Texas A&M
8-2 , 5-1
New Mexico State
2-8 , 1-5
Team Stats
New 0, A&M 7
A&M - Thomas,Noah 16 yd pass from Reed,Marcel (Bond,Randy kick) 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:22
New 0, A&M 14
A&M - Daniels,Amari 71 yd run (Bond,Randy kick), 1 plays, 71 yards, TOP 00:14
New 0, A&M 17
A&M - Bond,Randy 37 yd field goal 9 plays, 56 yards, TOP 04:03
New 0, A&M 24
A&M - Muhammad III,Moose 6 yd pass from Reed,Marcel (Bond,Randy kick) 9 plays, 95 yards, TOP 04:08
New 0, A&M 31
A&M - Reed,Marcel 5 yd run (Bond,Randy kick), 14 plays, 76 yards, TOP 06:38
New 3, A&M 31
New - Montaño,Abraham 48 yd field goal 8 plays, 24 yards, TOP 03:13
New 3, A&M 38
A&M - Bethel-Roman,Ashton 5 yd pass from O'Neill,Miles (Bhatia,Drake kick) 10 plays, 53 yards, TOP 04:52
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
No. 15 Aggies Handle New Mexico State on Senior Night, 38-3
Nov 16, 2024 | Football
Marcel Reed guided the offensive attack for the Maroon & White as the redshirt freshman completed 20-of-31 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns. The dual-threat quarterback also added four carries for 41 yards and a touchdown, marking the third time this season he has thrown for two scores and rushed for one. Theo Melin Öhrström was Reed's top target on the night as the sophomore logged five catches for 111 yards, both of which were career highs.
On the ground, Amari Daniels totaled a game-best 84 yards on five carries to go along with a score. EJ Smith added 60 yards on 15 carries as the Aggies surpassed 200 yards rushing for the sixth time this season.
Malick Sylla led the way defensively as the junior racked up five tackles, four of which were solos, a career-high 3.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sack. Nic Scourton followed with four tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss, while Tristan Jernigan also chipped in four tackles and a 0.5 tackle for loss.
The Aggies raced out to a 17-0 start in the opening quarter, scoring on all three drives. After Reed connected with Noah Thomas for a 16-yard score on the first drive of the night, Daniels broke free for a 71-yard touchdown run on the first play of the Maroon & White's ensuing drive as the Aggies led 14-0 at the 9:43 mark. Randy Bond capped off the scoring in the opening quarter with a 37-yard field with 4:26 left on the clock.
Texas A&M registered the lone points of the second quarter as Reed found Moose Muhammad III for a 6-yard score with 13:45 showing on the clock. Bond's extra point gave the Aggies a 24-0 advantage at the break.
Reed tacked on another touchdown in the third quarter as the signal caller took it himself from 5-yards out to stretch the advantage to 31-0. In the fourth, New Mexico State broke through on the scoreboard with a 48-yard field goal as 13:34 remained in the game. A 5-yard touchdown pass from Miles O'Neill to Ashton Bethel-Roman closed out the scoring on the night as the Aggies rolled to a 38-3 victory.
Postgame Notes
Team Notes
- Texas A&M's offense churned out a season-best 565 yards, the third 500-yard game of the season and the fifth time going over 400 yards.
- The A&M quarterbacks combined on a season-best 356 passing yards, the first 300-yard game by the Aggies.
- Texas A&M outgained New Mexico State in total offense in first half 387-104, including 235-35 passing.
- Texas A&M's offense went over 100 yards both passing (148) and rushing (125) in the first quarter en route to 273 yards.
- Tonight marked the first time two tight ends tallied 50-plus receiving yards in a game since 2006 when Joey Thomas (2004-07) caught three passes for 84 yards and Martellus Bennett (2005-07) made five catches for 54 yards against Louisiana.
- The Texas A&M defense reached double digits in the TFL column for the third time in 2024 with 10.0.
- Texas A&M quarterbacks sprinkled the ball around to 12 different receivers, including eight with multiple catches.
- Attendance for the New Mexico State game was 105,815, marking the 11th-highest attendance all-time at Kyle Field and the third-highest this season.
- Freshman QB Marcel Reed threw for a season-best 268 yards, connecting on a pair of touchdown passes and adding a third of his own on the ground.
- Reed is the first Aggie QB to pass for two touchdowns and rush for another three times in a season since Kellen Mond (2017-20) did so three times in 2019.
- Junior RB Amari Daniels' 71-yard touchdown run in the first quarter was his second rushing score of 50-plus yards this season.
