Texas A&M Football 2011: The Aggies Top 7 Offensive Players

Big things are expected of the Aggies in 2011. Head coach Mike Sherman has the program headed in the right direction. Last season they came on strong in the second half of the season and finished 9-3, good for a Cotton Bowl berth.

This season, they are hoping for bigger things. The Aggies are a trendy pick to challenge Oklahoma and Oklahoma State for supremacy in the Big 12 South Division.

The biggest reason for such optimism is the litany of returning players they have on the offensive side of the ball. All those freshman who saw playing time before they were really ready while A&M was rebuilding are now sophomores, juniors and seniors.

Mike Sherman will be looking to the following seven players to lead the offense this season.

WR Jeff Fuller

Jeff Fuller is establishing himself as the greatest receiver in the history of Texas A&M football. The Jerrod Johnson to Jeff Fuller connection was a record-setting one for the Aggies and they are hoping that Ryan Tannehill and Fuller can continue what they started at the end of last season.

After flirting with entering the NFL draft, Fuller decided to return for another season in Aggieland. In his A&M career, Fuller has caught 163 passes for over 2,000 yards and 28 touchdowns.

Assuming Fuller does a decent job of replicating the success of his first three seasons on campus, he will hear his name called pretty early in next year's draft. Before that, though, he will be trying to lead the Aggies to heights unseen since the days of head coach R.C. Slocum.

QB Ryan Tannehill

Anytime a player is among the best receivers and the best quarterbacks in a team's recent past, you know you are talking about a special player.

Tannehill spent his first two seasons at A&M as one of Jerrod Johnson's favorite targets. Then last season, Tannehill found himself replacing Johnson after the Aggies offense struggled to get out of neutral.

Over the last half of the season, he threw for 1,638 yards and 13 touchdowns.

With another offseason to get reacquainted with the quarterback position and an embarrassment of riches around him on offense, he is expected to put up huge numbers this season.

RB Cyrus Gray

Going into last season, there was a question about whether or not Gray would be able to hold steady playing time with sophomore Christine Michael being thought of as a superstar in the making. Some even worried that Gray might transfer.

Thanks to his own solid play and a Michael injury, Gray showed that he might be the true superstar in the backfield. Last season, Gray rushed for 1,133 yards at 5.7 yards per carry and 12 touchdowns.

Gray had as much to do with A&M's strong finish as Ryan Tannehill did as he rushed for 100 yards in each of their last seven games, including their Cotton Bowl game against LSU.

Michael will return healthy in the fall, but now I don't think there will be any doubts about his playing time.

RB Christine Michael

The emergence of Cyrus Gray as a star in the backfield doesn't mean that Christine Michael isn't a formidable force at running back.

In his freshman season of 2009, Michael ran for 844 yards on 5.1 yards per carry. Last year as a sophomore, Michael ran for 631 yards on an even five yards per carry and that was with him missing the last five games of the season.

Cyrus Gray will certainly get the the lion's share of carries as he put up huge numbers last year and is the type of runner that gets better as the game goes on, but Michael isn't going to be a forgotten man. He is much too talented to simply get pushed down the bench.

WR Ryan Swope

Ryan Swope isn't a household name on the level of a Ryan Tannehill, Jeff Fuller or Cyrus Gray, but he is a hard-nosed, versatile receiver who can makes teams pay when they double and triple team Fuller.

After failing to see much playing time as a freshman, Swope came back as a sophomore and caught 72 passes for 825 yards.

A former running back, Swope has endeared himself to fans with his penchant for seeking out contact once he catches the ball. He almost never goes down on the first hit and he has a nose for the end zone.

With so many dangerous players in the Aggies' offense, it's easy to forget about Swope, but if he puts up numbers even better than the ones he did last year, you won't be able to overlook him.

OL Luke Joeckel

After several years of having their quarterbacks running for their lives out of the pocket thanks to inconsistent offensive line play, Luke Joeckel played a big part in improving the overall level of play along the line.

After being one of the top offensive line prospects in the country coming out of Arlington High School, Joeckel stepped right in and started from day one on campus.

For his efforts, Joeckel was All-Big 12 honorable mention and he was named to the ESPN All-Big 12 freshman team.

OL Jake Matthews

Along with Joeckel, Jake Matthews' solid play as a freshman on the line helped to make A&M's offense one of the best in the conference.

As big a prospect as Joeckel was in high school, Matthews was even bigger. He spurned offers from schools like Alabama, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas and USC to come to College Station.

Matthews, like Joeckel, stepped in and started from day one and shined. He was also named All-Big 12 honorable mention and was part of the ESPN Big 12 freshman team.

Matthews, the son of Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, is going to be a big part of the Aggies success on offense in the coming season.