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Elder's a mainstay for Ags' offensive line

By RICHARD CROOME

Guard Kirk Elder has been a mainstay in the Texas A&M offensive line for more than three years. The 6-foot-5, 308-pounder has started 43 straight games and received multiple all-Big 12 honors. As a member of A&M's Leadership Council, Elder is the ultimate team player and is a big reason the offensive line is a family within a family among the Aggies. Elder addresses what is the biggest game of the season for A&M, and not just because it's the next game.

Q: Despite their recent troubles, what is your first impression of the Cornhusker defense, especially the line?

A: I see a bunch of big strong guys. I see the Nebraska weightroom when I watch them play. One of the things I remember from playing them last year is they are going to be very well-schooled, well-coached. I remember last year hearing the players talk on the field during the course of the game, and they knew what we were doing last year, which told me they were good students of the game. That means they will be watching a lot of film of us and figure out what we are going to do, so we have to come ready for that.

Q: What are the problems Nebraska is having against the run?

A: I watched the Oklahoma State game, and they had trouble. Oklahoma State got after them pretty well and blocked them pretty well. USC just physicaled them. I'm not saying they're not a physical team, but it's what I saw from those two games. Oklahoma State running back [Dontrell Savage] had a hell of a game against Nebraska. He did a great job of getting up to the second level real quick, and the offensive line did a great job of blocking linebackers.

Q: What does this game mean as far as having momentum going into the final four games against Top 25 teams?

A: It's very important. We still have to keep one game at a time, and you can't think ahead to Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. We've got to focus on Nebraska, and we've got to be aware of where we're going; we're going into Lincoln and it's going to be a tough game. They are in the same situation we are right now coming off a tough loss. Theirs was at home, so they are going to be real hungry, real anxious to get after us and get a win, but so are we. We are one win away from being bowl eligible, and we've got to keep that in mind and go out there and keep fighting.

Q: What's been different about being on the road this year compared to last season?

A: I don' t think we've done anything differently. I've done the same thing in my role on the road. It's just been tough. We let the momentum slip into [Texas] Tech's hands in the second quarter, let it get out of hand in the third quarter. I take full responsibility for not punching it in on those two drives. You make those field goals or score touchdowns, it's potentially, at the worst, a 21-13 game going into the fourth quarter. That's a totally different game in terms of how the coaches are calling it and how the players are playing. We need to do a better job of getting the momentum on our side and capitalizing on field goals and scoring drives. On the road, your mistakes are amplified so much more because you're not in the friendly confines of Kyle Field.

Q: Because of Nebraska's poor stats against the run, do you expect to dominate on the ground?

A: We played them last year and were expecting to put up some huge numbers, and they did a great job of shutting down our running game except for two large runs ... so I'm not expecting to put up any big numbers.

- RICHARD CROOME

Q: How does this Nebraska front line differ from the one you played against last season?

A: It's a different defense. [Adam] Carriker's gone. He's a millionaire right now, and his buddy on the other side, Jay More, I remember him, too. I'm not going to take them lightly, I'll say that for sure. They still are talented, quality football players. But I remember last year watching Carriker on film, and we're going 'man, that's a big guy.' And then I was a captain that game, and I'm going 'Hello, Mr. Carriker, nice to meet you.' They have new faces, but we can't take them for granted because they are still big, strong. Just the experience factor [is different]. When I look at the defensive tackles, I look at guys that are hole fillers, that just sit there, and if you are going to move them out of there, you better bring your A game.

Q: What do you remember about last year's loss to Nebraska?

A: We had come off a tough loss the week before on national TV against Oklahoma. It was just an off day last year, and we can't have that this year, otherwise we're not going to lose by a point. We're going to lose by a lot more, especially on the road.

Q: What do you expect from Nebraska this week?

A: I expect them to be very, very hungry for a win, feed off their crowd, play with a lot of emotion and play with a lot of determination. It's going to be a tough game.

Q: Did Tech do anything that you didn't expect?

A: Tech played the same game all game long. All game long they stood there, played base, didn't do much blitzing. They did some movement and pushing but not much different. It just goes back to taking advantage of us going 10 for 11 or 9 for 11 instead of 11 vs. 11 [man vs. man on offense].