{"id":47001,"date":"2022-11-21T13:00:36","date_gmt":"2022-11-21T18:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=47001"},"modified":"2022-11-21T07:08:59","modified_gmt":"2022-11-21T12:08:59","slug":"texas-am-beats-umass-at-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2022\/11\/21\/texas-am-beats-umass-at-home\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas A&M Beats UMass at Home"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Texas A&M Aggies defeated the UMass Minutemen 20-3 at home. The Aggies were favored by nearly five touchdowns in this matchup, but the game was a low-scoring affair as expected. Now, Texas A&M awaits the LSU Tigers next Saturday for the final game of the season. Jimbo Fisher<\/strong> did seem to make some changes in this game<\/a>, and that trend needs to continue to give Aggies’ fans some signs of hope. Here’s a quick recap of how A&M fared against UMass on Saturday.<\/p>\r\n

Offense Puts Up Yards, But Hurts Itself<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n

Although UMass is an independent, this game was a great chance for the Aggies to improve in some areas. A&M nearly put up 500 total yards with a good balance between the passing and running game. However, three lost fumbles limited the Aggies from scoring points in UMass territory; some of these unforced errors were due to the bad weather conditions at Kyle Field.<\/p>\r\n

Conner Weigman<\/a> had a decent game with almost 200 passing yards and a touchdown. He was lethal with his legs, especially at midfield, finishing with 66 rushing yards on the day. Darrell Dickey<\/strong> appeared to call some of the offensive plays today, and it would help if he made more use of the run-pass option. Weigman’s style as a dual-threat quarterback would likely benefit the Aggies with tempo and keeping the defense guessing.<\/p>\r\n

The competition for starting running back between Le’Veon Moss<\/strong> and Amari Daniels<\/strong> will be interesting heading into next season. Clearly, neither one of them is Devon Achane<\/a>, but they both have shown signs of improvement over the past few games. The Aggies desperately need a running back duo who is effective in different parts of the game. Most championship teams are built in a similar fashion, and that’s the next step for A&M.<\/p>\r\n

Defense Continues to Impress<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n

DJ Durkin<\/strong> initially chose to use a three-man front. That could be the reason that Kay’Ron Adams<\/strong> and Ellis Merriweather<\/strong> combined for over 100 rushing yards in this game. Still, the Aggies’ defense had a complete game by holding the Minutemen to 55 passing yards and less than 20% on third-down conversions. It was a pleasant surprise to see that the defense had few penalties today given previous performances<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

Honestly, it’s safe to say that Durkin has earned the right to keep his job in 2023. There were quite a few starters injured on the defensive end once again, notably Fadil Diggs<\/strong> and Jacoby Matthews<\/strong>. The toughest task will be keeping a lot of the young talent on the team for 2023 as mentioned earlier. It’s undoubtedly difficult to find high-caliber defensive playmakers in the portal, especially given A&M’s woes this season.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Concluding Thoughts<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n

Even in a matchup against UMass, it was nice for the Aggies to finally get a win following a six-game skid. The stakes are still there for the last game against LSU to instill confidence within fans and players even with a bowl game out of question. It’s up to Fisher and his staff to figure out a way to keep the squad motivated throughout the week; the 12th man has to come in full strength unlike this past Saturday for Texas A&M to finish off the season strong.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Embed from Getty Images<\/a>