Aggies Daily Blitz: Is A&M Already In Trouble In 2022?
The 2021 season for the Aggies was a disappointment, to say the least. Especially when compared to 2020 and expectations that resulted from just missing out on the College Football Playoff.
Welcome to the Aggies Daily Blitz, from AllAggies.com and DSP Media.
The 2021 season brought challenges like how to replace the previous season's starting quarterback and how to shore up a depleted offensive line.
Sound familiar? Those same questions are facing Aggies football in 2022.
This season's starting quarterback, Zach Calzada, is leaving via the transfer portal. Haynes King, the starter before being injured in the second game, should be back along with two highly-touted challengers.
Former LSU starter Max Johnson , a longtime favorite of Jimbo Fisher, has transferred to Texas A&M. Incoming freshman Conner Weigman is one of the top quarterback recruits in the class.
Inexperience and youth could once again plague the Aggies next season. Johnson is a logical choice to start, given his SEC experience, but will camp play out that way? Which quarterback hopeful will develop the most chemistry with the offense by the time the regular season rolls around?
Questions at quarterback aren't the only thing Fisher and his staff should be worried about. As of Dec. 21, seven A&M starters have declared for the upcoming NFL Draft, with more expected.
Defensive linemen DeMarvin Leal and Jayden Peevy, tight end Jalen Wydermyer, defensive back Leon O'Neal, Jr., running back Isaiah Spiller, and offensive lineman Kenyon Green are gone, and defensive lineman Michael Clemons is expected to do the same.
It's not breaking news that the Aggies have one of the top recruiting classes ever in 2022, and could be just one more signing away from being the best of all time, but those incoming freshmen will have the same challenge of inexperience as the last group and will face even higher expectations.
The key will be how Fisher and Co. handle the development of all that new talent.
But maybe the most notable departure is in the coaching ranks. Former defensive coordinator Mike Elko, a key behind the Aggies' success under Fisher, has left to become the coach at Duke.
Fisher has not made a decision on a replacement yet, and it will be a huge challenge to match the impact of Elko.
Also leaving is offensive line coach Josh Henson, who went to USC. That position is also still open and is expected to be until after the Gator Bowl on Dec. 31.
There are several challenges facing the Aggies in 2022, but they're all familiar ones. And there are several ways this could all play out, good and bad. But Fisher has the experience and history to deal with these issues.
Much is on the line in 2022. Just as in 2021.
