Sneak peek: Texas A&M
AUBURN | Year two of the Bryan Harsin era gets underway with a couple of warmup games before a Big Ten opponent kicks off three crucial home contests. Four of the final seven games are on the road including trips to Georgia and Alabama.
Today, we continue an early look at Auburn’s 2022 schedule with another key game against an SEC West rival.
WHO: Texas A&M (8-4 last season, 4-4 SEC)
WHEN: Nov. 12, TBD
WHERE: Jordan-Hare Stadium (87,451)
SERIES: Texas A&M leads 7-5
WHAT’S NEW: Jimbo Fisher hired two veteran coaches in the offseason, defensive coordinator DJ Durkin and offensive line coach Steve Addazio. The biggest addition from the transfer portal was LSU quarterback Max Johnson, who will compete for the starting position in the preseason. The only other addition was Liberty defensive lineman Micaiah Overton, who is the brother of 5-star defensive end signee Lebbeus Overton and expected to be a preferred walk-on. The younger Overton is part of the Aggies No. 1-ranked recruiting class that included five other 5-stars in wide receiver Evan Stewart, defensive tackle Walter Nolan, defensive end Shemar Stewart, and defensive backs Jacoby Mathews and Denver Harris.
WHO TO WATCH, OFFENSE: Right guard Layden Robinson is rated as one of the top interior offensive line prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft. Robinson is ranked by PFF as the nation’s No. 4 IOL. The Manvel, Texas native has 10 starts in 20 career games.
WHO TO WATCH, DEFENSE: Antonio Johnson is one of the SEC’s top defensive backs with 13 starts in 19 career games. The 6-foot-3, 200-pounder can play cornerback, nickel or safety. He’s ranked by PFF as the nation’s top safety and a likely first-round NFL Draft pick. He had 79 tackles, 8.5 tackles-for-loss, one sack, one forced fumble, five pass breakups and six interceptions as a sophomore.
OUTLOOK: Texas A&M’s last four recruiting classes under Fisher were ranked 6th, 6th, 7th and 1st. This is a program on the rise and believes it’s becoming the SEC West’s biggest challenger to Alabama. The Aggies beat the Tide last season but the starting quarterback in that win is now at Auburn. The quarterback battle will be at the forefront of preseason practice with sophomore Haynes King, who started the first two games last season before breaking his leg, going up against Johnson and heralded true freshman Conner Weigman, who enrolled in January. The winner will play behind an offensive line that returns three starters and throw to a receiving corps that returns talented senior Ainias Smith, who recently had his suspension lifted, and added Stewart, who enrolled in January and is a likely starter. Speedy running back Devon Achane nearly had 1,000 yards as a backup last season.
Defensively, Durkins inherits a talented unit with a bunch of highly-recruited freshmen to plug in. Junior defensive tackle McKinley Jackson is on track for a breakout season as is redshirt freshman defensive end Tunmise Adeleye. Middle linebacker Andre White returns as does four of five starters in the secondary led by Johnson. Jaylon Jones and Tyreek Chappell give TAMU one of the best pair of cornerbacks in the SEC and Demani Richardson is a standout safety. SEC-leading punter Nik Constantinou returns but they have to find a new kicker.
If Auburn is to win eight or more games this season, this will be a key matchup at home. The Aggies beat the Tigers 20-3 in College Station last season, holding AU to just 226 total yards and out-scoring them 14-0 in fourth quarter. Texas A&M could be the third-most talented team on AU’s schedule so this will be a challenging game.
MORE SNEAK PEEKS:
Sept. 3 Mercer
Sept. 10 San Jose State
Sept. 17 Penn State
Sept. 24 Missouri
Oct. 1 LSU
Oct. 8 at Georgia
Oct. 15 at Ole Miss
Oct. 29 Arkansas
Nov. 5 at Mississippi State