Oct 183 min read

No. 14 Texas A&M Aims to Fix Woes in Starkville

Texas A&M-Mississippi State — © Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

No. 14 Texas A&M (5-1, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) hits the road for the first time in about a month as it visits Mississippi State (1-5, 0-3) at 4:15 p.m. EST on Oct. 19 at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Miss.

The Aggies sit in first place in the SEC as they return from a bye week. Historically, Starkville has not been kind to them since they joined the SEC in 2011. Texas A&M is 2-3 all-time against the Bulldogs on the road and lost 42-24 during its last trip to Starkville in 2022. However, the teams have alternated wins over the years, so it might be Texas A&M's turn to emerge victorious.

Key Players: Mississippi State

QB Michael Van Buren Jr.

The former top-300 recruit has started the last 3 games for the Bulldogs in place of an injured Blake Shapen. While his first 2 games showed plenty of growing pains, Van Buren lit up a vaunted Georgia defense for 306 yards and 3 touchdowns on Oct. 12.

RBs Johnnie Daniels, Davon Booth

Daniels and Booth each have over 200 yards rushing on the season and are the only Mississippi State running backs to score multiple touchdowns. They have combined for 4 of the Bulldogs' 9 rushing scores on the year.

WRs Kevin Coleman Jr, Mario Craver

Coleman Jr. is the high-volume No. 1 receiver for Mississippi State with 36 catches for 447 yards and 3 touchdowns this season. Craver is the big-play guy. He only has 11 catches but averages 28.5 yards per reception and has 2 touchdowns.

S Isaac Smith, LB Stone Blanton

Smith is the Bulldogs' leading tackler and is tied for the fifth-most in the country with 56 stops. He also has a pass defense, a forced fumble and has led the team in tackles in most games.

Blanton is right behind Smith with 50 tackles this season. He also excels in pass coverage as one of the highest-graded coverage linebackers according to Pro Football Focus (PFF) and has forced 2 fumbles. His best games have come against the best teams Mississippi State has played.

Key Players: Texas A&M

QB Conner Weigman

Weigman reclaimed the starting quarterback role as he returned from injury on Oct. 5 against No. 19 Missouri, throwing for 276 yards on 18-of-22 passing. The performance was his best of the season, and he'll have to continue to play at a similar level for No. 14 Texas A&M to be successful this season.

RB Le'Veon Moss, WR Noah Thomas

Well, Moss is A&M's most consistent offensive weapon. His emergence has been huge this season, and he is currently second in the SEC in rushing with 609 yards and 6 touchdowns.

Thomas has begun to emerge as the passing game grows and builds continuity and consistency. Big things were expected of the 6-foot-6 junior this season. He has amassed 174 receiving yards over the last two games after only contributing 78 yards during the previous four.

DE Nic Scourton

No conversation about the Texas A&M defense omits Scourton. The Purdue transfer is a future first-round NFL Draft pick and has 17 tackles and 4.5 sacks this season. Also, 3.5 of those sacks have come in the last two games.

LB Taurean York, DB Will Lee III

York was named a captain as a sophomore and has supported his case. He leads Texas A&M with 28 tackles this season and even plays a pivotal role on special teams.

The Aggies' secondary has been steadily improving, and Lee III has been its best performer. He enters the Oct. 19 contest with a team-high 8 pass breakups and an interception.