COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – With a week of fall camp under their belt, the Texas A&M football offensive line is feeling uncomfortable. It’s a welcome experience for a unit that needed improvement from last season.
Offensive captain and left tackle Trey Zuhn III figures to be the only Aggie who has inked his name into the starting five up front. For the first time in a long time, there is a battle for every other position.
“I think the competition has been really good,” sophomore lineman Mark Nabou Jr. said Monday. “I think it’s healthy competition. Everyone’s uncomfortable right now. There’s someone behind them that wants to play that spot. So, I think, not only is it good, but it’s also beneficial for all of us, knowing we have to get better in order for the person behind u s not to catch up.”
Nabou is one of three Aggies who is positioned to take the starting center role, after the departure of Bryce Foster to the transfer portal. He is competing against Utah transfer Kolivu’u Faaiu and junior Kam Dewberry, who is making the transition to work at center after spending most of his college career at left guard.
To his own credit, Nabou practiced his first snap when he arrived in Aggieland in 2022, having never played center previously. He’s spent most of his career at left guard, but has taken 78 snaps at center, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF).
“There’s a couple of guys that you would think are penciled in, but then I think you’ve got competition kind of all over the place,” shared head coach Mike Elko at the start of fall camp. “I think you’ve got a battle at center, between probably three guys. Really anyone who loses that battle can potentially flip out to guard and can potentially flip out to right tackle.”
That leaves a group that includes Reuben Fatheree II, Ar’maj Reed-Adams, Chase Bisontis, and Dametrious Crownover, among others, who can slot into the remaining three spots.
In three seasons, Fatheree has accumulated 1,344 snaps at right tackle for the Aggies. However, injury kept him extremely limited last year, with the majority of his 25 total snaps coming at left tackle, per PFF.
Reed-Adams checked into the Aggie roster from four previous seasons at Kansas. In the majority of snaps taken with him on the field, he lined up at left guard. However, he did see 138 snaps at right tackle. Last season was his highest graded season, earning a 63.1 grade at run blocking and a 64 at pass blocking, per the analytics site.
Bisontis was thrown into the fire as a freshman last season, playing 540 snaps at right tackle. This season, he is looking to making a move inside where he feels more comfortable.
“I’ve always felt like I’ve been stronger in the run game, so that’s helped as well,” Bisontis boasted of the move to guard.
All eyes will be on the Aggie offensive line as the team hits the field for the first time against Notre Dame on August 31, after a lack luster season a year prior. A&M finished ranked 94th in the country in pass blocking grades, per PFF, as the fourth-worst unit in the Southeastern Conference. A&M’s quarterbacks were hit 35 times this season, which tied for second worst in the country.
Also aiding in their development is the arrival of new offensive line coach Adam Cushing, replacing Steve Addazio.
Coach Elko and his staff have a little less than a month to figure out who the best five will be when the Irish arrive at Kyle Field. However, unlike seasons past, the staff and players feel like there are multiple options to fill every position on the offensive line.
“There’s a lot of ways to look at this to make sure, when it’s all said and done and we go out against Notre Dame, not only do we have the best five on the field, but we have flexibility that we’re not locked in to only playing five,” added Coach Elko. “I think that’s the other thing that can give us an advantage is, being able to play seven, eight guys at times. There’s a huge benefit in that as well. So, I think a large part of that will continue to rotate throughout fall camp until some of those solutions become a bit clearer.”
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