COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Another injury to a major contributor on the Texas A&M offense has been confirmed by head coach Mike Elko in a press conference on Monday.
That injury affects junior running back Le'Veon Moss, who went down during the first quarter of Texas A&M's 44-20 loss to South Carolina in Columbia on Saturday.
When he went down during the game, he needed to be helped off the field by staffers and was later carted to the locker room, only to return to the sidelines in street clothes in the second half.
This season, Moss had accrued 765 rushing yards, putting him just outside the top 30 rushers in the nation and third in the SEC. He gained those numbers on 120 carries and 10 touchdowns.
"It's extremely unfortunate for him because, obviously, he was having such a good year, he was in such a good place and you hate to see a kid like that have to go through the adversity he's going to have to go through and navigate back," Elko said on Monday.
The loss of Moss from the starting lineup leaves the Aggies with just two scholarship backs remaining: junior Amari Daniels and graduate transfer EJ Smith. When it comes to a third running back, the team has options, but a path forward has not yet been decided.
"I think we'll try to look at everything on the table," Elko said when asked about the situation in the backfield. "I think we'll try to figure out what the right solution is for us. Obviously, we're confident in Amari (Daniels) and his ability to go back there. EJ (Smith) will provide the primary backup, but I think at this point everything is on the table."
Unfortunately, Rueben Owens, who was injured prior to the start of the season, will not be healthy enough to return to the starting lineup. Elko said that there was a "chance" that he could return if the team's season extended into the playoffs, but a return this year looks to be unlikely.
"(Owens is) just now starting to get to the point where we can start testing him, so we haven't even really been able to get him on the hard surface running yet, so it's still a little too early to tell how that will play out," Elko said.
Assuming a next-man-up mentality, walk-on AJ Dinota, who was a preseason candidate for the 12th Man this season, could be slotted in as the third running back, but he has had only six carries this season, five of which came during FCS opponent McNeese State in the second week of the season.
Apart from dipping into the walk-ons for depth, some other options that may be available would require players to change positions, like freshman Terry Bussey, who has taken handoffs but has primarily lined up at wide receiver.
"I think what we're trying to do is continue to grow (Bussey) as a wide receiver, continue to make him more and more comfortable in what we're trying to do, continue to find ways to get the football in his hands as best we can, continue to try and do it in ways where the whole world doesn't know it's coming, which is a challenge too," said Elko. "He's effective in that role and we're trying to expand that role every game to the best of our ability."
A decision doesn't need to come immediately, as the team is currently in a bye week and will play New Mexico State afterwards in their second-to-last home game of the 2024 regular season on Nov. 16.
Elko's full press conference from Monday can be viewed below.