Aggies defeat Sam Houston State 31-0

What a strange, strange game in which the Texas A&M Aggies defeated the Sam Houston State Bearkats 31-0 to open the 2022 college football season for the Texas A&M Aggies, which can only be described as a tale of two halves combined with an agonizing 2-hour and 50-minute weather delay due to heavy rain and lightning in the College Station area. Now, here’s a quick recap of Texas A&M’s season opener against Sam Houston State.

For context, coming into the 2022 season, head coach Jimbo Fisher knew that the Aggie offense needed to take a step forward in creating more vertical-based “explosive” plays while specifically taking advantage of the speed they possess at wide receiver, with a bulk of that production lying at the hands of newly minted starting quarterback, Haynes King.

In his first start since Sept. 11, 2021, against Colorado, King struggled a bit as expected with the time-lapse, stalling on his first two drives (one a missed field goal) and throwing his first of two interceptions on the day down the seam intended for freshman wide receiver Evan Stewart, but proceeded to throw a beautiful 66-yard pass on a slot fade to wide receiver Yulketh Brown with 3:39 remaining in the first quarter, which would ultimately end up being the first of three explosive passing touchdowns from King in the game.

Senior wide receiver Ainias Smith showed just how valuable he is to the offense in his final year with the squad, connecting on a 63-yard touchdown pass up the seam with 50 seconds left before the half while receiving a key block from, you guessed it, Yulketh Brown. After the nearly three-hour weather delay, the team joined the brave fans who endured the rain in the stands, where Haynes King regained his confidence combined with better blocking from the offensive line, leading a 12-play drive that culminated in a 1-yard touchdown from Devon Achane, who after rushing for a frustrating 8 yards in the first half ended up finishing with 18 carries for 42…