GAINESVILLE -- Texas A&M had the ball on their own one-inch line, backed up against the screaming Florida faithful in the pouring rain, and proceeded to run the ball 99 yards on 15 plays while offensive coordinator Collin Klein slammed his Monster Energy drink in the booth to take a 20-0 lead in the Swamp.
Saturday's 33-20 romp over Florida was an attitude win and the official start of the Mike Elko era in College Station. The win marked the Aggies' first on the road since October 16, 2021, against Missouri - when Elko was the defensive coordinator.
"It's now been zero days since we won an SEC road game," Elko said postgame. "That's a positive."
Texas A&M dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball in Elko's third game against a Florida team in Year Three of the Billy Napier era. The Aggies offense, piloted by surprise starter Marcel Reed, ran 45 plays in the first half compared to Florida's 19. They finished with over 37 minutes of possession to the Gators' 22:23. Three Texas A&M players, led by Le'Veon Moss's 18 carries for 110 yards, averaged over five yards a carry, while the entire Florida team averaged 2.1 yards per attempt en route to 52 total rushing yards.
Elko said they were still developing Texas A&M's trenches during preseason practices. While Florida has a coach on the hottest seat in college football, the offensive line's performance in the SEC opener was dominant.
"I thought every kid at O-line and running back played with the demeanor we needed," Elko said.
Reed, who threw for 361 yards in Texas A&M's Texas Bowl victory against Oklahoma State last season, found out he was starting for Conner Weigman in pregame warm-ups. Weigman sustained an AC joint injury in the Week One loss to Notre Dame and reaggravated the shoulder in Thursday's practice. Reed responded by completing 11-of-17 passes for 178 yards and two scores, but he was especially dynamic on the ground. The redshirt freshman rushed for 84 yards and a score on 13 carries.
"Marcel showed up in a big way and wasn't afraid of the Swamp," defensive back Bryce Anderson said.
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