- Sophomore TE Theo Melin Öhrström had a career day, catching five passes for 111 yards. He became the first Aggie tight end to eclipse the 100-yard mark since Jace Sternberger (2018) had 145 yards on seven catches against South Carolina in 2018.
- Junior WR Noah Thomas' 16-yard touchdown grab in the first quarter moved him into a tie with four other Aggies for 14th all-time at A&M, upping his career total to 11.
- Graduate WR Moose Muhammad III had a 6-yard catch in the end zone to make it 12 in his career and move into a tie with Chad Schroeder (2003-06) for 13th all-time.
- Freshman QB Miles O'Neill made his first career appearance in the fourth quarter, completing 5-of-6 passes for 51 yards and a touchdown pass.
- Freshman WR Ashton Bethel-Roman logged his first career touchdown reception with a 5-yard snag in the final minute of the game.
- Graduate RB EJ Smith logged season highs for rushes (15) and rushing yards (60).
- Junior DL Nic Scourton registered 1.5 tackles for loss in the game, marking the eighth game this season he has had at least 1.0 TFL.
- Junior DL Cashius Howell has recorded at least one pass breakup and QB hurry in five games this season, including three of the last four.
- Junior DL Malick Sylla registered a career-high 3.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks in the win.
- Graduate K Randy Bond's 37-yard field goal in the first quarter moved him into a tie with Todd Pegram (2002-05) and Tony Franklin (1975-78) for fourth all-time at A&M with 56 career makes.
- Bond made 4-of-4 PAT attempts to improve to 109-of-109 for his career. The 109 extra-points ties Josh Lambo (2013-14) for ninth on the A&M career list.
- Graduate K Drake Bhatia recorded his first career point with a PAT in the final minute.
Postgame: Mike Elko
(quotes courtesy Caption Pros)
COACH ELKO: Yeah, good win. I thought we came out of the locker room the way I wanted to. I thought we started fast. I thought we built the lead.
The second quarter was a little bit disappointing. I thought we lost focus and then really let off the gas a little bit.
Challenged them at halftime to go out in the third quarter and put the game away. They did it, and then we were really able to empty the bench in the fourth quarter.
It was great to see a lot of those guys get out there, whether it was Miles O'Neill getting his first touchdown pass or Ashton Bethel-Roman getting his first touchdown reception or Drake Bhatia as a senior getting to kick an extra point and Connor [Able] able getting to snap it or the 12th Man kickoff team getting out there.
Got a lot of opportunities for a lot of guys. Stayed healthy, and now it's on to the next. And we've got a two-game season to finish this thing the way we want.
I'll open it up to questions.
Q. Mike, you called it a good win. Was there anything about this game that you watched that concerns you about the team moving forward?
COACH ELKO: No. I just think you go into this game and you want to handle your business and do the things that you got to do, and we did that tonight.
Q. What did you think about Amari Daniels? How do you think he manned the backfield in his first game without Le'Veon Moss?
COACH ELKO: Yeah, he had five carries for 87 yards. He had an 71-yard touchdown -- or 84 yards, excuse me so I don't get misquoted. Averaged 16.8 yards a carry, so I was happy with him.
Q. Mike, what did you think of the performance from the tight ends tonight?
COACH ELKO: Yeah, I thought both those guys -- nine catches, almost 200 yards between Theo [Melin Öhrström] and Trey [Jones III]. Thought they did a really nice job tonight. I think it was kind of more a product of how they were playing us that kind of created some openings for them. We were able to get them the ball, and Marcel [Reed] delivered some really good passes to those guys tonight. So it was good to see.
Q. After Amari's [Daniels] long touchdown, were you kind of saving his legs after that?
COACH ELKO: Yeah. Obviously, it's well-documented where we are at running back. So it just felt like it was a good chance to get EJ [Smith] some carries and some and some work. And so we chose to do that.
Q. Mike, just kind of going back to getting those players in at the end, Miles [O'Neill] and Ashton [Bethel-Roman], how cool as a coach is that just to see that and, I guess, be a part of that moment?
COACH ELKO: Yeah, I think obviously I'm really happy for them, and it's a cool moment for them. It's one they'll remember forever.
But I'm happier when I see the excitement on our sideline. When you see Noah Thomas excited, when you see our guys on the sideline excited for them, when you see kind of everybody get excited, when Drake [Bhatia] makes that -- that's, to me, where you have a good flow and a good culture and you have a bunch of guys that care about each other.
And so, yeah, I'm certainly excited for those guys, but I think all of it together is kind of what makes it a good moment.
Q. And that last play, Malick [Sylla] -- you know, it seemed like the whole team kind of rallied around him after that. What can you say about his performance tonight?
