Reed's self-preservation key for A&M to break out of its eight-win rut

As football season approaches, even the most optimistic Texas A&M football fans experience queasiness.

It’s probably something they eight.

While 12 is a sacred number at Texas A&M, eight is almost sacrilegious.

Since joining the Southeastern Conference in 2012, Texas A&M has averaged eight victories a year. Six times in the last 11 years, the Aggies have settled for eight-win seasons.

However, there is one key for the upcoming season that could allow the Aggies to slide into SEC championship contention.

That key? You just read it.

Slide.

The two best finishes A&M has had in the SEC era were in 2012 (fifth in the nation) and 2020 (fourth in the nation). In those seasons, the Aggies got outstanding quarterback play from Johnny Manziel and Kellen Mond.

But a good quarterback is not enough. The Aggies need a healthy quarterback.

Manziel and Mond avoided serious injuries during their standout campaigns. Unfortunately, that’s become a rarity in College Station.

Zoe Kelton, TexAgs

Quarterback Marcel Reed appeared in 11 games and made eight starts as a redshirt freshman in 2024. He was named SEC Freshman of the Week twice.

Over the last decade, injuries have routinely forced A&M to play two, three and even four quarterbacks in a given season.

Indeed, A&M quarterbacks haven’t gotten through a season unscathed since Mond in 2020. Two seasons ago, the Aggies played four quarterbacks.

Last year, a combination of injuries and inconsistent play from Conner Weigman forced Marcel Reed into the starting lineup. He played well, but not well enough to prevent a November swoon that left the Aggies with another eight-win season.

Now that Reed is in his third season and entrenched as a starter, A&M coach Mike Elko has great expectations for him.

“I think (Reed) will be a lot more comfortable in the system,” Elko said last week at SEC Media Days. “Nobody wants their first year as a starter to go the way it did for Marcel. He gets thrust in as a starter at Florida in The Swamp. He’s got to jump into that.

“Then W comes back. And then Marcel goes back in (to lead a win over LSU). I think, to his credit, he handled what was a really rocky situation about as well as you could have. Learned a lot.

“Lot of highs. Has some things that he wants to get better at, for sure. Going into this offseason, I think he’s one of the kids that’s developed the most in our program. Obviously, he’s a difference-maker. So we’re excited for where he’s going.”

Last season, Reed passed for 1,864 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also rushed for 543 yards and seven touchdowns. He has the ability to make plays off-schedule, which he especially demonstrated in victories over Florida and LSU.

He needs to decrease interceptions and read defenses better. He’s working hard on that.

“(He’s) Just doing the things he needs to be done for our program,” A&M’s preseason All-SEC guard Ar'maj Reed-Adams said. “(He’s) taking guys with him when he’s going places. He’s getting them involved. He’s staying after and throwing with guys. He’s doing everything you want your starting quarterback to do.”

Mostly, though, he needs to stay healthy.

Which brings us back to the aforementioned “slide.”

The A&M roster lists Reed at 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds. He had to work hard and eat heavily to get his weight that high.

A slight quarterback is worrisome against physical SEC linebackers and safeties who relish the opportunity to knock out a scrambling quarterback.

Reed is going to run. He also needs to slide to avoid taking big hits. That will bring criticism, even from Aggies. A decade ago, Kyler Murray was frequently chided for that strategy. He was derisively called “The Slider.”

So, he slid on over to Oklahoma, won a Heisman, led the Sooners into the College Football Playoff and became the first player taken in the 2019 NFL Draft.

Sliding isn’t macho, but it’s mucho smart. Self-preservation could be the key to A&M breaking out of its eight-win rut.

Of course, some will argue that Reed should just stay in the pocket. But that would be taking away an element of his game that could make him special.

Also, Weigman and Max Johnson sustained season-ending injuries from hits taken in the pocket. One of Haynes King’s many injuries occurred in the pocket.

Fortunately, when Reed is in the pocket, he’ll be protected by an offensive line that allowed the fourth-lowest sack total in the SEC.

Zoe Kelton, TexAgs

Ar’maj Reed-Adams earned second-team All-SEC honors in the preseason.

“We protect our players,” Reed-Adams said. “Not only our quarterback, but running backs and receivers and everything. It’s our job to keep people out there healthy. In football, injuries happen and stuff, but our quarterback should never be hit in the backfield.”

Hopefully, Reed will remain upright when in the pocket and get down when he scrambles.

A&M hasn’t had a 2,000-yard passer since Zach Calzada (2,185) in 2021. A&M hasn’t had a 3,000-yard passer since Mond in 2018.

Maybe Reed can end both droughts.

“For us to be the team we want to be, we know we have to improve our throwing game,” Elko said. “For us to win the games we want to win, to go into some of the environments we’re going to have to go in this year and be successful, we know that our passing game has to take a big step forward.

“Obviously, we have a really talented offensive line and running back room, but for us to be who we want to be, we’ve got to throw the ball well.”

Keeping Reed in the game is the first step.