Here’s your latest edition of the AggieYell Mailbag, sponosred by Tipton Auto Group:
Q: Hicks…walk us through his seasons. It feels like he has been behind some pretty serious talent. Is it lack of production or just lack of opportunity due to those in front? Is this his year?
A: He has been behind some pretty serious talent. He was behind McKinnley Jackson his freshman year and Shemar Turner last year. But a combined 30 tackles and 2.5 sacks isn’t exactly what you’d expect from the third overall player in the class of 2023. Yes, he did have to split time in both seasons, but I expected more — he’s the reason why I now don’t want to see freshman defensive tackles on the field, because it’s purple unicorn that’s physically ready at that point in their careers (purple unicorn = one in a million).
But I’ve heard very good things about him so far this offseason and there’s no one standing his way on the depth chart. For him and for the Aggies, this has to be the year.
You praised J Walker in 10 things…he did make an NFL roster, right?
Yes, he made the Bears.
What makes you think we’re significantly improved at WR?
Three major things: they have more talent, they have more speed and last year’s group seriously sucked. There’s no sugarcoating it. Noah Thomas was good, not great. Walker was inconsistent. Terry Bussey and Ashton Bethel-Roman weren’t ready. Jabre Barber was good but never really got a solid footing. Everyone else just flat stunk.
Conception and Craver have been defacto starters since arrival. Are we giving them too much credit?
Nope.
T York was a machine out of HS. He’s got really good numbers again, and again he feels overshadowed. Where would you rank him in the SEC and why?
I think he’s the second best linebacker in the SEC. So do a lot of people. He’s not a second team All-American for nothing.
You rated almost every position group as better than last year. If this year’s team ran last year’s schedule with minimal injuries, what would have been the record?
They would have been in the CFP.
What’s the impact of the Ahfua injury, and who’s the first up at OT with Fatheree out for a bit? Any concerns there? (EliCrow. All of them)
The Ahfua injury is not nearly as serious as the one to Fatheree, even though Papa will miss the season. Koli Faaiu or Blake Ivy can move in at guard — and, for that matter, so can Fatheree when he’s back. But the offensive tackle depth chart is very inexperienced behind Trey Zuhn and Dametrious Crownover without Fatheree there. You’ve got Robbie Bourdon, who has played just a handful of snaps, and Lamont Rogers, who hasn’t played any. Jonte Newman is still a developing prospect. So yeah, I’m real concerned about tackle until Fatheree returns in a few weeks.
Q: 1. Outside of QB and LT, which positions are critical that we avoid injuries and why?
A: Defensive tackle for sure. If one of the big three goes down, it may get dicey. I also wouldn’t want to test the depth at corner. Otherwise, I think they can take a shot and be ok.
2. I see us running the ball down UTSA’s throats due to few returning starters on their D. This, to win the ball control / clock game and keep their better than average offense off the field. Sound like a reasonable take, or am I off?
No, I think it’s pretty reasonable. Oddly enough, UTSA was 11th against the run last year, but I think they also didn’t see a whole lot of runs because people were bombing their secondary. This is a good test to see if the offensive line can just lineup and move someone.
3. Who do you think is most eager (one on offense and one on defense) to get on the field and get it on?
Le’Veon Moss and Bryce Anderson.
4. Please give us updates on Arie and your mom.
Arie is in pain almost all the time and it’s gut-wrenching. My mom will start chemo again next Wednesday. But we now have the extra problem of my dad’s dementia kicking into very high gear, making him angry and paranoid. Short version: your boy can’t catch a break. Anywhere. I’m pretty depressed.
Q: Who scores the first td on the season? (Jmaedgen)
A: Marcel Reed on a scramble.
Q: Last year, the first in Calvin Klein’s new offense, was very basic. Do you think he dresses it up this year? Adds some accessories.
A: I think he keeps it brief, mostly.
Now, if you mean Collin Klein, yeah, I think we’ll see some splashes of color and maybe longer threads. He’s got more supplies to work with.
