CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2017 Texas A&M

7–⁠6 (4–⁠4 Southeastern Conference), coached by Kevin Sumlin, then Jeff Banks (interim, bowl game).

Schedule and results

Texas A&M in 2017, game by game: lost at UCLA 44–45; won vs. Nicholls 24–14; won vs. Louisiana 45–21; won vs. Arkansas 50–43; won vs. South Carolina 24–17; lost vs. No. 1 Alabama 19–27; won at Florida 19–17; lost vs. Mississippi State 14–35; lost vs. No. 16 Auburn 27–42; won vs. New Mexico 55–14; won at Ole Miss 31–24; lost at No. 19 LSU 21–45; lost vs. Wake Forest 52–55+41−24Lost 44–45 at UCLA-1UCLAWon 24–14 vs. Nicholls+10NichollsWon 45–21 vs. Louisiana+24LouisianaWon 50–43 vs. Arkansas+7ArkansasWon 24–17 vs. South Carolina+7South CarolinaLost 19–27 vs. No. 1 Alabama-8No. 1 AlabamaWon 19–17 at Florida+2FloridaLost 14–35 vs. Mississippi State-21Mississippi Sta…Lost 27–42 vs. No. 16 Auburn-15No. 16 AuburnWon 55–14 vs. New Mexico+41New MexicoWon 31–24 at Ole Miss+7Ole MissLost 21–45 at No. 19 LSU-24No. 19 LSULost 52–55 vs. Wake Forest-3Wake Forest
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 3atUCLAL 44–⁠4554%
Sep 9vsNichollsW 24–⁠1487%
Sep 16vsLouisianaW 45–⁠2174%
Sep 23vsArkansasW 50–⁠4359%
Sep 30vsSouth CarolinaW 24–⁠1769%
Oct 7vs1AlabamaL 19–⁠2728%
Oct 14atFloridaW 19–⁠1740%
Oct 28vsMississippi StateL 14–⁠3555%
Nov 4vs16AuburnL 27–⁠4244%
Nov 11vsNew MexicoW 55–⁠1476%
Nov 18atOle MissW 31–⁠2447%
Nov 25at19LSUL 21–⁠4529%
Dec 29Bowls & playoffvsWake ForestBelk BowlL 52–⁠5554%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Wake Forest 55–⁠52 in the Belk Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 6th in the Southeastern Conference.

In program history: The 71st-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 125 on file).

Record
7–⁠6
Conference
4–⁠4 tied for 6th in Southeastern Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
425–⁠399
Coach
Kevin Sumlin, then Jeff Banks (interim, bowl game)
Elo
1566 −8 this season
SP+ rating
9.4 No. 36 of 128; offense No. 38, defense No. 52, special teams No. 18
SRS
2.6 No. 56 of 130 in FBS
Returning
34% of last season’s EPA, No. 109 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 13 roster talent No. 15 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Noel Mazzone
Defensive coordinator
John Chavis
Offense
Spread
Defense
Multiple 4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense55th of 130
  • Defense75th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted50th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted58th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1039%1.2655th of 130
Defense0.1141%1.2375th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.11 off
0.07 def		40% off
39% def		—50th off
58th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.8own 3217% allowed
Defense3.7own 3318% caused

CORE rating 3.4, 51st of 130 (offense -0.5, defense -3.9).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsNick Starkel QB1,793 yds
Passing touchdownsNick Starkel QB14 TD
Rushing yardsTrayveon Williams RB798 yds
Rushing touchdownsKeith Ford RB12 TD
Receiving yardsChristian Kirk WR919 yds
Receiving touchdownsChristian Kirk WR10 TD
TacklesTyrel Dodson LB104 tkl
SacksLandis Durham DL10.5 sacks
InterceptionsArmani Watts DB4 INT

Top recruits in the 2017 class

Anthony Hines ILB★★★★No. 65
Jhamon Ausbon WR★★★★No. 73
Kellen Mond DUAL★★★★No. 108
Derrick Tucker S★★★★No. 158
Hezekiah Jones WR★★★★No. 187
Grayson Reed OT★★★★No. 242
Jayden Peevy DT★★★★No. 247
Santino Marchiol ILB★★★★No. 313

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2017 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks23.50.899
Running backs13.00.852
Receivers63.30.898
Offensive line53.20.865
Defensive line33.30.876
Linebackers34.00.918
Defensive backs53.40.880
Whole class253.40.886

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2018

The 2018 draft
Rd 2Christian Kirk WRArizona Cardinals
Rd 4Armani Watts SKansas City Chiefs
Rd 6Damion Ratley WRCleveland Browns

Roster 117

The 2017 roster

117 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2017 line; 59 have a stat line. See the roster

All-SEC

2 first team

First team

From Wikipedia’s 2017 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

2017 Southeastern Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Alabama7–⁠113–⁠11
Georgia7–⁠113–⁠22
Auburn7–⁠110–⁠410
LSU6–⁠29–⁠418
South Carolina5–⁠39–⁠4
Mississippi State4–⁠49–⁠419
Kentucky4–⁠47–⁠6
Missouri4–⁠47–⁠6
Texas A&M4–⁠47–⁠6
Ole Miss3–⁠56–⁠6
Florida3–⁠54–⁠7
Vanderbilt1–⁠75–⁠7
Arkansas1–⁠74–⁠8
Tennessee0–⁠84–⁠8

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.