Aggies have week off to regroup, prepare for Miami

The Aggies have an open date Saturday. With hurricane Ike approaching in the Gulf of Mexico and after two poor showings, Coach Mike Sherman has plenty to worry about. He has to prepared for the Hurricanes of Miami next week.

The Aggies are 1-1 and coming off of a 28-22 victory over the New Mexico Lobos. Game video gave the former pro coach gave the coach plenty of concern. He announced this week that he was moving tight end Billy Chavis to linebacker. Chavis started in the spring as a linebacker position but was moved to TE to shore up that position. The move indicates that Sherman and Defensive Coordinator Joe Kines are not pleased with the performance of the linebackers.

One play in the third quarter of the New Mexico game demonstrated why Chavis may have been moved. Lobo fullback Rodney Ferguson ran off left side for 15 yards. The re-play showed that Ferguson broke three Aggie tackles. Ferguson rushed for 135 yards. His longest was a 45-yard TD romp.

Sherman said he continued to be concerned about massive, over-weight fullback Jorvorskie Lane’s transition. “He needs to lower his pads … because with his big body he needs to displace people,” Sherman told Bret Zwerneman, beat reporter for the San Antonio Express-News. That’s a coach’s code words for “he’s not blocking.”

Sherman, who is an old offensive line coach, did not like his O-line’s performance either. He complained the unit was not moving the defense off of the line. That poor showing was reflected the game statistics for the past eight quarters.

The NCAA statistics brought more bad news for the beleaguered Aggies. The offense is dead last in the Big 12. They are ranked 108 th in the NCAA among major colleges. The defense was ranked 80 th and 10 th place in the Big 12.

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Tailback Mike Goodson will likely have his ball protection technique scrutinized during this off week. He has fumbled twice in the past two games. Each fumble came as he was struggling to get extra yards.

Goodson’s individual statistics have suffered. He rushed for 133 yards in two games. In the last six quarters of play, Goodson has only gained about 40 yards. Meanwhile, the league leader, Kendall Hunter of Oklahoma State, has rushed for 317 yards. If the trend continues, Goodson may see his chances for national recognition slip away.

The brightest star for the Aggies is defensive end Michael Bennett. He has 17 tackles, 3.5 tackles for a loss. He has two fumble recoveries. Bennett is likely to follow his brother, Dallas tight end Martellus Bennett, to the NFL at the end of the year.

By Jay Goode
Big 12 Fans Texas A&M Correspondent

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