Football Concludes Road Swing Saturday at South Carolina

Saturday, October 22

Columbia, S.C.

6:30 PM

Texas A&M

South Carolina

Photo by: Sam Craft/Texas A&M Athletics

Oct 21, 2022 | Football

By: Athletics Communications

Texas A&M concludes its six-week road trip on Saturday night when the Aggies return to the field to face the South Carolina Gamecocks at Williams-Brice Stadium (6:30 p.m. CT, SEC Network).

GAME 7: TEXAS A&M (3-3, 1-2) at SOUTH CAROLINA (4-2, 1-2)

Saturday, October 22 • 7:39 p.m. (ET)/6:39 p.m. (CT)
Williams-Brice Stadium (77,559)
TV: SEC Network (Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers, Cole Cubelic)
Radio: Texas A&M Sports Network, SiriusXM 202 (Andrew Monaco, Dave Elmendorf, Will Johnson)
Watch Live: Click Here
Live Audio: 12th Man Mobile app
Live Stats: Click Here

GAME NOTES (PDF)

GAMEDAY CENTRAL

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

The Aggies travel to South Carolina for their fourth straight game away from home ... A&M claimed victory in all seven previous meetings in the series with the Gamecocks and the two teams have only met as SEC foes.
Junior RB Devon Achane ranks fourth in the SEC averaging 88.00 rushing yards per game and racking up 528 total yards on the ground ... He is the only Power 5 player to score as a rusher, receiver and kickoff returner this season.
Achane ranks seventh in the country and second in the SEC averaging 152.0 all-purpose yards per game ... He leads the league with 31.9 yards per kickoff return.
Sophomore WR Moose Muhammad III had a career day at Mississippi State, finishing with 119 yards on six catches and his first trip to the end zone this season ... Muhammad again put A&M on the board at Alabama, scoring in back-to-back games with a 5-yard grab in the end zone.
The A&M defense boasts the No. 14 passing defense (175.5 y/g) and No. 21 scoring defense (18.8 ppg) in the country, also limiting its opponents to just 5.8 yards per pass, which is good for eighth nationally.
Senior DB Demani Richardson has put his veteran leadership and versatility on display this season, leading the team with 37 career starts ... He registered the third double-digit tackles game of his career when he led the Aggies with 12 takedowns at Alabama and ranks ninth in the country with two forced fumbles.
Sophomore DB Jardin Gilbert has been a key contributor on the Aggie defense in his first year as a starter ... After making multiple tackles in a game just three times last season, Gilbert has tallied at least five takedowns in all six games this season, helping lead the way at Alabama with nine tackles to go with his second interception of the season.

Evan Stewart totaled 106 yards receiving at Alabama.

QUICK HITS

The game at South Carolina marks the fourth consecutive game away from Kyle Field for the Aggies ... This is the first time since opening the 1979 season with five games on the road that A&M has spent more than three straight games away from home.
Freshman WR Evan Stewart recorded the first 100-yard game of his career with 106 receiving yards at Alabama ... The newcomer currently sits in eighth in the SEC, averaging 60.6 yards per game.
Sophomore DL Fadil Diggs put on one of his best performances at Alabama, matching or setting new career highs in tackles (6), TFL (3.0), sacks (2.0), forced fumbles (2) and QB hurries (1).
Diggs and senior DB Demani Richardson have each forced two fumbles this season, which ranks them ninth nationally and second in the SEC ... As a team, A&M’s eight forced fumbles on the year are also good for ninth in the county and second in the SEC.
The Aggies have forced at least one fumble in every game this season, including three against Alabama, their highest total in the category since forcing three against UCLA to start the 2017 season.
A&M is tied for third in the SEC with 25 pass breakups on the year ... Sophomore DB Jardin Gilbert ranks 10th in the league with five passes defended on the season, including two interceptions, which rank fourth in the SEC.
A&M’s 23-21 win over No. 10 Arkansas marked the eighth victory for the Maroon & White over an AP top 15 team under head coach Jimbo Fisher, the fourth over an AP top 10 opponent.
Quick starts have been a harbinger of Aggie victories in the Jimbo Fisher era ... The Aggies are 28-4 when scoring first and a perfect 26-0 when leading after the first quarter.

