Texas A&M Aggies look defensively reborn against high-powered Arizona State

The Texas A&M Aggies were one of the worst teams in the nation defensively in 2014. Just one game into the 2015 season, it’s obvious that the new minister of defense in College Station has made a big impact.

Texas A&M was hoping for the best against No. 15 Arizona State, a team who many (including ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit) had penciled in for a playoff berth this season. What they got was probably more than most hoped for.

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The Aggies gave up an average of 28.1 points per game and finished 104th nationally in total defense in 2014, allowing an average of 450.8 yards per game.

Those embarrassing finishes prompted head coach Kevin Sumlin to make a few coaching changes, and he went out and snagged one of the best in the business, LSU’s John Chavis, to be his new defensive coordinator. Things had to improve.

Boy did they ever.

Coming up against an Arizona State offense that was one of the most potent in the nation, scoring 36.9 points per game — including outscoring opponents almost 3-to-1 in the fourth quarter in 2014 — most expected a shootout, first to 50 wins the game type affair when the Aggies and Sun Devils hooked up at NRG Stadium in Houston for the the AdvoCare Texas Kickoff.

Final score: 38-17, Texas A&M.

And of those 17 points allowed, you can put seven of them on the Texas A&M offense who coughed up the ball deep in their own territory.

Speaking of the Aggies offense, the question of whether or not Kyle Allen or Kyler Murray is the man to lead this unit was clouded even further. Allen started the game and was shaky, but effective for the most part. He was replaced by Murray late in the first half, and who may have finished the game had he not been injured in the 3rd quarter.

The stat lines –

Kyle Allen: 15/26, 198 yards, two touchdowns, one interception.

Kyler Murray: 4/9, 49 yards, one interception…with 69 yards rushing.

Begin the quarterback controversy in College Station.

Sep 5, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Texas A&M Aggies quarterback Kyle Allen (10) passes against the Arizona State Sun Devils in the first quarter at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Back to John Chavis’ defensive unit, this was quite the turnaround from what we saw last season out of the Aggies. TAMU held the Sun Devils to 291 total yards, 5-for-19 on third down conversions, and most importantly (and where the Aggies failed so often last season) only three points in the fourth quarter.

Aggies defensive linemen Myles Garrett looks even better in John Chavis’ defense, which is a scary proposition for everyone else in the SEC. Garrett spent most of his day in the Arizona State backfield. If this is the defense that we’ll see out of Texas A&M all season, the SEC West just got even more muddy than it already was…if that’s even possible.

Texas A&M will now head home to take on Ball State on Sept. 12, while Arizona State will regroup and press the reset button against Cal Poly.

Next: Top 5 SEC Defensive Player of the Year Candidates

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