Texas A&M kicked off the 2026 season with a thrilling 50-0 blowout win over Missouri State, recording its largest shutout since 1997, while the Aggie defense held the Bears to 67 total yards, which is highly impressive no matter the opponent. In Week 2, the Aggies will host Arizona State and are looking to start much better, especially in the trenches.
Before showing vast improvement in the second half, A&M's four new starting offensive linemen missed their assignments, allowing several jailbreaks that led to two sacks and several pressures, but thanks to starting quarterback Marcel Reed's elite athleticism, the veteran signal caller wove his way through the Missouri State defense for positive gains.
Still, this unit must improve and find consistency,
aiming to match its second-half performance and keep Arizona State's defense from capitalizing on slow starts. Texas A&M's running game benefited greatly from improved blocking after halftime, including freshman running backs Carsyn Baker and KJ Edwards, who were highly impressive in their A&M debuts.
Scoring his first touchdown of the season, sophomore running back Jamarion Morrow is reportedly dealing with a minor injury and/or is "nicked up" after preseason camp, which was confirmed by coach Mike Elko during his weekly Aggie Football Hour on Wednesday.
“Jamarion, we were able to kind of limit a little bit, which we were trying to do. He had something nicked up through camp, so we were able to pull back on him a little bit, which was good. He got enough carries to kind of get the opener out of the way, and we’ll continue to bring him more and more into the fold.”
During the season opener, Morrow ran for 29 yards and a touchdown, while reeling in two receptions for 18 yards. Against Arizona State, it's expected that the sophomore back will be utilized in the passing game on swing passes, with Rueben Owens slated to start and take a majority of the running back snaps, combined with Baker and Edwards seeing the field.
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: Texas A&M RB 'nicked up" but expected to play vs. Arizona State
