Texas A&M Football: The Status of the Aggie Running Game Heading into the SEC

In 2012 Texas A&M will begin play in the Southeastern Conference.

The are joining a conference with the toughest defenses in the country. Five of the top 10 defenses in 2011 belonged to SEC teams.

If the Aggies are going to win in the SEC, then they are going to have to have a strong running game.

Are the Ags strong enough in the run game to compete in the SEC in 2012?

This is a look at all of the components of the Aggie running game and whether they will be good enough to succeed in the SEC.

Offensive Line

The 2012 version of the A&M offensive line will return all five starters and two other players who started games in 2011.

Luke Joeckel returns at left tackle and will be an All-American candidate and one of the top two or three offensive linemen in the country.

Cedric Ogbuehi returns at left guard but will have to hold off Jarvis Harrison for his starting spot. Harris started a few games in 2011 when Ogbuehi was injured.

Patrick Lewis will return at center in 2012 and will be a four-year starter on the OL.

Brian Thomas will return at right guard for the third year in a row.

Jake Matthews will also return as a third-year starter at right tackle.

Shep Klinke started the 2011 season at RG but was benched because his play was not up to par. He will be in the mix to compete for a starting spot in 2012.

Joseph Cheek and Garret Gramling are coming off red-shirt years and will offer depth.

Tight Ends

A&M will return four tight ends who saw game action in 2012.

Nehemiah Hicks, Michael Lamothe and Hutson Prioleau all saw extended play in 2012. Tommy Dorman saw a lot of play at H-back in the SMU game when Lamothe suffered a concussion.

The tight ends should help the OL hold the edge in the running game.

Hicks will be a third-year junior. Lamothe and Prioleau are red-shirt juniors. Dorman will be in his fifth year in the program. All four have spent extensive time in the strength program and should be physical enough to compete in the SEC.

Christine Michael

When Christine Michael is healthy, he is as good as any RB in the SEC.

The issue is that Michael is coming off of ACL surgery, and that normally takes two years to completely recover from.

Michael rushed for 899 yards and eight touchdowns in 2011 and was well on his way to his first 1,000-yard season before he was injured against Oklahoma.

Coming off of ACL surgery he should be a solid SEC running back but will likely not be the special back that A&M fans have come used to watching.

Ben Malena

Ben Malena rushed for 182 yards and two touchdowns in 2011. He stepped in when Michael and Cyrus Gray were lost to injuries.

He is a solid running back who has shown good power and surprising quickness as a sophomore.

He should be a quality backup running back in the SEC. He is a guy who can give you 10-15 carries against an SEC defense and get you quality yardage.

He has not shown that he is a 30-carry-per-game back that can carry a team. He will have a chance in the Texas Bowl against Northwestern to show he is that type of back.

Trey Williams

Trey Williams is one of the best running backs the state of Texas has produced in multiple years. He rushed for over 3,800 yards as a senior and led his Dekaney High School football team to the 5A state title.

Williams is currently committed to A&M. He is going to take a couple of visits, but it looks like he is going to remain committed and follow his childhood friends Matt Davis and Bralon Addison to Aggieland.

Williams will step on campus and improve the speed in the A&M backfield. He is a home run threat every time he touches the ball.

He will take a while to adjust to the physical nature of SEC play but should be able to see playing time immediately.

Brandon Williams

Oklahoma running back Brandon Williams is going to transfer to Texas A&M to be closer to his child.

He will apply with the NCAA to get a waiver to play immediately at A&M.

I expect the waiver to be turned down and for Williams to have to sit out a year per NCAA transfer rules.

Williams rushed for 219 yards and averaged 4.8 yards per carry in 2011. On an OU team that struggled to run the ball down the stretch, he could not find his way into the starting lineup.

Williams struggled to hold onto the ball during his freshman year at OU. Right now he looks like the fourth-string running back for A&M.

In the SEC you need multiple running backs to make it through the season. The average running back in the SEC weighs 220-226 pounds. Williams will fit this mold and can offer the Aggies good depth at the position if he can hold onto the ball.

Overall Readiness

The Aggies are obviously prepared to have a solid running game in the SEC when it comes to the offensive line and tight ends. They should be able to open up enough holes for the Ags running backs to flourish.

The actually running back position has a lot of question marks at it right now.

The Aggies need Ben Malena to prove he is a prime time player in the Texas Bowl.

They need to sign Trey Williams in February and to hope for a speedy recovery for Christine Michael.

Right now you cannot say for certain that the Ags are ready to run the ball in the SEC. If you ask the same question at the end of February, you could have a completely different answer.