No. 11 Aggies hoping to erase memories of Starkville letdowns on Saturday

Johnny Manziel could tap dance on quicksand. He demonstrated that in 2012.

Manziel rushed for 129 yards and two touchdowns in a 38-13 Texas A&M Southeastern Conference football victory over Mississippi State. Eight years later, it remains the Aggies' only victory in Starkville.

The playing surface of Davis Wade Stadium is like quicksand to Aggies. There, A&M’s hopes for grandeur have been sucked under and perished.

“It’s a tough place to play,” A&M center Ryan McCollum said. “They’ve got the cowbells. They’re really loud. It is what it is. We’ve just got to go in there, do our thing and come out with a victory.”

That’s been a futile effort since Manziel departed A&M.

In 2014, A&M was 5-0 and ranked No. 6, but a rash of dropped passes and three Kenny Hill interceptions resulted in a 48-31 loss.

In 2016, the 7-1 Aggies were fourth in the College Football Playoff rankings. However, an early injury to quarterback Trevor Knight, missed scoring opportunities and soft run defense resulted in a 35-28 loss to the porous Bulldogs.

In 2018, the No. 16 Aggies routinely gave up big plays on third down in a 28-13 loss.

Again, the Aggies appear to be the superior team. A&M (2-1) is ranked No. 11 and coming off a 41-38 victory over Florida.

Quarterback Kellen Mond has passed for more than 600 yards and six touchdowns in the past two games. Running back Isaiah Spiller rushed for 174 yards and two touchdowns against Florida.

Meanwhile, Mississippi State (1-2) has suffered consecutive losses to Arkansas and Kentucky, and the Bulldogs’ offense has managed just two touchdowns since a season-opening 44-34 victory over LSU.

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Mike Leach’s offense hasn’t performed well in the last two weeks, but the Bulldogs’ Air Raid can still be dangerous.

There is speculation out of Starkville that coach Mike Leach may start freshman quarterback Will Rogers rather than K.J. Costello, who has thrown nine interceptions.

Yet, A&M coach Jimbo Fisher remains wary. Perhaps that’s because he’s aware of the potential of Leach’s Air Raid offense. Perhaps it’s because the Aggies defense has allowed four touchdown passes in each of the last two games.

“Mike has always thrown the football around,” Fisher said. “He’s done a great job, and he’s very sneaky with how he plays in the running game. He’ll lull you to sleep on those quick screens and the running game he’ll have.

“You’re going to have to play disciplined, hard, tough football. We’re going to have to tackle in space very well. Going to have to contain guys. Keep leverage on the football.

“It’s going to be a challenge for our defense.”

Of course, it is. It’s always a challenge in Starkville.

Maybe the Aggies will finally prove to be up for the challenge again.