Can you summarize the style of offense and types of plays from last year, and speculate on what might be added to take advantage of our playmakers this year? (Richard23)
I think last year we saw both sides of the ball play a very conservative kind of game, because that’s what they had to do. Losing Tyreek Chappell really screwed the defense, because he had the ability to play the run and the pass at a high level. Losing him took a lot out of the playbook. The lack of explosiveness at receiver, along with the uncertainty at quarterback, made for a run-heavy offense. Now Reed is playing in an offense that suits his strengths, he has more explosive receivers and real game experience. The defense has Chappell back and more depth at corner. I think both can, and should, be more aggressive.
Do you think any of our current recruits are in danger of being flipped? (Big Smoothie)
A: Not at the moment, no.
Q: What are some solutions and positives that you’ve seen that could improve our last place SEC finish in Red Zone defense compared to other SEC teams (in regards to success rate of opponents scoring when in the zone and stat includes all games, not just SEC)? (Geb)
A: Bigger, stronger and more experienced line. Receivers who can get separation on short passes. A quarterback who can run. Three backs who are healthy. All those things should contribute to an improvement.
Q: Start, Bench, and Transfer between these three players:
Terry Bussey, Dezz Ricks, DJ Hicks (dP47)
A: Sorry, I’m not gonna do that one. First, I don’t want to insult any current players and second, this team needs all three of them.
Q: I know it’s early to be thinking about this, but what does the offensive line look like for next season? It seems we have a lot of starters in their last year, and from what I remember when I looked at the depth chart, it looks like we have a lot of Freshman following the departing lineman. (Umpocket)
A: Didn’t I say earlier that I was already depressed? Dang, this one might be keeping Mike Elko up at night already. Ok, maybe that’s an overstatement, but they’re going to lose a lot of experience. Here’s my guess at the moment with current personnel — but I expect they’ll be active in the portal.
LT: Lamont Rogers
LG: Chase Bisontis (if he doesn’t go into the draft)
C: Mark Nabou
RG: Blake Ivy
RT: Robbie Bourdon
Q: After reading your reports for the past few weeks, it seems we had some significant injuries to players that just was not reported. And they were out there. (B Anderson, Daniels, Scooby, etc). Are you seeing any potential “ghost” injuries currently when watching practices? Are you more careful now about reporting this team healthy? Do you think we have more depth this year to absorb these injuries that will happen. (Tsmith3001)
A: I’m guessing you mean last year about the injuries. It’s tough to report on injuries during the season because we don’t see practices and coaches lie. This is not exclusive to Elko and his staff. Jimbo and Sumlin would flat out lie to your face about injuries (Sumlin more so. He was the absolute worst at that). See Kyle Allen at Ole Miss. It’s a paranoia that is inherent to the species. In the summer, we know more. I knew Fatheree and Ahfua were out because they weren’t at practice. With Ahfua, I had already assumed he was out for the year because he just wasn’t there. Same thing with Jerome Myles.
Ok, so we knew by process of elimination something had happened to those three players. Elko comes in and informs us about those three players. No other players are missing. He says they’re healthy otherwise. I’ll buy that. During the season, it could be very different, though the SEC injury reports will change things somewhat.
As for depth, it depends on the position. Are they deeper overall? Yes. This may be the most complete team, in terms of depth, that we’ve seen in a long time — and that includes 2020. It may not be as explosive and have as many All-Americans, but there’s less falloff (at most positions) from guy one to guy two.
Q: If you had the opportunity to ask the most thought provoking question in the history of Mail Bag for the week leading up to Game 1, what would the question be?
A: Why do we do this to ourselves?
What is the most thought provoking question you’ve ever been asked the week leading up to the first game of the season? (Reckless75)
Why do we do this to ourselves?
Q: I have a two part question.
A: ok.
Can I have two part questions?
Yes. Cue the Elko “Thanks, Mark” clip.
How many part questions can I have?
I haven’t stopped you yet.
What’s the difference between a CB and a Nickel?