COACH ELKO: Yeah, Malick is a really good player. Unfortunately, he's in a situation where he's behind some really talented guys and those guys have stayed healthy.
But Malick is extremely capable of helping us win football games. It was good to get him reps. You never know what's going to happen down the stretch. Obviously, after tonight, you might have to take a little bit of a look at how you can get him involved in the game.
Q. Marcel [Reed] completed nine passes, I think, in the first half. A little up and down there to finish. Just what did you make of his performance and just the way the game flowed for him passing?
COACH ELKO: Yeah, I thought -- obviously, there was some good -- certainly some things -- throws he wish we would have had back, some reads he wish he would have had back. Certainly a big learning moment at the end of the first half. That's obviously something that we can't do.
And so it's an up-and-down night. But I thought he took strides. I did. I thought he took some big strides. It's the most passing yards he's thrown for. He threw some really good footballs out there. I thought that part of it was really good.
Q. Kind of as a follow-up to that, what's the biggest way in which you've seen [Marcel] Reed grow as he's gotten more and more playing time?
COACH ELKO: Yeah, you can't lose sight of how young he really is. His ability to get through progressions, his ability to see coverages, his ability to recognize where the ball needs to get, I think all of that stuff, he gets better every time he goes out here. And I think all of that leads to a more effective passing game moving forward. I think he's continuing to grow. He's continuing to get more comfortable. And so, obviously, that's a good thing for us.
Q. Coach, it was at the 8:50 mark in the second quarter where they got their first passing yard of the game. Can you touch on the defensive backs' performance and maybe the whole defensive effort to be so dominant tonight?
COACH ELKO: Yeah, it's, obviously, we knew we were the better team. But then you still got to go out there and you still got to play like that. So it was good to see us do that. We still gave up a couple runs that I wish we didn't. But they did some nice things too schematically to create some edges, to get on the edge for themselves. They're good coaches. They're a good group. They did a nice job. They got two really talented running backs, but it was good for us to go out there and finish the game the way we did.
Q. I know you got EJ [Smith] some extended reps, and he's a veteran. What do you hope he takes from those reps going forward?
COACH ELKO: Yeah, I just think it was important for us to get him game carries. He hasn't had a ton of them. He certainly has been out there, he hasn't really had to carry the load like that. The more you get out there, the more repetitions you get, the more you see cuts, see angles, see lines, react to blocks, that stuff matters.
And so Amari [Daniels], obviously, has gotten a fair amount of carries this year. EJ hasn't gotten that many. And so we felt like it was really important to get him a good amount of work tonight. We were able to do that, and I thought he did a really good job.
Q. Mike, how are Shemar Stewart and Cyrus Allen doing?
COACH ELKO: Cyrus, I don't know. That's probably not a great one. Shemar Stewart is fine. That was more precautionary.
But Cyrus, we'll have to see what comes out, but it doesn't look good right now.
Q. With Shemar Turner, did you have a message for him after the penalty? Did it look as serious as maybe it was?
COACH ELKO: No. They're never as serious as -- but they're still 15 yards, and that's the challenge. He goes into a pile to protect one of our players, and that's what he does. From some degree you want that, because you want a team that takes care of each other and protects each other.
But it's an issue, the penalties. And we can't have them, because at some point, they're going to cost us everything. And so that was the message. I appreciate what you're doing. I understand what you're seeing, but you can't do it. You just can't do it.
Q. Obviously two big games ahead. Do you like where your team's mind's at after this one tonight going into those?
COACH ELKO: Yeah, I would hope so. If they can't get excited for this, I don't know why they're playing football.
No, I mean this is -- I'm joking a little bit, but this is everything that you want, right? We haven't been in this position as a program ever. There's been no time ever where Texas A&M has been in the SEC, in the last two games controlled their own destiny to go to Atlanta.
And so that's what you work for. It's the opportunity that you've trained for. They're extremely excited to get that opportunity and go to Auburn and do what we got to do.
Postgame: Marcel Reed
Q. How would you kind of grade your performance from the initial take-away?
MARCEL REED: I think I came out strong. You know, we executed what we were supposed to do with the game plan. Then kind of got a little sloppy in the second quarter, which is not good. Obviously, I threw that pick right before the half. Really should have thrown it out of bounds, but it is what it is. Got to live with it.
Came out in the third quarter, and I think we drove the ball down the field. It was a really long drive on possession. But overall, I think I did all right. Obviously, I have places where I can improve and do better. But I think we moved the ball up the field pretty well today.
