Aggies earn big road win at Auburn
It wasn’t even that close.
A 29-16 win by the Texas A&M Aggies over Auburn Sept. 17 doesn’t accurately tell how dominating the team in maroon and white was. But forcing Auburn to change quarterbacks illustrates how punishing the Aggies were throughout the contest.
The Tigers simply had no answer for Myles Garrett, Amari Watts and their cohorts as they spent the better part of the night on the Auburn’s side of the line of scrimmage. Texas A&M displayed speed, the willingness to swarm to the football, and the eagerness to make a play.
There was no better example of that than Deshon Hall’s sack of backup quarterback John Franklin III on fourth and goal in the fourth quarter. Hall came on a blitz untouched and made the quarterback pay for even considering an attempt at a touchdown.
Aggies defensive coordinator John Chavis has the athletes to run his system, and they are simply thriving. They have freedom to bull rush the quarterback, freedom to go after receivers who want to make play in the middle, and freedom to make opposing offenses pay for taking the field against them. They held the Tigers to 399 yards of total offense.
Meanwhile, Texas A&M quarterback Trevor Knight led the Aggies on seven scoring drives and outscored Auburn in three of the four quarters of play. Knight completed 20 of 40 passes for 247 yards and a touchdown, while running back Trayveon Williams had eight carries for 127 yards and a touchdown. Receiver Josh Reynolds caught seven passes for 98 yards and a score.
Coach Kevin Sumlin got the start to Southeastern Conference play he needed. The victory sends a clear message to the rest of the league the Aggies are coming and coming hard. They can’t overlook Texas A&M or they just won’t lose to the Aggies — they’ll be embarrassed. That’s the beauty of this team in College Station. Because of the defense and the way they attack in every part of the field, the Aggies are dangerous and will have a big say in who wins the SEC West.
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