AggieYell.com continues its look at Texas A&M's position groups after four games with a look at a wide receiver group that looks very little like people anticipated three months ago.
Season stats
Ainias Smith: 17 catches, 223 yards, 3 TD
Chase Lane: 16 catches, 222 yards, 2 TD
Caleb Chapman: 14 catches, 197 yards, 3 TD
Jalen Preston: 6 catches, 66 yards
Kam Brown: 5 catches, 55 yards
Game-by-game stats
Vanderbilt:
Chapman, 4 catches, 40 yards, 1 TD
Preston, 4 catches, 39 yards
Lane, 3 catches, 38 yards
Smith, 2 catches, 27 yards
Brown, 2 catches, 26 yards
Alabama:
Smith, 6 catches, 123 yards, 2 TD
Lane, 6 catches, 62 yards
Preston, 2 catches, 27 yards
Brown, 2 catches, 18 yards
Chapman, 1 catch, 6 yards
Florida:
Chapman, 9 catches, 159 yards, 2 TD
Smith, 4 catches, 53 yards
Lane, 5 catches, 52 yards, 1 TD
Brown, 1 catch, 11 yards
Mississippi State:
Lane, 2 catches, 70 yards, 1 TD
Smith, 5 catches, 20 yards, 1 TD
Overall evaluation
This unit looks a lot different than it did at the start of training camp, when seniors Jhamon Ausbon and Camron Buckley were expected to be in the starting lineup with Chapman along with them. Lane and Brown were slated to be backups, with Smith at running back and Demond Demas leading a pack of younger players who could fill in.
All of that has been flipped on its head. Ausbon opted out, Chapman and Buckley suffered season-ending injuries and Demas, Moose Muhammad and Dylan Wright (among others) have made no impact whatsoever so far. That has left A&M with a short rotation in more ways than one.
Over the past two weeks, the rotation has become even tighter. Lane and Smith, who has largely moved back to receiver, were the only two wideouts to catch passes against Mississippi State. Chapman had a monster game against Florida, only to tear his ACL on the biggest play of his career. At this point, it looks like Lane and Smith are the only two wideouts Kellen Mond really trusts.
That's not an unfounded stance by Mond, either. Preston fumbled in the season opener, ran a weak route and didn't come back to the ball on Mond's pick-six against Alabama and was promptly benched. He was back in the lineup after Chapman was hurt against Florida and against Mississippi State, but wasn't even looked at. He hasn't been able to get separation and isn't running good routes.
Brown played 48 snaps against Mississippi State, the second most of any receiver, but wasn't targeted. He only played 11 snaps against Florida (and had a catch), so he hasn't made much of an impact the past couple of weeks. In last weekend's game, he just didn't get open.
Lane has been the surprise of the fall. When he signed with A&M last year, we said he was the most polished route runner in the 2019 class, and that's been proven true. He's also a lot faster than people realized, as he showed on his 51-yard touchdown last weekend. He has a strong rapport with Mond (his roommate) and that's shown the past two weeks.
Smith has become the Swiss Army Knife of the offense. He's assumed a Percy Harvin for the Aggies, being used as a receiver and in the backfield. He's averaging 13.1 yards a catch, 95 yards of total offense and has 4 total touchdowns (3 receiving). He's the most explosive player on the field for A&M right now.
Having too many receivers disappear for long stretches, whether it's due to the inability to get open or something else, is exactly why the coaches are hoping one of the other wideouts emerge over the next week-plus. Coach Jimbo Fisher said there are some younger players are getting close to contributing, and the hope is that one of them is Demas, Muhammad, or any of the other wideouts who haven't seen time as of yet. The Aggies need another target -- preferably a taller one who can stretch the field - otherwise an awful lot will be asked of Smith, Lane and Jalen Wydermyer in the passing game.