Q. I know you have a special connection with Theo [Melin Öhrström] so far this season, in this game, too. I know a lot of that is just what they're showing you. But how much comfort do you have with him that that's going to become kind of a go-to?
MARCEL REED: Yeah, he made a joke with me earlier in the week. He said, I need a touchdown this week. I said, All right, I'll try to get you a touchdown this week. We couldn't give him one today.
I looked up on the mini JumboTron, or whatever it is, saw that he was close to 100 yards. I was like, I can't get you a touchdown, but we'll get you 100 yards today.
So me and Theo are pretty close. He's gotten a lot better since last year, and it's great to see his improvement. He's been a great tight end all year, easy guy to throw to. Big guy with great hands.
I saw a little bit of ability from him today, so he shocked me a little. I love Theo.
Q. What do you think is the biggest way in which you've grown as you've gotten more and more playing time this season?
MARCEL REED: Yeah, just being able to read a defense and get through my progressions a lot quicker, take things away based on what I see on pre-snap alignments and stuff like that.
And then just being a vocal leader, being commanding and commanding the offense. I was a freshman last year, and I wasn't as commanding as I am this year. But I know the role that I have now. I kind of have to be. So that's somewhere where I've improved.
Q. You mentioned how you guys got a little sloppy there in the second quarter. Can you put a finger on why you guys were so inconsistent there for a bit after you guys had really been on a role there early in the game?
MARCEL REED: Yeah, I mean, we were moving the ball a little bit. We just kind of put ourselves in bad places with penalties and stuff like to where we got in, like, third and long or fourth and short where we can go for it. But then we get out of that situation by getting a penalty, things of that nature. We can't have those kind of mental errors. We had too many of those in the second quarter.
And then just the end of the second quarter was a two-minute drill. Obviously, we're under two minutes so we're trying to move the ball down the field, maybe get a field goal, get some points on the board.
And then like I mentioned after the interception, which wasn't very good, we had three points in our pocket. We were inside the 30, 40 yard line and I've got to protect the ball so we can get three on the board.
Q. Did you feel like you were able to end on a high note with the touchdown run in the third quarter?
MARCEL REED: Yeah, obviously just trying to get the ball in the end zone as many times as we can. An easy way to get reps for the other guy, too. We're always trying to get off the field when we're playing teams like that so other guys can get some reps and experience. Excited to see Miles O'Neill go out there and get a touchdown.
Q. What was it like from your perspective seeing Miles [O'Neill] get that touchdown?
MARCEL REED: It was awesome. Kind of brought me back -- I remember when I got that first touchdown against ACU. I remember I threw it to Jayden Platt and it was his first touchdown. I didn't receive the ball.
So I made sure Miles got the ball after he threw his touchdown. I got it and I said, let me get this. I didn't tell him why, but I walked over to Miles. He was like thank you. I said, Yeah, you need this one. I didn't get mine, so I gave him the ball.
Q. And then before the game, did you anticipate tight ends being used as much as you threw to them today?
MARCEL REED: Not at all. We really didn't expect them to be in a cover three look as much as they were, but when they went into it, we tried to put some seam balls in there and tight ends got open. They're big targets, so we fed them today.
Q. Marcel, just coming into a game like this, how do you try to stay disciplined and being accepting of going on those long scoring drives rather than just trying to hit big play, big play, big play? I know there were some opportunities there, especially the opening drive. Y'all did a pretty good job with that.
MARCEL REED: Yeah, you know, it's really just whatever Coach [Mike Elko] calls. But we've got to execute every play that's set. And it's really just kind of like how we practice, too. We practice game tempo, and so whatever is called, we do it at full speed. Just trying to get the reps in, make sure we execute each play 100% every single down. And, you know, I think a lot of the plays were called for situational purposes trying to get us to understand what we needed at this time and how to get it, where to read, stuff like that.
And we tried our best to execute. We executed a lot today. There were some things we left out there, obviously, but we got the job done.
Q. How big do you think this game kind of was to serve as a reset a little bit going into the home stretch of the regular season?
MARCEL REED: Yeah, I mean, every game is big, but this one was really important just because Coach [Mike] Elko has been saying we have no more margin for error, and we got to win out. So we had to get this one. And this was, like I said, a great game for experience for the other guys and for us as well, just getting out there and being able to play. And then get a little bit of rest just before we go into another SEC game against Auburn on the road.
Q. Marcel, obviously you stayed within the offense and doing what the play calls for, but with your unique ability as a runner, can you kind of talk about your mindset or your process when you go through, hey, like this is where I'll let my athletic ability shine here? How do you go through that process?
