Texas A&M To Start QB Max Johnson Against Miami

The Max Johnson era has arrived in College Station.

Texas A&M is ready to make the switch at quarterback. 

According to multiple reports, Texas A&M will start junior transfer Max Johnson over redshirt sophomore Haynes King Saturday against No. 13 Miami (FL). The news was first reported by 247Sports and later confirmed by A&M’s student newspaper the Battalion. 

Johnson, who elected to join the No. 24 Aggies (1-1) this offseason, initially started his career at LSU. Last season in place of the injured Myles Brennan, Johnson started all 12 games for the Tigers, throwing for 2,815 yards and 27 touchdowns against six interceptions. He elected to transfer following the departure of Ed Orgeron last November. 

In the team’s season finale, Johnson led the Tigers to a 27-24 upset over A&M in Tiger Stadium. He threw for 305 yards and three touchdowns en route to a win, including a game-winning 28-yard touchdown pass to receiver Jaray Jenkins with 20 seconds remaining. 

Johnson had been in a tight battle with King throughout summer and fall camp, but Fisher elected to roll with the younger option the first two weeks of the season. So far, King’s play has been far from what A&M fans expected after being ranked No. 6 to begin the year.  

King struggled with consistency throughout his first two starts. In the Aggies’ 31-0 win over Sam Houston, the Longview native threw for 364 yards and three touchdowns against two interceptions. All three touchdown passes came on throws of over 30 yards downfield. 

Last week in a 17-14 upset loss to Appalachian State, King never found his footing. He threw for only 95 yards and averaged 4.9 yards per pass. King’s longest play from scrimmage came on a 31-yard scramble in the second quarter to keep the drive alive. 

Through two games, King has thrown for 461 yards and three touchdowns against two interceptions. Fisher said following the loss to the Mountaineers that the team would “explore all options” at quarterback prior to facing the Hurricanes (2-0). 

“He’s a young guy,” Fisher said Monday of King. “He’s not ready to clean up anybody’s messes right now. He’s still trying to do his things right. There are a lot of things he’s not ready to fix, but there were three or four throws I wish he would have made.

“There are some plays we wish he would’ve made at the end of the game and he knows that." 

Johnson, the son of Brad Johnson, has thrown for 3,884 passing yards and 35 touchdowns against seven interceptions in his career. He also is the older brother of A&M star tight end Jake Johnson, who committed to play with the Aggies this offseason. 

Kickoff from Kyle Field is set for 8 p.m. 

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