Texas A&M has 13 sacks in the last two SEC games

We are going to talk about this now because it’s a fun thing to see the defense mauling SEC quarterbacks with impunity. We are going to talk about it now because it’s a bright spot in a very haphazard season, and we need this buoy of joy to cling to.

We’re going to talk about it now because we know it’s unlikely that this insane pace will continue.

Texas A&M is leading the SEC with 20 sacks. Thirteen of those have come in the last two games against Arkansas and South Carolina.

All thirteen of these sacks have been produced by front seven players:

• 4: DE Landis Durham
• 3: LB Otaro Alaka
• 2: DE Jarrett Johnson
• 2: DT Zaycoven Henderson
• 1: LB Tyrel Dodson
• 1: DT Kingsley Keke

Landis Durham is tied for second in the conference in sacks, and has had two in each of the last two games. He forced a fumble against South Carolina on one of those sacks that was recovered by Keke.

Otaro Alaka has three of those 13 sacks and tallied five tackles for loss against South Carolina.

Defensive tackles are getting sacks. Linebackers from all over the field. Chavis is causing havoc with whatever delicately-balanced formula he’s drawn up and it’s working just well enough. Will this pace continue against Alabama? Uh, more than likely not. The secondary’s out there clinging to a cliff edge with their fingertips while the front seven has managed to slip through the various crevices left by the Arkansas and South Carolina offensive lines. The Tide won’t be as generous.

In 2015, the Ags had one single sack against the Tide, courtesy of Myles Garrett. In 2016, the tandem of Garrett and Hall were shut out of the sack department against Alabama. However, Johnson, Keke, and Henderson combined for 2.5. There’s no logical reason to believe that this scrappy group will maintain their frenzied pace. But this is college football, where logic often doesn’t come into it. There’s not much harm in hoping that they might.

That’s why we’re talking about it now anyway. So that we can remember that, for a short while, Texas A&M was sacking SEC quarterbacks like it was going out of style. Sacks are fun. They make football fun. Right now, our guys are having a lot of fun out there.