The numbers that tell the tale of the Aggies road win over the Bulldogs
It may not have been as pretty or as dominant as Texas A&M’s last outing against Mizzou, but the Aggies stayed undefeated on the road and in conference play, and sometimes that’s all you can ask for. Here are the stats that tell the tale of A&M’s 34-24 win in Starkville.
Salient Stats
- 0: Sacks allowed. Once again, the Maroon Goons gave QB Conner Weigman time to operate and kept him upright all game. Even on a day where the Aggies ran the ball nearly 60% of the time, it’s still an encouraging development going forward for a unit that continues to improve.
- 2: Interceptions for Conner Weigman. This one is less about how many he did have than it is how many more he could have had. There were at least three more golden opportunities for picks that MSU defenders wasted (two on the opening drive of the third quarter). While Weigman was mostly accurate, he made several bad decisions about where to go with the football. As silly as it sounds, you have to wonder: Was there simply too much maroon on the field on Saturday?
- 11: Tackles for loss by A&M. It was a season high tally for a defense that has been living in the opponents’ backfields in recent weeks. While the defense did give up some big plays in the first half, putting MSU consistently behind the chains was a big part of how this defense succeeded. The Aggies also added nine pass breakups on top of that.
- 6 for 92: Jabre Barber’s receptions and yardage. On a day where Terry Bussey was active but did not see the field, it was Barber who led the day for the Aggie receivers. After missing games early while recovering from injury, Barber continues to work his way into a significant role in the A&M offense. In fact he was the only A&M pass-catcher to snag more than two passes on Saturday.
- 64.3%: A&M’s third down conversion rate. In fact, at one point in the game the Aggies were 9 of 10 on third downs (and had a successful fourth down conversion on the one they missed). This even included several third and very long plays. The ability to move the chains and sustain drives as a major factor on a day where the Aggies struggled to create big plays (at least ones that weren’t called back for penalties).
- 94: Second-half yards for MSU. Mike Elko was pretty critical of his defense at the half, and the unit absolutely locked down QB Michael Van Buren and the Bulldog offense in the second half. In fact there only points of the half came as a result of Weigman throwing an interception and giving MSU the ball in the red zone. Fantastic adjustments by the coaching staff and fantastic effort by the Aggie defense. That defensive line really flexed it’s muscle as the game wore on.
- 100,000+: The number of folks who will be inside Kyle Field next Saturday to watch a game that will determine the sole possessor of first place in the SEC. The Aggies avoided the look-ahead letdown in Starkville, and that sets up an absolutely massive matchup Saturday night at Kyle Field as they host LSU at 6:30 p.m. on ABC. From a stakes perspective, it’s hard to remember a more important game for the Aggies since joining the SEC.
Here’s to being 2-0 in road games, now let’s defend our home field and take this season from good to special. #BTHOlsu