Staff predictions for Week 2 matchup between Texas A&M and McNeese State
Texas A&M's Week 2 matchup vs. McNeese State comes at a perfect time for head coach Mike Elko and his team, as the 23-13 opening season loss to Notre Dame featured one of the career-low performances from starting quarterback Conner Weigman, who threw for an underwhelming 100 yards and two interceptions in over a year.
On tape, just as Weigman described this week, his footwork was off. At the same time, Notre Dame's elite secondary has a clear track record of making life difficult for every signal-caller they face, dating back to last season's three-interception performance off of 2024 No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams.
However, the redshirt sophomore needs to improve immediately, starting with facing a McNeese defense that, as Elko stated this week, is similar to how the Aggies bring pressure defensively. So, Weigman will have his hands full once again. Two bright spots from the game include the improvements made across the offensive line, while the secondary looks faster while playing with more aggression in man coverage.
Returning to the offense, something to monitor is the potential uptick in snaps for freshman athlete Terry Bussey, who should see more time at wide receiver to provide more explosiveness in the passing game.
Ahead of Saturday's game, here are our staff predictions for Week 2.
Cameron Ohnysty — Lead Writer
Texas A&M's Week 1 loss to Notre Dame has placed the Aggies in fan purgatory until further notice, entering this weekend's matchup as a heavy favorite for a 1-1 McNeese State team. On paper, the Aggies should blow this team out of 30-plus points, but expectations are much lower after starting quarterback Conner Weigman's career-low performance.
However, HC Mike Elko's post-game press conference showed a man determined to fix these issues, While Weigman echoed his head coach's sentiment, vowing to make the changes needed to return to his former self. Defensively, despite giving up nearly 200 yards on the ground, the Aggie defense was impressive, and I expect defensive ends Nic Scourton and Shemar Stewart to have a field day against the McNeese front.
Texas A&M 38, McNeese State 7
Shaun Holkko — Contributor
This weekend is the ultimate get-right game for Texas A&M. Coming off a lackluster performance against No. 5 Notre Dame; this Saturday is an opportunity for junior quarterback Conner Weigman to truly display what he has learned during the offseason with offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Collin Klein. The former five-star recruit will bounce back in a massive way and the Aggies defense will allow even less points than it did against the Fighting Irish.
Texas A&M 51, McNeese State 10
Jarrett Johnson — Contributor
After the offensive debacle witnessed last week, it’s hard to tell the strategy once the Aggies get a lead. The interesting thing about the offense is that once rewatched, there were plays to be made. However, they were not in sync, causing them to miss open receivers or holes the offensive line created.
This will be a good game for the Aggies for two reasons. First, it should give Collin Klein some opportunities to work on the issues the game tape presents. Second, McNeese is a very good rushing team with a talented dual-threat quarterback who can make plays out of structure. This should provide the defense with some good looks and plenty of chances to work on run fits.
In the end, I do not believe this will be an Appalachian State situation, as starting quarterback Conner Weigman will settle in, and the passing game will show some signs of life on the way to a comfortable victory.
Texas A&M 40, McNeese 10
Final Score Prediction
Texas A&M 43, McNeese State 8
Game Time/ Information
Game Date: Saturday, September 7th
Game Time: 11:45 a.m. CT.
Broadcast: SEC Network
This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: Staff predictions for Week 2 matchup between Texas A&M and McNeese State
