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Kyle Allen is pretty lucky as a quarterback. There are few in passers the country that get to work with the kind of heavy artillery that Texas A&M has. In recent years, the Aggies receiving corps has been among the most talented in the land.
This year was no different. Senior Malcome Kennedy was back for one last go-round, touted freshmen Speedy Noil and Ricky Seals-Jones were to set the world on fire, and host of others — Edward Pope, Frank Iheanacho, Boone Niederhoffer — were going to make the Aggies the most terrifying passing offense in the SEC with their combination of size, speed and athleticism.
While the Aggies ended up being eminently stoppable in 2014, they still put up prolific numbers through the air, leading the SEC in passing offense, it wasn’t one of those previously mentioned guys that ended up being the go-to threat for Allen and Kenny Hill. It was Josh Reynolds, a lightly regarded junior college transfer.
Reynolds came to the Aggies from Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Tex. The 6-foot-3, 185 pound sophomore was expected to compete for a spot in the wide receiver rotation. He won that job, and did so much more.
In a prolific passing offense, Reynolds was the go-to guy. He set a school record with 13 touchdown catches and finished the year with 52 catches for 842 yards. He was both a possession guy, second on the team in receptions, someone the quarterbacks could look to in any situation, as well as a deep threat, with the highest yards-per-catch average on the team.
The question, as it is with every offensive performer at Texas A&M, is whether that production is the product of Kevin Sumlin’s pass-heavy Air Raid offense. While that’s fair, remember that Johnny Manziel and Mike Evans, the passer and lead pass catcher from the 2013 Aggies, were both NFL first round picks, with Evans putting on a pretty good show as a rookie in Tampa Bay.
Reynolds got better as the season went on, improving in shedding the press coverage teams learned to hit the Aggies receivers with. He had three of his four best games in the final four contests of the season, catching five touchdowns in those final four games. Even as Noil emerged as one of the most capable receivers in the conference when it comes to going up for jump balls, it was still Reynolds that Allen would look to in red zone situations. The freshman seemed to have a connection with Reynolds, one that will make the Aggies even scarier in 2015.
Noil will be a year more experienced, as will Seals-Jones and the rest of the young pass catches. The Aggies will also add Christian Kirk, a five-star receiver commit who brings a different dynamic to the massive group at 5-foot-10, 190 pounds.
The Aggies will be an improved team in 2015. While Allen will be more experienced, he’ll have a threat in Reynolds that has to be respected, making life a lot easier for the rest of the passing game.
A former freelance journalist from Philadelphia, Brett has made the trek down to SEC country to cover the greatest conference in college football.
