Photo by: Texas A&M Athletics
After Math: South Carolina
Nov 02, 2015 | Football
Each week, 12th Man Productions' Will Johnson takes you inside the numbers of the previous game with "After Math".
Saturday was about one question.
What's next?
Entering the South Carolina matchup, the Aggies had lost two in a row after their bye week…meaning they had gone one month since their last win.
Where did they go from here?
They looked for--and found--positive answers in a new starting quarterback, Kyler Murray.
The true freshman completed 71.4 percent of his passes. The Aggies had been completing 43.4 percent as a team over the 10 quarters of play that led into the game.
"Operationally, he was clean," said head coach Kevin Sumlin. "The thing you worry about with a new quarterback is snap counts, getting the signals, delay of games, misalignments. We didn't have any of those."
Murray also rushed for 156 yards. Add the efforts of Tra Carson (122 yards rushing) and James White (44), and the Aggies rolled up 321 rush yards as a team. They hadn't churned up more than 200 in any of the previous four games.
"With Kyler's dynamic ability to run, that's going to open up a lot of opportunities for running backs," says offensive coordinator Jake Spavital. "We knew the running game was going to be important to establish, and we knew it was going to be pretty successful based off having two dynamic guys back there."
Give credit to the offensive line as well. They only allowed one sack and two tackles for lost yardage, both the best marks of the season.
The Aggie offense only went 3-and-out one time versus the Gamecocks.
Defensively, there was some disappointment, but they dug in.
The D allowed 13 plays of 12 yards or more to South Carolina.
"Way too many big plays. They took advantage of the bye week," said Sumlin. "A couple reverses, a fake reverse, throwback screens, two quarterbacks on the field. We saw some things out of South Carolina we hadn't seen before."
Also, the Gamecocks entered struggling mightily in the red zone. They had scored 6 touchdowns in 21 trips there. Cashing in on 28.5 percent inside their foes 20, USC was last in the FBS in this category. They scored touchdowns on all three Red Zone trips versus the Aggies.
However, this defense rises to the occasion when it matters most.
John Chavis often preaches 'it's what you do in the fourth quarter' that counts.
In a tight game, in the final frame, A&M was phenomenal.
South Carolina averaged 7.4 yards per play over the first three quarters. They went for 2.8 per snap in the final period.
The Aggies have not allowed a fourth quarter touchdown in any of their last 3 games.
What does it all add up to?
1-0.
Kevin Sumlin mentioned in his press conference last Tuesday there was too much 'big picture thinking' in his program.
When the Aggies got to 5-0, thoughts of a Division and Conference title may have crept in, even the College Football Playoff. It's fine to have a desire for those things. But, it can't get in the way of what it really takes to make it there.
Focus on each day, practice and rep is the only way to prepare. Honing in on the next step is how to go about your business. On game day, the only play that matters is the next play. That's how you defeat the next opponent.
The Aggies had the look of a team only concerned with what is 'next' on Saturday. Sure, South Carolina dealt out some frustration, hitting on too many big plays. Yet the Aggies, never frustrated, had the appearance of a team that simply wanted to get out there for the next snap. In the end, it earned them a win.
There is no problem with big-picture hopes and wants. But teams will learn the fulfillment of such desires only comes when all the small things add up to something grand. The next rep, the next practice, the next play, the next game. Conquering each -- one at a time -- is the only way to get there.
The Aggies may have learned exactly that on Saturday.
Players Mentioned
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