Devon Achane needs 155 yards against South Carolina to reach 3,000 career all-purpose.

MILESTONE WATCH

Junior RB Devon Achane is 273 rushing yards away from moving into the top 20 on A&M’s all-time career list, chasing Tra Carson’s (2013-15) mark of 2,075, racking up 1,802 to-date.
Achane needs 155 yards to reach the 3,000 all-purpose yard plateau, entering the week with 2,845 career yards.

Devon Achane

ACHANE IS OFF THE CHAIN

Junior RB Devon Achane leads the Aggies in his first season as the premier back after flexing his speed and versatility last year.
It took Achane just three games this season to show off his versatility and reach the end zone as rusher, receiver and returner, totaling a team-best five touchdowns so far this year ... He is the only player in the Power 5 that has reached the end zone as a rusher, recieiver and kickoff returner.
Achane made it back-to-back games with 100-plus yards on the ground for the second time in his career after tallying 111 on 16 carries at Mississippi State to register his seventh career 100-yard game.
Achane racked up a career-high 156 yards on the ground, in the win over Arkansas to register his first 100-yard game of the 2022 season.
Against App State, Achane’s two trips to the end zone marked the seventh multi-TD game of his career, when he scored on a 26-yard rush to put the Aggies on the board and later added the second special teams touchdown of his career.
Achane ranks seventh in the country averaging 152.0 all-purpose yards per game, while his 912 total yards on the season are good for 12th nationally.
Achane is quickly climbing A&M’s career all-purpose yards list, needing 155 yards to become the 19th Aggie to reach the 3,000 yard mark ... Against Mississippi State he registered A&M’s first 200 AP yard game since the 2019 season, finishing with 208 (111 rush, 21 rec., 76 KOR)
With his 95-yard kickoff return against App State, Achane became the fourth Aggie with multiple kickoff return TDs of 95-or-more yards, joining Leeland McElroy (100 vs. Southern Miss, 1994 and 100 vs. Texas, 1994), Carl Roaches (100 vs. Boston College, 1973 and 97 at LSU, 1972) and Cyrus Gray (99 at Colorado, 2009 and 98 vs. Oklahoma, 2008).
Despite a slow start in 2022, Achane still averages an impressive 6.7 yards per carry for his career (1,802 yards on 270 carries in 26 games) ... Among Aggies with more than 1,400 career yards, Achane is one of three that averaged 6.0-or-more yards per carry -- Johnny Manziel (6.3) and Trayveon Williams (6.0).
The talented back also runs track for the Aggies, receiving NCAA All-America selections in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay ... In April of this year, Achane clocked the sixth-fastest time in A&M history in the 200m (20.20) and posted a time of 10.14 in the 100m at the 2022 Texas Relays.

TUSCALOOSA, AL - October 08, 2022 - during the game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Texas A&M Aggies at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, AL. Photo By Evan Pilat/Texas A&M Athletics

Moose Muhammad III had 6 catches for 64 yards and a score at Alabama.

MOOSE STEPS UP

With the Aggies looking for a spark at wide receiver after the loss of senior leader Ainias Smith to injury, sophomore WR Moose Muhammad III was up to the task in his second career start vs. Mississippi State ... Muhammad led the Aggies with 119 receiving yards on six receptions, both career bests, and he also grabbed his first TD catch of the 2022 season.
The young receiver put A&M on the board at Alabama with a 5-yard touchdown grab in the second quarter ... He finished the game with six catches for 64 yards.
Muhammad also stepped in Smith’s role at punt returner against MSU, with 22 yards on a pair of returns, including a 20-yarder.
He is the son of longtime NFL wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad II, who enjoyed a 14-year professional career with the Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears from 1996-2009. He was a two-time Pro Bowler and earned first-team AP All-Pro honors in 2004 when he led the NFL with 1,405 yards and 16 receiving TDs on 93 catches.

