COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Marcel Reed threw three touchdown passes and ran for another score before leaving late in the third quarter with an injury to lead No. 19 Texas A&M to a 44-22 victory over Utah State on Saturday.
Reed threw for 220 yards with TD passes of 34, 12 and eight yards before leaving with about four minutes left in the third quarter after taking an awkward fall and getting hit by a defender. He walked off the field after being checked out and spent time in the medical tent before jogging to the locker room.
Coach Mike Elko declined to say what Reed injured but indicated he'd play next week when the Aggies visit No. 9 Notre Dame. "I fully anticipate Marcel being fine," he said.
Texas A&M (2-0) led by 1 late in the first quarter before scoring 23 straight points to take a 30-6 lead into halftime.
Reed had a 1-yard scoring run and a 12-yard TD pass in that span to help Texas A&M pull away.
Texas A&M's defense dominated in that stretch, led by defensive end Cashius Howell, who sacked Bryson Barnes on three consecutive plays to single-handedly force a punt in the second quarter. It's the first time a player has had sacks on three straight plays since Jack Cichy did it for Wisconsin against Southern California in the 2015 Holiday Bowl, according to research by the Texas A&M communications staff.
"I thought we handled that game the way we needed to handle it through three quarters," Elko said. "I thought through three quarters we played the way we wanted to play. It was good to see us play a little bit more consistently on defense for the most part in that game."
Barnes had 169 yards passing with two touchdowns for Utah State (1-1) but was sacked six times and hit six more.
"I claim responsibility first," coach Bronco Mendenhall said. "They beat us in all three phases. Great environment, but we didn't play as clean or as sharp in any of the phases today."
Backup Miles O'Neill threw for 99 yards, highlighted by a 72-yard touchdown pass after Reed went out.
Elko was happy with the throws his quarterbacks made downfield.
"Our ability to push the vertical passing game was something we had to do to become more dynamic," he said. "It was good to see Marcel hit the one to Terry (Bussey) and KC (Concepcion), and also Miles O'Neill launch one."
Immediate impact
KC Concepcion had another big game for Texas A&M on Saturday after scoring a touchdown on a punt return and grabbing a TD catch in his debut last week after transferring from North Carolina State. He had six receptions for 73 yards and two touchdowns.
His second TD came on an 8-yard catch and extended the lead to 37-14 with about six minutes left in the third quarter.
"My connection with Marcel is growing stronger every day. ... I can't wait to see where it goes," Concepcion said.
Mario Craver, another transfer in his first year at A&M, had 114 yards receiving and a touchdown after grabbing two touchdown receptions last week.
The takeaway
Utah State: Barnes was under near-constant pressure Saturday and his line will have to protect him much better for the team to get back on track next week.
Texas A&M: The run defense was much better than in the opener, when A&M allowed UTSA to rush for 203 yards. On Saturday, the team allowed just 78 yards rushing.
"After last week, we gave up more rushing yards than we should have," Howell said. "The emphasis this week was to stop the run and reestablish the line of scrimmage. I feel like we took the next step."
Up next
Utah State hosts Air Force next Saturday night.
Texas A&M visits the Fighting Irish next Saturday night.
