The first two cupcakes are out of the way, and while neither was an outright thrashing by the Aggies, they did what they were supposed to do and got to 2-0 to set up a massive game next Saturday in South Bend against Notre Dame. But before we move on to that one, let’s look at the numbers from the Utah State game and see what we can glean.
Salient Stats
- 2nd: 100-yard receiving game for Mario Craver. That matches Noah Thomas’ total for all of last season, and Craver’s three receiving touchdowns (along with KC Concepcion’s) would also be second on the team for the entirety of the 2024 season.
- 2.2: Yards per rush for Utah State, with 78 rushing yards allowed in total. While Utah State is no world-beater, it was encouraging to see A&M for the most part stifle the run game a week after UTSA’s Robert Henry made things look easy on the ground a week ago. BTW, Henry currently leads the nation in rushing after going off again against Texas State yesterday.
- 3: Straight sacks on consecutive plays by Cashius Howell. HOW FUN WHAS THAT??? Let’s also mention that A&M got six sacks on the day, an encouraging sign since they only got one against UTSA.
- 3: Drive-extending penalties committed by the defense. While didn’t play a penalty-plagued game overall, they had three penalties in particular (a roughing the passer, defensive holding and facemask) that needlessly extended Utah State drives and indirectly led to both of the touchdowns scored against the starting defense. It’s a reminder of just how small the margins are between good and bad defense.
- 12th: Man kickoff team again!
- 17: Punts forced through two games, which is No. 2 nationally. That includes 11 3-and-outs. The defense is not without it’s flaws thus far, but they have showed flashes of dominance that are things you can build upon.
- 235: Rushing yards for A&M. Conversely to the yards allowed, it was good to see the Ags’ assert their will on the ground after we didn’t see much from the run game in the season-opener. Marcel Reed, Le’Veon Moss and Rueben Owens combined for 174 yards on 27 attempts, which means Notre Dame won’t get to prepare for a one-dimensional offense next Saturday.
- 1,100: Miles the Aggies will travel to play their next game. A big road test that could be season-defining for both the Aggies and the Irish.
