This game’s write-up will have a little more rambling and musing than a structured one.

I’m not sure what I saw on Saturday, so it’s hard to fully diagnose that game. McNeese is a bad football team—a very bad football team.

It was nice to see A&M dominate McNeese, but I’m not sure what positives there are to the game. Sure, dominating is better than struggling against McNeese, but that was a glorified scrimmage against a much inferior opponent. There’s just not a lot of good that can come from playing a game like this.

In addition to not gaining anything by playing McNeese, Some Directional Illinois beat Notre Dame in its stadium.

So, I still don’t know what the hell to think about the 2024 Aggies. The concerns remain, and the Notre Dame loss only compounds them.

Can’t even really call the Notre Dame loss a “good” loss anymore. We got beat at home by a team that got beat at home by Some Directional Illinois the following week. Those mental gymnastics rationalizing a Notre Dame loss seem to be out the window right now.

As for the McNeese game:

• Good to see Conner get back on track. I know it was just McNeese, but seeing him go 11/14 for 125 yards and two scores was nice. He missed a few passes, but he was really on the mark for the part of the game he played. I have no idea if it translates to a tougher defense but it’s sure better than him struggling against a team like McNeese.

• I thought it was moronic he got pulled when he did. He had a chance to run a 2-minute drill before the end of the first half. Then, come out for a series or two after the half to see how he responds after sitting for a bit. I understand getting Reed some snaps, but I thought Conner should have received all the snaps a couple of series into the third quarter.

• As for Marcell Reed, it’s pretty clear Conner is the unquestioned starter. I love Reed’s athleticism, but he went 5 for 11 for 71 yards. Against McNeese.

• I’m still not sold on this offensive line. It’s certainly improved from last season, but Crownover and Fatheree split time in the first half. I don’t like that at all. Our starting line needs to be set. That tells me there’s still uncertainty on who the right tackle should be. That’s a liability that will likely haunt us at some point this season.

• I’m also still worried about this line as a whole. They’re going to get tested this season, and I hope they respond. Just because they’re better than last season’s version doesn’t mean they’re a really good unit.

• I thought Moss and Daniels looked good. I still don’t think they’re elite-level backs, but I do think they will be fine for the 2024 Aggies.

• Cyrus Allen and Noah Thomas had some nice catches. We had a Moose sighting, but who knows if it will last. I think there’s some decent talent at receiver, but I’m unsure about the scheme and coaching. I expected a lot more two games in.

• If I didn’t know Elko and a new staff were running this offense, I’d think it’s still a Jimbo offense but with motion. I know it’s only two games in, but I don’t see anything different or special about this offense. It still looks like a slow, plodding offense with no creativity or wrinkles.

• Defensively, it’s really hard to judge this squad during that game. I believe McNeese was playing their backup quarterback, as their starting quarterback was banged up.

• We did have a couple of nice interceptions, but then again, it was McNeese.

• Overall, there seemed to be a dramatic difference in the quality of play when the second and third teams entered the third game. This doesn’t speak well to our depth.

Looking forward:

• Nothing changed my mind that 8-4 is the ceiling for this team. Unless there’s a dramatic change on offense, we’ll find ourselves on the short side of at least three more games. That’s not going to be a good season. We need some sort of urgency to show things are different.

• We’ll find out a lot more this weekend against Florida. Florida isn’t a good team, but they’re wounded. That scares me a bit. I’m also a little worried that pulling our starters early in the game will return and bite us in Florida. I understand the value of getting the backups some playing time, but I also want to know if our starters are prepared for 4 quarters of football. I’m not saying we’ll lose to Florida, but I don’t see it as an easy win. I hope I’m wrong and the Aggies stomp in The Swamp.

• I’m a little concerned about the Arkansas game. I know they lost to an Oklahoma State team that’s probably overrated, but Bobby Petrino will try to take advantage of our defense. I’m still not totally sold on our defense. There’s some definite talent along the starting defensive line, but I’m not sure how elite it is. I think we might be pretty susceptible to a good running team. Our linebackers and corners might struggle to defend the pass, so we’ll need our defensive line to pressure them. I know that sounds obvious, but Arkansas will tell us a lot. Bobby Petrino will find and try to attack the weaknesses.

• There’s no way to project much beyond the Florida and Arkansas games right now. Let’s see what happens in The Swamp this Saturday before we spend more time deciding more about the 2024 Aggies. It’s just not worth our time and effort right now.