Texas
Texas A&M’s offense collapses with season on the line against Texas
Marcel Reed on Texas A&M mindset ahead of Texas rivalry
Coming off a loss to unranked Auburn, No. 20 Texas A&M now faces No. 3 Texas in the final regular season game of the 2024 season.
COLLEGE STATION — With the season on the line, Texas A&M football lined up for a fourth-down attempt that would keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive.
Down two possessions in the fourth quarter, the Aggies came out of a timeout at the 1-yard line with multiple tight ends, hoping to generate some push and get into the end zone. But that run ended just as the other fourth-down run did: With Texas defenders in the backfield and A&M losing possession.
“We tried a lot of different things, none of it worked,” head coach Mike Elko told reporters following the 17-7 loss. “When you can’t win the line of scrimmage, and your running back is averaging 1.6 yards a carry, it’s going to make it really hard.”
A&M (8-4, 5-3) ran for just 98 yards on the night, averaging 2.9 yards a carry, in what was a dominant effort by the Longhorns’ defense. Remove quarterback Marcel Reed’s 24-yard rush and the numbers for the other 30-plus carriers become even uglier.
It was the worst rushing performance for the Aggies all year, 30 yards worse than any other output in Elko’s first season. Reed led the team with 60 rush yards, nearly doubling the output of running backs Amari Daniels (13 carries for 21 yards) and Rueben Owens (three carries for 10 yards) and EJ Smith (one carry for 4 yards).
The longest rush for a running back was 5 yards.
“We lost the line of scrimmage all night. We weren’t able to get anything going,” Elko said. “Really disappointing. We just didn’t play well enough on offense at all to have any chance at having success.”
The Aggies opened the game with two straight offensive drives that moved well into the Longhorns’ territory but ended with zero points. Daniels was stuffed for no gain on fourth-and-1 on the first drive, giving the Longhorns the ball back on its own 10-yard line.
On the ensuing A&M drive, Reed rolled to his right, forced an errant pass that was intercepted, and gave Texas the ball back once again. Ten plays later, Texas scored the game’s first points.
A&M finished the game with just 244 yards of total offense, its worst statistical output since Week 1 against Notre Dame when they finished with 246 against the Fighting Irish.
The Aggies finished 4-for-14 on third and fourth downs while going 0-for-2 in the red zone and having two turnovers on the night.
They lost the time of possession battle 25:16 to 34:44 and trailed by two scores for most of the game.
“It’s pretty difficult to get the pass game going when a team knows that they can stop your run and that you can’t get going on the run game,” Reed said following the loss. “I feel like a lot of the defense we’ve played, we’ve been able to make adjustments. I don’t think we were able to make any adjustments tonight, and it showed.”
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Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management to activate state emergency response resources as a massive storm system threatens much of the state with hurricane-force winds, giant hail, and the risk of tornadoes.
Severe weather in Texas
The severe weather, expected to last through Monday morning, covers a vast footprint including West, North, East, Central, and South-Central Texas. Forecasters warned the system could produce wind gusts exceeding 75 mph and hail larger than 2 inches in diameter.
What they’re saying:
“Texas is prepared to confront the severe storms that pose a threat to communities all across our state,” Abbott said in a statement. He urged Texans to monitor local forecasts and warned motorists never to drive through flooded roadways, invoking the phrase, “Turn Around, Don’t Drown.”
Heavy rainfall is expected to be widespread, with some areas potentially seeing isolated totals of 3 to 6 inches, which could lead to significant flash flooding. As the system progresses, the threat is expected to shift toward the South and Southeast Texas coasts.
LIVE RADAR
In preparation, the governor has deployed a wide array of state assets to assist local officials, including:
- Search and Rescue: Swiftwater and floodwater rescue boat squads and urban search and rescue teams from Texas A&M Task Forces 1, 2, and 3.
- Aviation and Marine Support: Helicopters with hoist capabilities from the Department of Public Safety and Texas Parks and Wildlife, as well as Tactical Marine Units.
- Infrastructure and Recovery: Texas Forest Service saw crews to clear debris from roads and Department of Transportation personnel to monitor highway conditions.
- Medical and Utility Support: Emergency medical task forces with ambulances and all-terrain vehicles, along with monitors from the Public Utility Commission to coordinate power outage responses.
State agencies are also monitoring the state’s natural gas supply and water quality as the storms move through.
Officials encouraged residents to assemble emergency kits and check road conditions at DriveTexas.org before attempting to travel.
The Source: Information in this article is from the Governor Greg Abbott Press Office.
Saturday started out a bit warm and sticky outside in North Texas, but there will be plenty of sunshine in the afternoon. Temperatures are expected to climb into the upper 80s. Most of the area will stay dry today, but there is a chance for an isolated storm that could reach severe criteria late tonight for counties to the northwest of the metroplex.
Make sure you have an indoor plan for Mother’s Day celebrations tomorrow! Sunday morning will start warm, muggy, and dry for most with the exception of an isolated storm possible along the Red River.
A First Alert Weather Day is in place on Sunday due to a front that will swing across North Texas in the late afternoon through the evening. All modes of severe weather will be likely, but the main threat includes a significant risk of hail up to 2 inches in diameter and winds up to category 1 hurricane strength.
Once the front moves through, cooler temperatures will settle into the forecast on Monday. However, the cool down won’t last long. A warming trend returns and temperatures climb into the 90’s once again at the end of the next week. Stay tuned!
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