Felt a little like fall: The Texas A&M football team practiced for 2 1/2 hours in full pads at Kyle Field on Saturday. A chilling breeze and the presence of more than 1,000 kids, parents and grandparents on hand for the Aggie Youth Experience that followed the workout made it feel just a bit like fall.
More than half of the practice was spent in controlled scrimmage situations. Although there was some full-contact work, the quarterbacks wore black jerseys and officials were instructed to whistle plays dead as soon as a defensive player got a hand on the quarterback.
Punter Justin Brantly earned the first applause from the crowd with a towering 60-yard punt into the wind during special teams drills.
Youth is served, fast: New A&M head coach Mike Sherman did not talk to reporters after practice, moving on to the Aggie Youth Experience as soon as drills were finished. The kids in the clinic got to tour the Netum Steed training facility and the A&M dressing room. They marched onto the field to a drum beat similar to the one the Aggies use to take the field. The campers, some waving 12th Man towels, shook hands as they walked through a long tunnel of A&M players and coaches, many having their picture shown on the stadium's big screens.
Sherman, who on Friday complimented the work of the defense, saw some good things from the offense Saturday. Starting drives at the 30, the Aggie offensive units scored on four drives to open the first scrimmage session.
Big-play day: The Aggie offense produced a handful of pretty plays. Redshirt freshman running back Bradley Stephens started the scoring with a 25-yard touchdown run that featured a sharp cutback. When the No. 2 units matched up next, redshirt freshman quarterback Ryan Tannehill hooked up with Howard Morrow on a 35-yard touchdown pass.
The second unit scored so quickly that Tannehill stayed in to direct the next drive. Senior fullback Jorvorskie Lane impressed the crowd by making a one-handed catch of a low throw on a swing pass from Tannehill.
Tannehill's touchdown run to cap that drive was wiped out by a penalty on the next possession, but the offense scored on a 32-yard field goal into the wind by Richie Bean. On the next drive Bean connected on a 51-yarder into the wind.
Getting their kicks: Midway through the scrimmage, the team took a break for special teams work. Despite a couple of poor snaps, Matt Szymanski made 3 of 4 field goal attempts from 37 yards and hit his only attempt from 42. Bean hit all three from 37, but missed the 42-yarder. Both players had the wind at their backs.
Quote of the day: "They've got [running back Jorvorskie] Lane listed at 285 [pounds]. He may have a little more on him." -- A fan talking to his friend in the Kyle Field stands.
Hit of the day: On a day when the offense won a lot of battles, the best hit went to junior running back Mike Goodson. Early in the scrimmage portion of practice, Goodson sped around left end and shoved defensive back Arkeith Brown to the ground with a strong stiff-arm.
Catch of the day: Redshirt freshman tight end Frank Avery proved his toughness and his soft hands when he held on to a pass from Tannehill despite being popped by defensive back Johnathan Batson. Avery's catch gave the offense a first-and-goal at the 2-yard line.
Coming up: The Aggies will practice Tuesday, Thursday and Friday as they prepare for the Maroon & White Game set for 6 p.m. Saturday at Kyle Field.
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