With another loss in the books, Texas A&M football finds itself at the bottom of the SEC West rankings and just one more loss away from being banished from bowl contention. There is just one thing that should be on the program’s mind: the future.
Potential 12th Man
The history of the 12th Man dates back to 1922 when a man by the name of E. King Gill put on the maroon and white uniform and stood on the sidelines waiting for his name to be called. Over 70 years later, a walk-on named Jay Elliot wore the No. 12 for the first time in the school’s history.
And a new tradition was formed.
With injuries and illnesses spreading through the program, senior defensive back Sam Mathews’ name was called to fill in for the empty spots A&M had at the nickel position on defense.
Despite it not being the ideal situation, this moment was everything this walk-on could have ever dreamed of.
“Being a walk-on is not the preferred choice,” Mathews said. “I’ve been living the dream ever since I showed up, and Saturday made everything worth it.”
Mathews went on to record six total tackles against Florida, four of them being individual.
“Sam [Mathews] is busting his tail,” A&M coach Jimbo Fisher said. “He does a great job on special teams, and he busts his tail on everything he does. He gives effort, toughness and has the desire to be good and help his teammates in every way, shape or form.”
As for who the next 12th Man will be for the 2023-24 season, Mathews could be one of the top candidates for the spot, Fisher said.
“Very much so,” A&M coach Jimbo Fisher said. “He is on all the special teams, and the guy is an athlete.”
Achane’s Flu Game
Junior running back Devon Achane has been carrying a heavy workload all season. How heavy exactly? Out of the 183 handoffs, the Missouri City native has accumulated 158 of them for 887 rushing yards. Against Florida, he recorded his fourth game with over 100 yards as he tallied 122 yards on 16 carries and two rushing touchdowns.
In the press conference following the 41-24 loss to Florida, Fisher said that Achane was among the numerous players who were affected by the illness earlier in the week. However, this didn’t stop him from putting on a show Saturday morning.
“I was at like 80%,” Achane said. “I was just happy to still be able to play and was thankful I didn’t get a bad illness … I love football, so if I can play, I’ll 100% be on the field.”
Weigman is QB1
Freshman quarterback Conner Weigman had a field day in his first start against Ole Miss as he threw for 338 yards on 28 completions and recorded the most touchdowns by a single quarterback in a game all season with four.
Unfortunately, he was labeled out due to the flu that affected so many others, and injured sophomore quarterback Haynes King started in his place against the Gators.
This week, Fisher said that Weigman is cleared to play and will be the starting quarterback come Nov. 12 when A&M takes on Auburn at Jordan-Hare Stadium.