A cornerback is a guy who plays on the outside and his primary (maybe sole) responsibility is to handle wide receivers in the passing game. A nickel plays a slot receiver or a tight end in pass coverage, but can also operate as a pseudo-third linebacker and come up in run support. That’s the short version of it.
Is there a physical difference that you’re looking for in a players that play that position?
Yeah, you want guys who are a little bigger and more physical at nickel. Chappell may not be the prototype physically, but he’s got the mindset. He’s completely fearless. The prototype was Antonio Johnson. He was perfect for that job.
Technically that was a four part question but I was really referring to football questions. (Spar2cus)
Of course you were.
Q: We use a lot of cute terms like Swiss Army Knife, and many others that I can’t recall.
But if guys like Niblack and Bussey are only inserted in special packages, does that signal something to the defense?
A: Yes, it does, and that’s why the jet sweeps with Bussey became less and less effective as the season went on last year. You’ve gotta mix things up. Sometimes, they can be an effective decoy as they have the focus shifted to them, but that didn’t happen last year.
If you are good at too many things, are you not great at your primary position? (Richard23)
A: Man, that’s some serious psychoanalytical stuff right there. I don’t think that’s necessarily the case, but you also don’t want to stretch someone too thin. For instance, if a guy can dot a 98 mph fastball on a 3-2 pitch, I’m not telling him to throw a slider if it’s his third pitch. I don’t care if it’s above average, go with your best.
Q: Who is our most underrated player, the one player no SEC sportswriter would ever consider interviewing because of his insignificance but by the end of the season they will all know his name? (H273)
A: Is it underrated to everyone but the people who cover the team, or does it include us? Because if it’s not us, it’s Ashton Bethel-Roman. Slam dunk. Marco Jones already has received some hype and was a preseason freshman All-American according to On3 (Marco, you’re welcome. I nominated you.). Cashius Howell is known, though not well enough. Rueben Owens is known. So yeah, I think Bethel-Roman would be the guy.
Q: Pick a team that is currently unranked that will make the playoff.
A: If I have to, it would be…Baylor. Now I’m sick to my stomach.
Do the Aggies finish the season ranked? In the last 7 seasons we have started ranked and finished ranked once. (brAg)
Yes, they will finished ranked.
Q: I know it’s early, but if all class of 2027 recruits would have to commit today than which top players do you think would end up in A&M’s class? (Chickennuggett666777)
A: Man, I don’t know. It’s so early and NIL affects so much these days that it’s hard to say. Like, at this point last year, Jireh Edwards was all about A&M. He’s locked in with Alabama. Texas thought they had Boobie Feaster under wraps. Those are just two of dozens, if not hundreds, of examples.
Q: With Moss coming off of a very significant knee injury, what are the honest expectations for him? Can we truly expect to see the Moss of old anytime soon? (ThepassAg)
A: When he said he tore his ACL and MCL, I literally cringed. But to be real honest, I haven’t seen any difference in him this summer. I’ve been watching his explosiveness real closely because we’ve seen many guys who have had ACL injuries who have come back “healthy”, but just don’t have that burst anymore. He’s hit the gas a few times in camp and I was literally shocked at how good he looked. I think we might see old Moss sooner rather than later, and that’s absolutely amazing.
Q: If he stays healthy, will Owens play like a 5 star RB this year?
A: He looked significantly better year-over-year in the bowl game and he was playing at maybe 80%. I think he’ll be a force this year if he remains healthy.
Have you had a chance to watch Hart and what are your thoughts? (Hogtide)
I have, and I’ve been impressed. He’s really tall, still slender, but he’s in college at the same age I went to boarding school — 16. He’s got a good arm and looks like he can make all the throws. But I haven’t gotten to watch him 11-on-11 yet, so how he does under pressure is something I can’t tell you. I will say this, though: he’s on the depth chart as an OR with a seventh-year senior. I know spots on a depth chart are like party favors now and everyone gets one, but that still struck me. They didn’t have to put him on.
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