COLLEGE STATION, Texas — The No. 19 Texas A&M Aggies rolled past Utah State 44-22 on Saturday afternoon, moving to 2-0 on the season.
In the third quarter starting quarterback Marcel Reed went down with an injury, but head coach Mike Elko said post game that he fully anticipates , Reed will be fine for next week.
Elko also said he was pleased with his Team's performance throughout the first three quarters of the game but would have liked to see a stronger finish from his Aggies.
"Yeah, thought we handled that game the way we needed to handle it through three quarters, fought two or three quarters. We played the way we wanted to play," Elko said. "It was good to see us play a little bit more consistently on defense for the most part of that game. I thought we put that thing away after the 72-yard pass. And then I just thought -- a little disappointed in how we finished and the level drop that happened when we kind of went to some other guys at the end of the game. But that's something that we'll correct on film and get better at. But excited to be 2-0."
Defense finds rhythm with Howell's dominant performance
The Aggies' defense showed improvement from their previous outing, with senior safety Cashius Howell delivering a standout performance. In the second quarter, Howell recorded three consecutive sacks against Utah State quarterback Bryson Barnes.
"After I got the first one, it was kind of like next play. And then I got the second one, it was like, okay, hold on. I kind of started to feel myself a little bit," Howell said. "Like I said before, the only way I could describe it is like a flow state. And I just told myself in my head, if he throws it, I'm fixing to get home, I got to get home."
"He worked really hard. He had a really, really good offseason. I think he's playing at a really good level," Elko said. "We talked a little bit about how -- I thought he was out pressing a little bit last week, just a little bit uptight. Even sometimes when you get older and you come back for the last season, it's a different set of nerves, but you feel the nerves and the anxiety really make an impact. I was glad to see him relax today and play the way we know he can. And he certainly did that and impacted the game."
"I was tired for real. Dayon [Hayes] came pressing on my chest. I was like hold on, let me get up. I was really just tired. Yeah, I was definitely happy at the plays I made for sure," Howell said.
Offensive explosion spreads the wealth
Texas A&M's offense was firing on all cylinders, accumulating 554 total yards against Utah State. The aerial attack was particularly effective, with wide receivers Terry Bussey, KC Concepcion and Mario Craver all finding the end zone.
"I just feel like we are actually a team here. We're a brotherhood. We all want to see each other succeed. We all want to see each other win," Concepcion said. "It doesn't matter if it's me scoring, [Terry] Bussey scoring, Ashton [Bethel-Roman] scoring, Rio (Mario Craver) scoring, running back scoring, everybody is going to make their way to the end zone and celebrate with their guys."
Moss returns to form
Senior running back Le'Veon Moss, who is returning from a season-ending injury, showed increased comfort in his second game back, rushing for his first touchdown of the season.
"I thought I was tackled. Honestly, it felt good to be back in the end zone, get my first touchdown back," Moss said.
Elko was pleased with Moss's progress, noting the importance of getting the veteran back healthy carries.
"Yeah, it was good to get him out there again. I think he got him 10 carries. It was good to get him hit. Every one of those just builds confidence in him. It was good. I think he came out of the game in a really, really good head space," Elko said. "Obviously, as we move forward here, we're going to need him to be a big staple of what we're trying to do on offense. So excited to have him where he's at, headed into next week."
Looking ahead to Notre Dame
The Aggies will face their biggest test of the young season next Saturday when they travel to South Bend to take on No. 9 Notre Dame. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. on NBC.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
