Alabama and Texas A&M will meet for the fifth time since the Aggies joined the SEC before the 2012 season. While the first two games were dramatic, it has been all Alabama since then. The Crimson Tide have won by an average margin of 32 points in the last three meetings. After losing a heartbreaker to UCLA in its first game, Texas A&M has won four straight games and is now ready to challenge Alabama. To get more insight on the Aggies, we talked to Alex Miller, the assistant sports editor for The Battalion, Texas A&M’s student newspaper. Here is what he had to say.
Q: How do you think the team has responded since the loss against UCLA?
A: The team has responded well since the unexplainable loss to UCLA. A&M’s offense has made a complete 180 turn, and Kellen Mond continues to progress each week. Things have not been smooth, but the bottom line is that in the past three games, the Aggies have had to overcome second-half deficits and were able to close all three with wins, which shows the different mentality we saw on the first weekend in Pasadena to last Saturday in College Station.
Q: What are the feelings surrounding Kevin Sumlin? Is this his last year? What does he have to do to stay around?
A: Feelings towards Kevin Sumlin are still negative, but the good thing for him is that A&M continues to win games. If he continues to win games, then he will earn a seventh season. The thing too is that as the rest of the SEC continues to struggle in gaining momentum, the Aggies are getting more each week. There are winnable games down the stretch for A&M, and the key in Sumlin saving his job is if he can win those late-season games, which he has been unable to do in recent years.
Q: How important is Trayveon Williams to this offense?
A: Trayveon Williams continues to pose as a dynamic back that can explode for long runs, but at times lower his shoulder and punch out yards after contact. He definitely is a critical component to the A&M backfield and does not back down from much. His presence has been important, because when he was out earlier with a nicked ankle, it took some time for the A&M running game to get rolling.
Q: Do you feel that Christian Kirk is one of the best players in the country?
A: Without a doubt Christian Kirk is one of the nation’s best. Not only can he squeeze through about any secondary, but he can kill you in the kicking game too. He has only had one major performance this season – Arkansas – but proved to be a vital piece in the Aggies overtime win over the Razorbacks. I would not be surprised to see A&M lean on him this weekend against a team he has surprisingly had quite a bit of success against.
Q: How has this defense recovered since losing Myles Garrett?
A: Kevin Sumlin made it clear a while back: Losing the No. 1 NFL Draft pick is never an easy task. Filling the shoes of Myles Garrett has not been too big of a challenge though. A&M has more sacks now than it did at this point last season. In back-to-back weeks, the Aggie defense has posted six and seven sacks respectively. A&M also leads the SEC in sacks (20). That said, Alabama poses a challenge Aggie defenders have yet to see this season, so it will be interesting to see how much pressure A&M can put on Jalen Hurts.
Q: Could Kellen Mond give Alabama fits with his mobility?
A: It seems as if the key to beating Alabama, in recent years at least, is to have a dual-threat quarterback. Cam Newton was the first to do it in 2010. Johnny Manziel replicated it in 2012. Trevor Knight took down the Tide in New Orleans in the 2013 season, a game after Nick Marshall and Auburn, well, I won’t go there with you guys. Knight then helped A&M gain a third-quarter lead last season. Deshaun Watson obviously was able to beat Alabama with the help of his legs. Dual-threat quarterbacks seem to be a recurring kryptonite for Nick Saban. In Mond’s case though, I’m not sure if he is as advanced in his game yet to do the deed. I do though think that the A&M offense will play much better than Vanderbilt and Ole Miss did the past two weeks, and Mond is a big reason for that.
Q: Finally, give us a score prediction and why you chose that.
It has been a long time since I genuinely thought A&M was going to lose a game, but this week, I just don’t see the Aggies beating Alabama. I think they play hard, but the Tide is too much. 44-20 Alabama. The biggest thing is that the Aggies play competitive and do not have a demoralizing loss, especially since a road trip to Gainesville awaits next week. Playing well against Alabama, even with a loss, can keep the Aggies on track to contending for a higher finish in a confusing SEC West.