MARCEL REED: Yeah, I try to get through every read as much as I can before the pocket collapses. When it does, then I'll get out and run. I think today I had great protection. I didn't really have to run too much. I got through a lot of my progressions, got to second and third reads, and got the ball out to the receivers so they can run.
Q. Marcel, you said you couldn't get Theo [Melin Öhrström] a touchdown but you did get Moose [Muhammad] one on senior night. How nice was that to see? And did he say anything to you afterward?
MARCEL REED: Yeah, I love getting the ball to number 7. Obviously he was one of my main targets when we played in the bowl game last year. I love throwing to him. I know he has a really big catch radius. I know he can go up and get it anywhere. But it felt good getting him the ball.
He hasn't had many touches this year, obviously. I went up to him and said, you knew I was going to get it to you, because I talk to him all the time in practice. Try to, you know, go one-on-ones. I always try to connect. He always tells me 100% when he comes up. We have a good connection and the play just called for him getting the ball. So I threw it to him and he's wide open in the end zone.
Q. Your thoughts on Amari [Daniel's] performance tonight, even thought it was just five quick reps.
MARCEL REED: Yeah, for the short amount of time he was in there, he did a good job. Thought he was going to get caught on that touchdown, but he made it.
Q. Obviously two big games ahead. Do you like where your team's head and mentality is at going into this crucial stretch?
MARCEL REED: For sure, I love where the team's head is at. And Coach [Mike] Elko has been doing a good job of just keeping everybody grounded and moving in the right direction. Obviously we're going to go into practice and prepare for this team like it's the biggest game of the year. And we got to win out, like I said. And this is just another step in the way we want to go.
Postgame: Albert Regis
Q. Albert, last time out, tough night for the defense at South Carolina. What did you like about the way you guys plays tonight coming out here?
ALBERT REGIS: We just prioritizing the next game up. It's hard to fix what you went through, and obviously, an upset like that adds a little bit more fuel to the fire. And the game of football is pretty funny. It gets you when it gets you, as our coaches like to say. And it felt good to come out, play as a defense, play to our standard. We let up a couple of plays, you know, but it felt good to get back on track.
Q. Albert, what do you see from Malick Sylla every week in practice? And then what was it like to see him have the kind of performance he had tonight?
ALBERT REGIS: What you all seen tonight is something I see Monday through Friday. I see it every day. That's the Malik I know. It's not shown often because he may not get as many reps as we all would like him to. But I mean, every day, he shows up, he works, he's consistent. He won't complain about it. It's unfair, but life is unfair. And he has different cards handed to him than all of us, but he plays them amazingly. And I'm so proud of my young man to go out tonight and get two sacks and just make impact plays.
Q. Along the same lines, a lot of guys ran out there and kind of celebrated with him. What was the emotion behind that?
ALBERT REGIS: Love. That's it. It's just love. We all love each other. It's a family. It's a brotherhood. We're around each other all year. Some people see football as just like a fall sport, but in reality, football is a year-round sport. You're constantly training football. You're constantly around your teammates. I mean, it's a brotherhood. I see these dudes more than I see my own mom, you know what I'm saying? They my family, too.
And family going to argue. We're going to do this. We're going to do that. But at the end of the day, when we step on Kyle Field or wherever we're plying at, Walmart parking lot for all we care, we're going to play together, and we're going to play aggressive. So it's just love.
Q. Coach [Mike] Elko has said multiple times that y'all are kind of already in the playoff moving forward with each game. Do you feel like you're ready for the next two challenges ahead?
ALBERT REGIS: Always. Always. We're always ready. It's going to be hard going into Auburn next week, but football ain't easy. You know what I'm saying? If football was easy, I would go play flag. Come on, we ready. Don't worry.
Q. So ten tackles for a loss as a team tonight. How were you all able to create so much disruption in the backfield?
ALBERT REGIS: The way we scheme things up. Coaching plays a big part in it. And the other big part is our effort to execute what the coaches tell us to do. And I mean, you seen it. The ten tackles for losses, it speak for itself, you know what I'm saying?
Q. Albert, it looked like you guys had a lot of balls batted down at the line of scrimmage. Is that something you guys figured might be an opportunity? Or was that just, you're not going to get to them, put your hands up?
ALBERT REGIS: That's every day repetition at practice. I mean, we do that every day. We constantly practice batted balls. Y'all see it, when the quarterback is scrambling, you may see a defensive lineman putting up a hand, trying to block his vision. Because to some people, y'all may think, oh, that doesn't do much. But in reality, it makes a major difference on where he's trying to throw the ball to. So we practice getting our hands up all the time. It paid off today.
