Texas A&M Beat Missouri State But One Major Concern Can’t Be Ignored

Penalties are killers.

Missouri State found a way to get the referees to toss the flag, and it happened more than once.

For Texas A&M, it was fortunate the yellow flag didn’t cost them more than it could have, especially since it wasn’t a conference game where that could have changed the momentum.

For a 50-0 non-conference game, that cannot happen, but it's Week 1, so it isn’t always going to be the cleanest football, and you have to give A&M the benefit of the doubt.

“We need to go out and play better,” head coach Mike Elko said.

Diving Deeper Into Penalties

Mark Nabou Jr Texas A&M Aggies. — Sep 6, 2025; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies offensive lineman Mark Nabou Jr. (54) warming up during pregame against the Utah State Aggies at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Sean Thomas-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Bears, out of Conference USA, accepted six penalties that totaled 50 yards. Fortunately for the Aggies, they could have dug themselves an even bigger hole with all of the errors that they wish could be erased.

Five out of those six penalties occurred in the first half, starting with the one that came by the veteran of the offensive line, Mark Nabou Jr. He is the backbone of the offensive line and is the glue to that group of men.

Adrenaline must have been running through his body because he got a little antsy on the offensive line with his first false start of the season that moved the chains backward on a first-down play to the Missouri State 48-yard line.

Another illustration of that came early in the third quarter when Lamont Rogers moved a tiny bit early and cost the Aggies’ offense five yards. Those were the only two false starts, but it couldn't have sat well with a coaching staff trying to develop this crew into a more disciplined unit; it should be fixed as the weeks and months approach.

The referees exposed an additional two holding calls after they caught Tyree Adams and Nabou tugging on the jerseys of Missouri State defenders.

Nabou’s fell at the 11:24 mark of the second quarter after a two-yard carry from running back Rueben Owens, and Adams came on a second-and-17 when tight end Micah Riley hauled in a pass from quarterback Marcel Reed, but that reception got deleted.

Alabama transfer wide receiver Isaiah Horton also had a massive outing with four catches for 76 yards. Still, it got busted on an offensive pass interference that wiped out his highlight: a downfield pass that would have gone for 26 yards. There was also a delay of game with 36 seconds on the clock after that penalty on Horton, but there were 36 seconds left in a fourth-and-25 situation.

Obviously, the Aggies would like to wipe away those two calls as well, but it is something the team will definitely learn from and address going into next weekend against Arizona State.

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