Game Preview: Texas A&M's Offense vs. UTSA's Defense

AggieYell.com begins its breakdown of the matchup between No. 19 Texas A&M and UTSA with a look at the Aggie offense against the Roadrunners defense.

Where, when, weather and TV

Where: Kyle Field, College Station, Texas

When: 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 30

Weather: Cloudy, temperatures likely in the low 80s at kickoff. 60% chance of rain, possibly late in the game.

TV: ESPN (Anish Shroff, Andre Ware, Paul Carcaterra)

Texas A&M offensive depth chart

QB: #10, Marcel Reed; RS-So.; 6-1, 185

#16, Miles O’Neill; RS-Fr.; 6-5, 220

RB: #8, Le’Veon Moss; Sr.; 5’11, 210

#4, Rueben Owens; RS-So.; 5-11, 215 OR

#5, Amari Daniels; Sr.; 5-8, 197

TE: #17, Theo Melin Ohrstrom; RS-Jr.; 6-6, 257

#87, Nate Boerkircher; Gr.-TR.; 6-4, 250

WR (X): #3, Ashton Bethel-Roman; RS-Fr.; 6, 185

#2, Terry Bussey; So.; 5-10, 195

WR (SLOT): #1, Mario Craver; So.; 5-9, 165

#0, Izaiah Williams; RS-Fr.; 5-11, 185

WR (Z): #7, KC Concepcion; Jr.-TR.; 5-11, 190

#18, TK Norman; Fr.; 6, 182

LT: #60, Trey Zuhn; Sr.; 6-6, 319

#79, Lamont Rogers; Fr.; 6-6, 337

LG: #71, Chase Bisontis; Jr.; 6-5, 315

#52, Blake Ivy; RS-Fr.; 6-3, 336

C: #54, Mark Nabou; RS-So.; 6-4, 330

#61, Koli Faaiu; RS-Sr.-TR.; 6-3, 333

RG: #55, Ar’maj Reed-Adams; Gr.-TR.; 6-5, 325

#77, Tyler Thomas; Fr.; 6-4, 329

RT: #78, Dametrious Crownover; Gr.; 6-7, 336

#70, Robert Bourdon; RS-Fr.; 6-6, 315

UTSA’s defensive depth chart

LDE: #35, Jon Jones; RS-Sr.-TR.; 6-4, 270

#94, Kenny Ozowalu; RS-Fr.; 6-4, 270

NT: #98, Jamiean Buxton; Jr.; 6-2, 325

#88, Cam Blaylock; RS-Sr.-TR.; 6-2, 325

RDE: #1, Tai Leonard; RS-Jr.; 6-3, 260

#97, Kaian Roberts-Day; RS-Jr.-TR.; 6-3, 295

MONEY (Nickel): #2, Owen Pewee; RS-Jr.; 6-2, 205

#12, Marcellus Wilkerson; RS-Jr.; 6-1, 210

MIKE: #9, Kendrick Blackshire; RS-Sr.-TR.; 6-1, 230

#23, Brandon Tucker; RS-Jr.-TR.; 5-11, 215

JACK: #0, Shad Banks; RS-Sr.-TR.; 6-1, 230  

#34, James Walley Jr.; RS-So.; 6-2, 250

WILL: #4, Cameron Cooper; RS-Jr.; 6-3, 245

#31, Vic Shaw; RS-So.; 6-3, 240

CB: #3, Davin Martin; RS-Fr.; 6-3, 175

#10, Alpha Khan; RS-Jr.; 6-1, 175

FS: #7, Jimmy Wyrick; RS-Fr.; 6-3, 175

#13, Tyan Milton; Sr.; 5-11, 180

BS: #14, Je’Marius Lewis; 5-11, 195; Sr.

#22, Elijah Newell; 5-10, 190; RS-Fr.

CB: #28, KK Meier; Jr.; 6, 190

#27, Jakevian Rogers; RS-So.; 6-1, 165

Injury update

Texas A&M: Wide receiver Jerome Myles (knee) and offensive guard Papa Ahfua (knee) are out for the season. Offensive tackle Deuce Fatheree (lower body injury) is out for this game and is week-to-week.

UTSA: No reported injuries.

Texas A&M 2024 returning offensive statistical leaders

Passing:

Reed, 147-240 (61.3%), 1,864 yards, 15 TD, 6 INT

O’Neill, 5-6, 51 yards, 1 TD

Rushing:

Moss, 121 carries, 765 yards (6.3 YPC), 10 TD

Daniels, 139 carries, 661 yards (4.8 YPC), 8 TD

Smith, 54 carries, 214 yards (3.8 YPC)

Receiving:

Bussey, 17 catches, 261 yards (12.7 YPC)

Moss, 10 catches, 141 yards (14.1 YPC)

Ohrstrom, 10 catches, 184 yards, 2 TD

UTSA 2024 returning defensive statistical leaders

Tackles:

Pewee, 42

Lewis, 28

Shaw,21

Tackles for loss:

Pewee, 7

Shaw, 4

Milton and Buxton, 2

Sacks:

Shaw, 2.5

Pewee, 2

Buxton, 1

Interceptions: 

Pewee, 2

Lewis, 1

Forced fumbles:

Pewee and Wyrick, 1

What Texas A&M wants to do on offense

Establish themselves in all facets of the game. The Aggies have a tough task in figuring out what to expect from UTSA’s defense, considering it has 11 new starters — mostly transfers — but that shouldn’t matter to an experienced offense stacked with veterans. 

A&M will likely look to get the running game going early with Moss, Owens and Daniels, while working to get Reed into a grove by targeting Concepcion and Craver with some quicker passes to get them the ball in space. They may use more tempo than we saw last year, as they’re more familiar with their own scheme while UTSA’s defense isn’t familiar with theirs.

But this game, more than most, should come down to the offensive line establishing control. If that happens, then the running game works and Reed has time to work on a secondary that was outright awful last year — 123rd nationally — and may not be a whole lot better this year. If A&M finds a rhythm, then there should be more opportunities for big plays in the passing game as the game itself moves along.

What UTSA wants to do on defense

Establish an identity fast and do what they need to in order to slow down the running game. UTSA’s defense was an odd combination last year — highly aggressive, tough against the run, put up big numbers in sacks and tackles for loss while giving up a ton of passing yards and being the absolute worst in the nation in terms of penalties.

UTSA was fifth nationally in sacks and third in tackles for loss. They were 11th overall in rush defense. BUT they also gave up 11.6 yards per completion and more than 30 points a game on average. They won games in shootouts.

The overhaul of the starting lineup is complete. It has transfers from Northern Arizona, Texas, TCU, Stanford, New Mexico and Nevada while the remaining six spots are filled by backups on last year’s team. 

UTSA plays normally with a three-man front and a “Money” player, essentially an oversized nickel who can be used against the run.. That’s Pewee, and he is by far the most productive returning player on the Roadrunners defense. 

Last year, UTSA gambled defensively, blitzing a lot and leaving their secondary in one-on-one situations. Jess Loepp remains the defensive coordinator, so that probably won’t change. Look for UTSA to attack, blitzing on run downs to slow down the running game and forcing Reed to throw. But they’ll have to be significantly better against the pass this year for that gambit to be effective. With so many new faces, that won’t be an easy task.