Greg McElroy breaks down if Texas A&M should start Marcel Reed over Conner Weigman moving forward

Texas A&M pulled off one of the most impressive wins of the weekend after coming from behind to beat No. 8 ranked LSU in a 38-23 victory that was fueled by some strong second half defense and the insertion of redshirt freshman quarterback Marcel Reed. Who took over the reins of the offense for Conner Weigman in the third quarter and turned things around for the Aggies.

Reed started three games for Texas A&M when Weigman missed some time with an injury, leading the team to a 3-0 record before Weigman returned to the lineup. But according to college football analyst Greg McElroy, the Aggies now face an intriguing crossroads at the quarterback position.

“This is going to be an interesting thing to monitor moving forward, because we had had this conversation a few weeks ago. Who is the better option for this team, for this offense?” McElroy asked. “And I had said leading into the Missouri game, shows how much we know, I get the sense that the offense might be the tiniest bit more efficient with Marcel Reed at the quarterback spot. Just because the mobility aspect from the quarterback position just makes them more difficult to defend, just makes them tougher to defend.”

Reed is a tremendous athlete who poses a major threat to defenses with his legs, rushing for 187 yards and three touchdowns in his three starts and three touchdowns this weekend against LSU. A different skillset compared to Weigman, who did lead the Aggies to a 41-10 win in his first game back from injury despite his struggles on Saturday.

“With how they’re running the football, and how these backs are hitting the hole, how the offensive line is steadily improved, felt like the mobile quarterback is going to help them out. Well in goes Weigman, lights up Missouri, we look dumb,” McElroy explained. “Now, a couple weeks later, Weigman is kind of regressing back to what he’s been throughout his career, a little up and down, a little spotty from an accuracy standpoint, maybe questionable decisions too.”

Weigman was sacked four times against LSU and completed just six of his 18 pass attempts for 64 yards before Reed took over with 8:10 remaining in the third quarter. Taking advantage of short fields presented by A&M’s defense and leading four straight scoring drives as they outscored the Tigers 31-6 in the second half.

“So Marcel Reed’s legs open up this whole new world to A&M’s offense and I think they’ll probably go with him next week. Because next week hey, guess what? No picnic coming up next week, Texas A&M is probably going to be in the top 10. If they’re not, they should be. They’re likely going to be in the top 10 going on the road at night to Williams-Bryce Stadium at South Carolina.

“Just saying that’s a tough, tough road trip to make fresh off an emotional victory to take soul standing at the top of the SEC standings,” McElroy added. “But either way, tremendous second half performance from A&M, and a tough decision coming up from Mike Elko in his first year there in College Station.”

The No. 10 Aggies are now the only team in the SEC still undefeated in conference play, sitting in the driver’s seat of the league. But who will be in the driver’s seat of their offense for the remainder of the season?