The 13th story in a series previewing SEC football teams
ATLANTA — Texas A&M Coach Jimbo Fisher says his beef with former boss Nick Saban is history.
Perhaps so, but everyone’s radar, including that of SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey, will be up come the week of Oct. 8, when the Aggies, picked to finish second in the SEC West, travel to face defending SEC champion Alabama.
Alabama defensive end Will Anderson Jr. said he and his teammates were aware of Fisher’s remarks, which impugned Saban’s recruiting tactics and described as “despicable” Saban’s remarks about the Aggies having bought their whole team after they signed the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class.
“When we play Texas A&M, everything will be addressed then,” Anderson said.
The Aggies are clearly making moves that aim to displace Saban’s Tide as the alpha team in the SEC West.
Fisher’s third A&M team in 2020 went 9-1 and finished fifth in the College Football Playoff rankings, just outside a spot in the playoff. Last year’s Aggies edged Alabama 41-38 in a shootout before 106,815 fans at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas.
The 2021 squad finally broke through against Alabama, but they lost to Arkansas and Mississippi State before that and to Ole Miss and LSU after to wind up 8-4. Texas A&M was slated to play Wake Forest in the Gator Bowl before bowing out due to a covid-19 spike, injuries and transfers.
Fisher said he thinks the Aggies are positioned to climb back into contention this fall.
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“I’ll say this about our program right now, from a depth standpoint,” he said. “Listen, when you’re a great team is when your practices are so heated and so competitive and that you know you can’t take a day off as a player because someone’s taking your job.
“This is the first time from a depth standpoint — not from a great player standpoint, but from a depth standpoint — that we’re getting to that point right now at A&M at a level which I’m very excited about, with some young guys pushing older guys, older guys getting better. It’s going to be a heck of a battle. That’s got me the most excited.”
The Aggies’ top-ranked signing class joined a roster that brought back three offensive line starters in Reuben Fatheree II, Bryce Foster and Layden Robinson, four defensive backs, linebacker Andre White Jr. and receiver Ainias Smith, who could be facing disciplinary measures after his arrest earlier this month on DWI and weapons charges.
Additionally, tailback Devon Achane was a 910-yard rusher last season behind Isaiah Spiller, who had 1,011 rushing yards.
The quarterback spot is where it gets potentially sticky for the Aggies.
There are three players with the credentials to win the job. Projected starter Haynes King suffered a broken leg in Week 2 at Colorado last season after beating out Zach Calzada, who is now in the mix to start at Auburn. The 6-3, 200-pound King will compete with junior Max Johnson (6-5, 220), an LSU transfer, and 5-star signee Conner Weigman (6-2, 205), one of the gems in the big class.
Fisher added a couple of veteran coaches with head coaching backgrounds to assist in the management of the highly-rated roster. New defensive coordinator DJ Durkin, the former Maryland head coach, made a huge statistical impact in one season at Ole Miss last year. He replaced Mike Elko, who oversaw the nation’s 14th-ranked total defense (327.5 yards per game) which was also third in fewest points allowed per game (15.9 ppg). Elko is now the head coach at Duke.
Former Boston College head coach Steve Addazio now runs the Aggies’ offensive front, which projects to start four underclassmen.
“What we struggled with early last year, I think it’s going to be a really big strength of our team,” Fisher said. “I’m very excited about our offensive line. Coach Addazio has done a tremendous job.”
The Aggies don’t want to see plays like King had last year, when he was snagged by a Colorado defender and injured on the tackle.
“I just want to see aggressiveness and a dedication to not allow our quarterback to get hit,” Robinson said last week at SEC Media Days. “That’s how the old-school offensive lines worked. Our coaches are trying to ingrain in us that nobody will touch the quarterback.”
Big plays helped the Aggies take down Alabama, but their offensive consistency was lacking in other key SEC games. Texas A&M ranked 71st in total offense (391.6 yards per game), 44th in rushing (183 ypg), 88th in passing (208.6 ypg) and 99th in passing efficiency (122.96), based largely on 56.4% completions and a 19-13 touchdown-to-interception ratio.
“We have to throw the football better,” Fisher said. “We know that, and we will. We know how to do it. We’ll get it down.
Safeties Antonio Johnson and Demari Richardson and cornerbacks Tyreek Chappell and Jaylon Jones are returning starters in a secondary with loads of experience. Richardson, a senior who represented the Aggies at media days with Fisher and Robinson after Smith was excluded based on his arrest, said there’s room in his game.
“I can make more plays, by tackling and being more aggressive, I can make more plays on the ball,” Richardson said. “I studied the film more, so I can know what’s coming.
“As far as the team, I feel like we can make more plays on the ball, causing turnovers. … We have to put in the work to accomplish those things.”
The Aggies could have one of the most explosive kicking units in college football, led by SEC punting leader Nik Constantinou, who had a 46.6-yard average. The return men are dynamic in Achane, who averaged 33.4 yards per kickoff return and had a 96-yard touchdown against Alabama, and Smith, who averaged 11.3 yards on 23 returns.
Kicker Seth Small is gone after converting 22 of 27 field goals last season, and it appears Caden Davis, who made a 52-yarder in the Aggies’ spring game, will be his replacement.
Fisher, who led Florida State to the 2013 BCS national championship, is talking as if his Aggies have the goods to be in the CFP mix.
“When you’re talking about winning national championships, it’s not just understanding how to handle the expectations, it’s organizing and structuring the team to get to those points,” Fisher said. “I think we’re really right now at the beginning of that stage where we can do it consistently. I’m excited about the future our program. I really am.”
Aggies at a glance
2022 Schedule
DATE • OPPONENT • TIME
Sept. 1 - Sam Houston State - 11 a.m.
Sept. 10 - Appalachian State - 2:30 p.m.
Sept. 17 - Miami - 8 p.m.
Sept. 24 - vs. Arkansas*# TBA
Oct. 1 - at Mississippi State* TBA
Oct. 8 - at Alabama* TBA
Oct. 22 - at South Carolina* TBA
Oct. 29 - Ole Miss* TBA
Nov. 5 - Florida* TBA
Nov. 12 - at Auburn* TBA
Nov. 19 - UMass TBA
Nov. 26 - LSU* TBA
*SEC game
#at Arlington, Texas
LAST SEASON 8-4, 4-4 (third SEC West)
COACH Jimbo Fisher (34-14 in fifth season at Texas A&M, 117-37 in 13th season overall)
RETURNING STARTERS Offense 4, Defense 5
KEY PLAYERS RB Devon Achane, DE Tummise Adeleye, P Nik Constintinou, S Antonio Johnson, QB Haynes King, S Demani Richardson
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR Darrell Dickey (fifth season)
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR DJ Durkin (first season)
SEC West title scenario Haynes King must be an upgrade over Zach Calzada at quarterback for starters. If the Aggies can get through the first month unscathed, including a marquee nonconference game against Miami and a neutral site SEC opener vs. Arkansas, they would then play at Mississippi State, Alabama and South Carolina in consecutive weeks, likely setting the course for their season.