Texas A&M freshman KJ Edwards keeps flashing big-play ability in camp, giving Mike Elko another weapon in an increasingly crowded Aggies backfield.
Texas A&M football may have entered preseason camp with questions about how its running back rotation would shake out, but freshman KJ Edwards is making one thing increasingly difficult for Mike Elko and his staff: keeping him off the field.
Edwards delivered another attention-grabbing moment during Wednesday's sixth preseason practice.
After rising sophomore edge defender Marco Jones stopped him almost immediately on one snap, Edwards answered a few plays later by showing exactly why his name keeps surfacing in camp reports.
The freshman found daylight, used his vision and quick feet to navigate traffic and finished the play in the end zone.
That's becoming a theme.
Edwards isn't necessarily battling for the top spot on the depth chart yet. Rueben Owens II and Jamarion Morrow remain positioned to compete for the lead role, while redshirt freshman Tiger Riden brings a completely different skill set to the room.
But Edwards may possess something nobody else in the Texas A&M backfield can quite duplicate: instant home-run potential.
Riden's physical frame and downhill running style could make him especially valuable near the goal line and on third-and-short situations.
New offensive coordinator Holmon Wiggins has already spoken positively about what that power element can bring to the offense.
Edwards offers the counterpunch.
Give him a crease on first or second down and he has the acceleration to turn an ordinary run into a chunk play.
That's the kind of trait that can force a coaching staff to rethink a traditional depth chart.
Instead of choosing one featured runner, Elko and running backs coach Trooper Taylor may ultimately decide the Aggies are better served using all of them.
There's precedent for getting an explosive freshman involved early in College Station, too.
De'Von Achane wasn't immediately handed a massive workload when he arrived at Texas A&M, but the Aggies found ways to use his speed because it was simply too dangerous to leave on the sideline.
Edwards could be pushing toward a similar conversation.
Meanwhile, Jones continues to make his own case for a major role on defense. Expected to work at the Jack position as a hybrid linebacker and edge rusher, his quick stop of Edwards was another reminder of the young talent Elko has developing on both sides of the ball.
Camp competitions aren't settled by one touchdown or one tackle.
But when the same names keep showing up, coaches notice. And right now, KJ Edwards is making plenty of noise.
