Good morning! Another Saturday behind us means one more Saturday closer to football season. The Bulldogs are now just six weeks away from suiting up in the Maroon and White; you can almost hear the cowbells now.

What else did we throw into the Brew today?

⛳️ Back To Back
🏈 Opponent Preview
🐶 And much, much more!

🎥 HAIL STATE PLUS

We have a trio of listens for you on this fine Monday morning with Dear Ol’ State Preseason. Get caught up with some of the Bulldog football players as they discuss the upcoming season with preseason camp around the corner.

🎧 Dear Ol State Preseason: Will Rogers

🎧 Dear Ol State Preseason: Zavion Thomas and J.P. Purvis

🎧 Dear Ol State Preseason: Jett Johnson and Steven Losoya

With HailState+ you get to watch wherever you want to watch. Web, mobile, and (later this year) all major OTT streaming apps like AppleTV, Amazon FireTV, Roku, and Android. We got it all.

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 Back To Back. For the second year in a row, State’s own Pedro Cruz Silva took home the Portuguese National Amateur Championship. The Bulldogs’ rising star carded a final round 66, a tie for his career low, ensured him the title.

He finished third overall amongst both amateurs and professionals, and gained the amateur title with ease as he finished as only one of five players in the field that finished the tournament under par.

🔼 State To The Show. Our Diamond Dawg alums are in the heat of the MLB season, and many have been heavy contributors to some good baseball teams over the past couple of weeks.

💪 J.P. France shined in his most recent outing with the Astros after striking out five and surrendering just one run in seven innings pitched.

⭐️ Brent Rooker, a.k.a the All Star, has kept up the pace since the All-Star break with 44 RBIs and an OPS of .799.

💥 Nathaniel Lowe is having himself a heck of a return from the break. He has had a hit in five of the last six games including a perfect 4-4 outing that saw him hitting a home run and a double.

📞 Jordan Westburg has been putting in work ever since getting the call up to the majors. He is hitting .276 in 58 at-bats and has driven in seven runs.

🔼 Opponent Preview. Today, we’ll be previewing an opponent that no matter what, always presents a challenge: the Texas A&M Aggies!

Quick Hits

• Finished seventh in the SEC - West division at 5-7

• Notable wins: vs. #10 Arkansas; vs. #13 Miami; vs. #6 LSU

• Since joining the SEC, the Bulldogs and Aggies are 5-5 against each other

• This team lost five games by six points or fewer to finish with its first losing season since 2009.

• Reloading: the A&M offense is having to replace its lead back, Devon Achane, but is returning it’s up-and-coming quarterback as well as their trio of a wide receiver core.

TAMU Players To Watch

🏈 QB Conner Weigman: last year’s true freshman returns this season as QB1. After starting five games and leading the Aggies to two wins to end the season, Weigman gets back some solid weapons on the wings to make things easier.

🏈 WR Ainias Smith: after missing the last eight games of the season, Smith is poised to return to the offense as the number one option for his quarterback. In just four games, Smith was the third-leading receiver.

🏈 S Demani Richardson: the four-year starter has been holding down the defensive backfield for years. Last season he finished with 73 total tackles, five pass break ups, and an interception.

🏈 DB Jardin Gilbert : alongside Richardson, this defensive back duo is something every team needs to watch out for. He finished last season with two interceptions and 38 solo tackles.

What Happened Last Year?

After a back and forth first quarter, the Bulldogs pulled away with two touchdowns in the second quarter and never looked back.

The offense exploded on to the scene with 473 yards with quarterback Will Rogers accounting for 329 of those yards through the air. A 50-yard return off a blocked field goal by Decamerion Richardson and pick-six from Emmanuel Forbes cemented a 42-24 win.

🤔 BULLDOG TRIVIA

Fun Rewind. Richardson’s returned touchdown from a blocked field goal was a highlight from the Bulldog’s special teams unit last season, but can you remember who it was who actually blocked the field goal?

Think you know the answer? Scroll on down to the bottom to find out.

📬 STICK WITH US

Did someone send you the Bulldog Brew? Well, the first thing you should do is thank them. The next thing you should do is subscribe here and get it in your inbox every weekday morning just in time for your first cup of coffee!

🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: Emmanuel Forbes!

The blocked kick was part of a huge day for the cornerback. He also intercepted two passes in the game and returned one for a score.

Have a great Monday, y'all.