Post Game Review: No. 15 Texas A&M 38, New Mexico State 3
Under the lights of Kyle Field, No. 15 Texas A&M took care of business, improving to 8-2 with a 38-3 win over New Mexico State.
The Maroon & White’s initial first down came courtesy of Amari Daniels, A&M’s primary running back due to the loss of Le’Veon Moss. A&M kept pounding the rock until Marcel Reed sent his first completion right to Tre Watson, a Senior Night honoree. One play later, a 16-yard pass to Noah Thomas put A&M on the board, 7-0.
The New Mexico State Aggies moved the chains with a 16-yard rush from Seth McGowan but failed to do so again, punting it away on a boot that was partially blocked by Marcus Ratcliffe.
On their own 29, all it took was five seconds for A&M to strike again. Daniels sped away 71 yards to the house as the Maroon & White grabbed a 14-0 lead.
A Nic Scourton and Rodas Johnson TFL kicked off New Mexico State’s second offensive opportunity, leading to a three-and-out for the visitors.
Subsequently, A&M began yet another successful march downfield. Reed found Theo Melin Öhrström for a gain of 19, followed by a pass to Jahdae Walker to keep the sticks moving. A 9-yard catch by Cyrus Allen pushed A&M inside the redzone. Randy Bond knocked a 37-yarder through the uprights to put A&M up 17-0.
New Mexico State’s McGowan slipped through a couple of missed tackles to pick up 25, yet back-to-back-to-back incompletions stalled their drive.
Öhrström’s 30 and 27-yard receptions spearheaded the 95-yard scoring drive as the first quarter expired. To open the second, Moose Muhammad III hauled in his second touchdown catch of the year to give A&M a 24-0 advantage.
Both teams traded three-and-out possessions before New Mexico State completed its first pass of the night, yet could not find a new set of downs and punted. A&M followed suit, piecing together a lackluster march to cross midfield but not do much else.
New Mexico State found its way into A&M territory for the first time but failed to capitalize as kicker Abraham Montano missed a 47-yard field goal. Just before halftime, A&M drove down the field, but Reed was picked off on the goal line.
After the break, A&M’s defense continued to swarm as Scourton recorded a TFL, Albert Regis broke up a pass, and Dalton Brooks hurried QB Santino Marucci. After a punt, EJ Smith received a majority of the load on the ground as walk-on AJ DiNota got involved. Taking 6:38 off the clock, Reed capped the rush-heavy drive by carrying it in himself, 31-0.
Following New Mexico State’s seventh punt, Conner Weigman entered under center for A&M but failed to move forward a single yard as #15 was sacked twice. Back on defense, A&M allowed New Mexico State to sneak into their territory just before the fourth quarter. Montano kicked a 48-yard field goal to put the visitors on the board.
On the second Weigman-led drive, #15 hit Öhrström for a gain of 23 to propel A&M downfield. Terry Bussey’s second reception of the night found another 14. What appeared to be an easy-scoring drive was spoiled as Weigman threw an interception in the endzone.
Freshman QB Miles O’Neill received some fourth-quarter action as he led a late 10-play, 53-yard scoring march that ended with a pass to Ashton Bethel-Roman in the end zone.
Texas A&M’s 12th Man Kickoff team took the field for the final kickoff, and Malick Sylla recorded his second sack to end the game.
RUMBLED: Texas A&M started hot. The Maroon & White put up 273 yards of total offense alone in the first frame with two touchdowns and a field goal. Marcel Reed completed 8-of-11 passes as the Fightin’ Texas Aggies looked like they could put this one in cruise control.
STUMBLED: Against a non-conference foe, playing penalty-free and injury-free football is the goal outside of a win. Yes, A&M took care of business when looking at the scoreboard, but it looked relatively sloppy to end the first half.
The Maroon & White accumulated eight penalties for 71 yards. Additionally, Cyrus Allen suffered an arm injury early in the first, and Shemar Stewart was seen entering the pop-up tent and never returned. Not ideal.
TURNING POINT: This one was never in doubt. The Fightin’ Texas Aggies controlled the New Mexico State Aggies from kickoff, putting together three scoring drives in the first quarter. The early spark carried the Maroon & White through.
UNSUNG HERO: How about AJ DiNota get some quality reps? Texas A&M’s running back room is a serious area of concern after Le’Veon Moss was injured at South Carolina. Amari Daniels’ action ceased in the first half, and EJ Smith received much of the Aggies’ load to follow. DiNota posted 19 yards on three carries, averaging a gain of 6.3 of every haul before A&M’s final drive.
It was beneficial for the Aggies to get DiNota involved, as it appears too much tailback depth is never enough.
KEY STAT: Saturday night’s attendance is 105,815 was the third largest attendance for a non-conference game in Kyle Field history. The 12th Man always shows up.
Scoring Summary
First-quarter
A&M: 11:38 - Marcel Reed 16-yard passing touchdown to Noah Thomas. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards. TOP: 3:22. Texas A&M 7, New Mexico State 0
A&M: 9:52 - Amari Daniels 71-yard rushing touchdown. Drive: 1 play, 71 yards. TOP: 0:05. Texas A&M 14, New Mexico State 0
A&M: 4:26 - Randy Bond 47-yard field goal. Drive: 9 plays, 56 yards. TOP: 4:03. Texas A&M 17, New Mexico State 0
Second-quarter
A&M: 13:45 - Marcel Reed 6-yard passing touchdown to Moose Muhammad. Drive: 9 plays, 95 yards. TOP: 4:08. Texas A&M 23, New Mexico State 0
Third-quarter
A&M: 6:38 - Marcel Reed 5-yard rushing touchdown. Drive: 14 plays, 76 yards. TOP: 6:38. Texas A&M 31, New Mexico State 0
Fourth-quarter
NMSU: 4:26 - Abraham Montano 48-yard field goal. Drive: 8 plays, 24 yards. TOP: 3:13. Texas A&M 31, New Mexico State 3
A&M: 0:42 - Miles O’Neil 5-yard passing touchdown to Ashton Bethel-Roman. Drive: 10 plays, 53 yards. TOP: 4:52. Texas A&M 38, New Mexico State 3
