Houston Chronicle

Goal in off week: Do ‘ordinary things better’

- By Brent Zwerneman STAFF WRITER brent.zwerneman@chron.com twitter.com/brentzwern­eman

COLLEGE STATION — Texas A&M already has played one No. 1 team this season. The Aggies get another shot at another No. 1 on Oct. 12 when Alabama comes to town, a prospect that had one player on Monday mixing metaphors, another rhyming and A&M second-year coach Jimbo Fisher comparing it all to home improvemen­t.

“When the pressure comes, are the pipes going to bust, or are you going to make diamonds?” A&M defensive tackle Justin Madubuike wondered.

Added defensive back Keldrick Carper: “That’s what we signed up for when we came to Texas A&M — the chance to play against the best of the best. Especially in the SEC West.”

Finally, Fisher said a coach can’t try and do too much too quickly while building a program, in comparing it to building a house.

“You need to be fundamenta­lly sound,” said Fisher, when asked if he intended to add any wrinkles to a slow-starting offense during the open week. “What we’re doing is fine, we just need to do it better and we need to coach it better. … We have to get our base fundamenta­ls down.

“It’s like you want to add something to your house, but the infrastruc­ture isn’t done. You want to hang pictures but the drywall ain’t sound. You might hang a picture on it, but you might punch a hole through it, too.”

The No. 25 Aggies, who dropped for a fourth consecutiv­e week in the Associated Press top 25 after starting the season at No. 12, pledge they’re using this week to get back to the basics with Alabama up next. A&M (3-2, 1-1 SEC) is coming off a 31-27 edging of Arkansas in Arlington’s AT&T Stadium on Saturday.

“It comes at a great time,” Fisher said of the Saturday off. “Not just because Alabama is coming. Alabama is a great football team, we know what. But what we have to focus on this week is ourselves, and our fundamenta­ls and our mental toughness and competitiv­e nature.”

The Crimson Tide (5-0, 2-0) slipped in front of Clemson this week for the AP top spot after Clemson barely beat unranked North Carolina 21-20. The Aggies lost at Clemson 24-10 on Sept. 7, with A&M scoring its lone touchdown with six seconds remaining.

Against their two toughest opponents — including No. 7 Auburn — the Aggies did not score a touchdown in each of the first three quarters. It’s why Fisher is asked if he intends to make over the offense in particular with a break in the action at hand. He said it’s all about essentials — not more bells and whistles.

“What do you think Tom Brady is going to do this week?” Fisher said of the future Hall of Fame quarterbac­k. “I read where (he thinks) the (Patriots’) offense is struggling. You know what he’s going to do? He’s going to go right back and have a basic, fundamenta­l practice. That’s what you have to do to have success. Successful teams do ordinary things better than anybody else.

“We talk about the great players, and certain levels of talent can overcome (things). But when you really look at the great teams that consistent­ly win championsh­ips, teams that I’ve been on that have won championsh­ips, they did the ordinary things better and more consistent­ly than anybody else. That’s what we have to do.”

The Aggies will have to do it this season without junior punt returner Roshauud Paul, who has opted to redshirt, Fisher announced Monday. Fisher said Paul, who has nine punt returns for 120 yards in four games this year, will use the rest of this semester to determine his future, whether it’s at A&M or elsewhere. Paul was named Mr. Texas Football in 2016 after leading Bremond to a third consecutiv­e Class 2A state title.

Also, senior defensive back Roney Elam has missed the last two games, and Fisher said Elam is “not available” and declined to elaborate on whether the senior’s absence is health-related or otherwise. A person with knowledge of the situation said Elam is dealing with a legal matter and might not be available again this season.

Elam is having his best season to date with two intercepti­ons and a sack after biding time as a backup through his first few years in the program.

 ?? Godofredo A. Vásquez / Staff photograph­er ?? Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher has no grand plans for the Aggies’ off week, choosing to concentrat­e on fundamenta­ls for his 3-2 team.
Godofredo A. Vásquez / Staff photograph­er Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher has no grand plans for the Aggies’ off week, choosing to concentrat­e on fundamenta­ls for his 3-2 team.

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