Pass defense blunders mar Aggies’ night
By Brent Zwerneman STAFF WRITER
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TEXAS A&M VS. LOUISIANA-MONROEWhen/where: 3 p.m. Saturday at College Station.
TV/radio: SECN; 92.5 FM, 97.5 FM.
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Miami coach Mario Cristobal asked the question so many Texas A&M fans pondered and cursed late Saturday night near South Beach.
“Everybody wants to see progress, right?” Cristobal said.
Cristobal is in his second season at Miami. Jimbo Fisher is in his sixth season at Texas A&M. One of Cristobal’s other sentiments should floor the A&M faithful even more.
“I think that was a better A&M team than we faced last year, honestly,” Cristobal said.
Along those lines …
2023 was the year
This season had long shaped up as the one where Fisher was expected to finally contend for a national title, with the top-rated class of 2022 coming into its own and Alabama coming into Kyle Field in October. The Aggies (1-1) will now drop out of the Associated Press top 25 less than two weeks before Southeastern Conference plays begins, and the team is a long way from challenging for a championship with Fisher long settled into his gig.
Fisher will have about $77 million remaining on his buyout after this season, and he survived the chopping block after last year’s unsettling 5-7 finish when he agreed to bring onboard a play-calling offensive coordinator in Bobby Petrino.
Offense overall wasn’t the primary issue against the Hurricanes, although a now veteran line failed to consistently protect quarterback Conner Weigman, especially in the first half. The main problem? That’s next …
Poor pass defense
The Aggies were awful against the run last year, in finishing 123rd out of 131 teams in that category under defensive coordinator DJ Durkin. Against the Hurricanes (2-0) they were terrible against the pass, as Miami quarterback Tyler Van Dyke threw five touchdown passes against an overwhelmed A&M secondary.
Aggies defensive back Jayvon Thomas falling down — perhaps lunging down is more accurate in failed hot pursuit of a Miami receiver on one of five Hurricanes touchdown passes — was symbolic of A&M’s night. Van Dyke became the first Miami quarterback in the program’s storied history to throw five touchdowns against an AP top 25 team, according to ESPN Stats and Info.
That … is not progress (to use Cristobal’s sentiment), and the Aggies might be in big trouble in pass defense in less than two weeks against Auburn and new coach Hugh Freeze at Kyle Field. Freeze enjoys slinging the ball around if able, at home and on the road.
The Aggies’ many failures in pass defense even had former A&M defensive lineman Daylon Mack, who played under Kevin Sumlin and then Fisher from 2015-18, calling for Durkin’s job following the startling setback.
“… Fire Durkin bruh,” Mack posted in part to social media, in also expressing concern about outcomes likes Saturday’s impacting recruiting with Texas (and Oklahoma) entering the SEC in 2024.
Weigman still future
Weigman, a former Bridgeland High School star, never let up in trying to get the Aggies back in the game. He took a consistent hammering from the Hurricanes over the first two quarters in particular but still had the Aggies within eight points (41-33) with a little more than five minutes left in the contest.
Should Weigman earn a little more time in the pocket and a bit beyond, his numbers likely will continue improving, especially with a fellow five-star in Evan Stewart on the other end of his passes (11 catches for 142 yards, both career highs). Weigman finished 31 of 53 for 336 yards, with two touchdown passes and his first two interceptions as a collegian.
Excuses, excuses …
Fisher is full of ’em, and has been for some time. He’s surrounded himself with enablers at A&M, so he often seems a bit taken aback when his methods come into question.
“I ain’t worried about expectations, we have to worry about next week,” Fisher said late Saturday night when asked whether expectations should be “adjusted” following an early season loss. “We shouldn’t adjust to anything, what we need to do is go focus and play a good game next week and get better the next week, the next week and the next week.”
Where to from here?
The Aggies stagger back home to face a Louisiana-Monroe squad on Saturday afternoon that defeated Army in its opener 17-13 in Monroe, La. ULM is coached by Terry Bowden, who was Fisher’s coach in the mid to late 1980s at Salem and then Samford.
A&M likely will get back on track against Louisiana-Monroe, and then again face a much stiffer test when Auburn comes to Kyle Field. The Aggies opened with a 52-10 mauling of New Mexico, but longtime observers of the program know the verdict is still out when it came to taking on opponents with a pulse.
“Guys played their tails off, and 15 (Weigman) played his heart out,” Fisher contended. “I thought he played really good in the game to give us a chance to win …”
Fisher knows “a chance to win” is no longer good enough in his sixth season with the Aggies. What A&M can do about it moving forward is the big question.
