touchdown while also adding a career-best 2.0 tackles for loss and six tackles, and sophomore Daymion Sanford nearly doubled his previous career high with seven tackles, 1.0 TFL and two breakups.
- He leads the Aggies with 40 tackles on the year, good for 18th in the SEC, and has recorded five-plus tackles in four of the team’s seven games so far this season.
- York started all 13 games last season, finishing second on the team with 74 tackles, which ranked in the top-20 among SEC players and third among league freshman ... His 8.5 tackles for loss were the most by an SEC freshman a year ago and ranked fourth on the team.
NEW-LOOK SECONDARY
- The Texas A&M secondary has seen a number of new faces in 2024, adding eight defensive backs in the transfer portal while returning sophomores Jayvon Thomas and Dalton Brooks have also made starts this season.
- Junior Will Lee III, who came to Aggieland from Kansas State, ranks second in the SEC with nine passes defended on the year, breaking up a career-high four passes in the win over Arkansas ... He is also second on the team with 28 tackles while his 26 solo takedowns rank 14th in the SEC ... He recorded his first interception as an Aggie in the win over McNeese.
- Sophomore Marcus Ratcliffe has made an immediate impact for the Maroon & White after spending last season at San Diego State, starting all seven games and ranking second the SEC while ranking ninth nationally with three interceptions on the year.
- Brooks has come on strong in SEC play, making at least six tackles in each of the last three games and leading the defense in takedowns in two of the last three games ... Brooks is coming off a career-best effort, making nine tackles in the win at Mississippi State.
- Thomas made his first interception late in the fourth quarter at Florida, returning it 15 yards and getting the ball back in A&M’s hands to close out the victory.
- Lone veteran Bryce Anderson registered the first touchdown of his career when he came up with a tipped pass and returned it 45 yards to the house at Florida, becoming the third Aggie to have scored a defensive touchdown in their career.
- As a team, the Aggies rank 17th nationally and fourth in the SEC with 38 passes defended, while also sitting at 26th in the country and third in the SEC with eight picks.
DEPTH ON THE D-LINE
- Texas A&M boasts one of the most talented and unpredictable defensive lines in the nation, led by the veteran experience and consistent production of senior Shemar Turner and junior transfer Nic Scourton.
- Scourton has played with consistency in the SEC, registering at least 1.0 tackle for loss in six of A&M’s seven games ... In the win over Arkansas he finished with 4.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks, including a strip sack late in the fourth quarter to help the Aggies seal the victory.
- Scourton ranks sixth nationally and second in the SEC with 11.0 tackles for loss on the year, standing as one of three players in the league to hit double figures in the category ... His 4.5 sacks on the season are good for eighth in the league.
- Turner filled out the stat sheet in the win at Mississippi State, finishing with six tackles, 2.0 for loss, and a solo sack for 9 yards lost, while also breaking up a pass a forcing a fumble ... He started the 2024 season with a career-high seven takedowns against Notre Dame ... His 5.5 tackles for loss on the season rank 19th in the SEC.
- Juniors Shemar Stewart and Albert Regis have earned starting jobs on the line this season after being part of the Aggies’ consistent second rotation last year ... Stewart has come on strong in the last three games, getting to the quarterback in back-to-back victories while matching his career high with five tackles at Florida.
- As a defense, the Aggies have held their opponents to 100-or-fewer yards on the ground in four straight games, most recently limiting Missouri to just 68 yards and no rushing scores ... A&M boasts the No. 17 scoring defense in the country (16.7 ppg) and its 11 touchdowns allowed are good for 14th nationally.
SPECIAL TEAMS SUCCESS
- Graduate K Randy Bond was one of the nation’s leading scorers a season ago and continues to rank among the best in 2024 while also climbing A&M’s all-time scoring, field goals made and extra point lists.
- Bond currently ranks 11th nationally and third in the SEC with 13 made field goals this season, while his 64 total points land among the top-25 in the country and top-10 league scorers.
- Bond has posted double-digit points in a game 11 times in his career and four time this season, most recently tallying 10 points in the victory at Mississippi State by way of two field goals and four extra points.
- The kicker has been climbing A&M’s all-time field goals made, extra points and scoring lists, ranking sixth with 52 career makes and 10th overall with 254 points and 10th with 98 made extra points.
- Last season, Bond registered a new career-long with a 52-yarder against ULM and he later connected from the same distance against South Carolina and Mississippi State.
- Four Aggies on the 2024 roster have registered a blocked kick in their careers ... Senior DL Shemar Turner blocked a pair of field goal attempts last season, getting his hand on the ball in back-to-back weeks against Ole Miss and Mississippi State … junior DL Albert Regis blocked a field goal attempt in the win over Miami in 2022 … and senior WR Jahdae Walker blocked a punt a year later in Miami ... Prior to arriving in Aggieland, graduate DB Trey Jones III registered a blocked kick against Eastern Michigan in 2022.
THE ELKO EFFECT
- Known as one of the top defensive minds in the country, head coach Mike Elko has consistently produced highly disruptive and productive defenses throughout his career, most recently putting the Texas A&M defense on the map during his time as defensive coordinator and carrying the same standard as the head coach at Duke.
- In 2023, Duke led the ACC and ranked 16th nationally in scoring defense (19.0 ppg) while registering a top-five rush defense among league teams and standing in 17th in the country with 67 passes defended ... In Elko’s first season as a head coach, the Blue Devils ranked in the top-35 in the nation in scoring defense, rush defense, rushing touchdowns allowed and passes defended.
- After not finishing in the top-50 nationally in total defense for more than a decade, Elko’s first stint in Aggieland as defensive coordinator from 2018-21 coincided with consistent top-35 finishes, including a top-10 ranking in the 2020 final FBS total defense standings.
- Elko has produced top-50 defenses in 11 of the last 12 years with multiple programs (Duke, Texas A&M, Notre Dame, Wake Forest, Bowling Green).
LSU Game Week Media Availability: Dalton Brooks
Tuesday, October 21
LSU Game Week Media Availability: Terry Bussey
Tuesday, October 21
Conversations: Koli Faaiu
Tuesday, October 21
LSU Game Week Press Conference: Mike Elko
Monday, October 20