Haynes King was 25-for-46 for 253 yards and two TDs at Alabama.

KING RETURNS AS QB

Sophomore QB Haynes King returned to the field for the Aggies in the 2022 season opener against Sam Houston ... King previously earned the starting job in 2021, but suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the first quarter of the Colorado game, A&M’s second game of the season.
King had one of his most impressive performances in the nail-biter in Tuscaloosa, throwing for 253 yards on 25-for-46 passing, including a pair of scoring strikes.
King showed Aggieland why he was able to regain his starting job, going 20-for-31 on 364 yards passing and three touchdowns in the lopsided win over the Bearkats.
The two 60-plus yard touchdown passes by King marked the first time an Aggie QB has sent multiple scoring passes over 60 yards to the end zone since Oct. 15, 2011, when Ryan Tannehill tossed a pair of 68-yard passes to Ryan Swope against Baylor.
Despite his limited time on the field, King is set to graduate in December 2022 with a degree in management.

Jardin Gilbert picks off a second-quarter pass at Alabama, stifling a Crimson Tide drive.

SEASONED SECONDARY

A&M boasts a seasoned secondary that returns five Aggies that have tallied double-digit career starts, as Demani Richardson (37), Jaylon Jones (26), Antonio Johnson (19) and Tyreek Chappell (13) have combined for 95 starts.
The A&M defense ranks 21st nationally in scoring defense, allowing 18.8 points per game and is allowing just 5.8 yards per pass, good for eighth in the country and second in the SEC ... The Aggies’ eight forced fumbles on the season are also good for ninth in the nation.
Richardson and Chappell teamed up against Arkansas for the Aggies’ first defensive touchdown of the season after Chappell scooped up a loose fumble and later handed it off to Richardson, who took it 82 yards to the house.
Against Miami, A&M’s top five tacklers were all defensive backs, tallying six-or-more takedowns in the victory, while also adding 1.0 TFL and five breakups.
The Aggies did not allow a touchdown in the win over then-No. 13 Miami, keeping an AP top 15 team out of the end zone for the second straight season after topping then-No. 12 Auburn 20-3 last year.
In the season opener against Sam Houston, two of A&M’s leaders in tackles were from the secondary with Richardson also sending the opposing running back 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage and sophomore DB Jardin Gilbert adding the first interception of his career and returning the ball 13 yards in the second quarter.
The Aggies picked up right where they left off last season, shutting out Sam Houston and limiting the Bearkats to just 198 yards of offense, including 91 yards through the air, which marked the sixth game under Coach Fisher that A&M has held its opponent to less than 100 passing yards in a game.
A&M was one of the best in the nation at limiting opponents last season, finishing the year second in the country in points allowed (191) and third in scoring defense (15.9) ... A&M led the SEC in yards allowed (3,930) and pass yards allowed (2,312).

Antonio Johnson leads the team with 48 tackles this season.

AJ, RICHARDSON LEAD DEFENSE

Senior DB Demani Richardson and junior DB Antonio Johnson have taken on the role of veteran leaders on the defense this season.
Richardson is in his fourth year as a starter at safety, leading all Aggies with 37 career starts, and has ranked among the top three on the team in tackles in two of his first three seasons ... He is tied for ninth nationally and second in the SEC with two forced fumbles on the year.
Richardson helped turn the game around for the Aggies against Arkansas, successfully grabbing the handoff from a wrapped up Tyreek Chappell on a fumble return that was picked up on the 2-yard line and taking it 82 yards to the end zone to put A&M within one after trailing early.
Johnson cemented himself as one of the league’s top tacklers last season and has remained the same this year, currently leading the Aggies with 48 total takedowns so far this year.
Johnson registered the fourth double-digit tackle game of his career and second of the season against Arkansas, tallying 13 takedowns to lead the way for the Aggies.
Johnson tallied 79 tackles in 2021, which was the second most on the team ... He led the Aggies and was tied for 11th in the SEC with 53 solo takedowns.