Marcel Reed Powers Texas A&M to Halftime Lead vs. Missouri

The Texas A&M Aggies were far from perfect but still headed into halftime against the Missouri Tigers on Saturday with a 14-0 lead.

Marcel Reed was a major reason why.

He finished the first half 15 of 20 passing for 125 yards, one touchdown and no picks. Reed connected with wide receiver Asthon Bethel-Roman in the first quarter on a four-yard touchdown to put A&M up 7-0.

However, Texas A&M didn't get much out of its rushing attack. The Aggies had just 16 carries for 23 yards at the break, though EJ Smith managed to power in for a one-yard touchdown with 20 seconds left in the second quarter.

The Aggies limited Missouri quarterback Matt Zollers to just 31 passing yards in the first half.

Texas A&M committed five penalties for 40 yards, something that the team will need to clean up down the stretch.

Earlier this week, Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko talked about Reed's development this season.

"We had seen the development,” Elko said onThe Pat McAfee Show. ”We knew what he was capable of becoming. He can go out and make things happen with his athleticism. It's hard to argue there's a quarterback out there who's been better in big moments this year."

He also touched on last year's shortcomings and the confidence headed into this season.

"We felt like we had a chance to take a huge step forward as a program," Elko said. "Last year we had a great first two months, but we didn't finish it the right way. We had a great offseason and went into the season confident we could have a good year."

Missouri will receive the second-half kickoff.