After Math: UCLA
Sep 05, 2016 | Football
Each Monday, 12th Man Productions' Will Johnson goes inside the numbers of the last football game with "After Math".
When it's just one game, there's not enough sample size.
More data is required, more numbers need to be crunched. The math is too simple when dealing with only a single contest. There's just not enough to fill a formula.
With that said, most of what went into this equation was incredible.
Another crowd of over 100,000 providing ear-splitting noise in support.
A relentless defense that harassed one of the top quarterbacks in the country.
The highs of building the lead, the lows of losing it, and the peak of winning were all wrapped into an hour.
The opening act on the 2016 stage will be hard to top.
But the Aggies will have to down the road.
There's plenty to delight in after Saturday's thrilling overtime victory over 16th-ranked UCLA. But some light needs to be shined on where the Aggies must improve. Often, first games are far from perfect, even in victory.
Most glaring was the inability to finish the Bruins. The Aggies entered the fourth quarter with a 24-9 advantage. Their first three drives of the final period all yielded three-and-outs, taking a total of exactly 3 minutes off the clock. A&M was 0-for-5 on its third-down opportunities in the last 15 minutes, and time of possession in the frame favored the Bruins 10:32 to 4:28.
The Aggies were able to shake off the sluggish fourth quarter, regain themselves in overtime, and ultimately win.
A run game that showed progress helped. The Aggies went for 4.4 yards per attempt on the ground last season, 5.0 on Saturday.
"Everybody was concerned about some of our younger interior linemen," said head coach Kevin Sumlin. "For the most part we were successful. We were able to stretch out a lead in the third quarter because of our run game."
Another theme of 2015 was the Aggies ability to take up residency in opposing backfields. They hibernated in the Bruins' to open 2016.
A&M registered 10 tackles for lost yardage…UCLA got just two. A plus-8 in disruption is key. The Aggies also hurried highly-touted signal caller Josh Rosen 7 times, while UCLA was credited with only one hurry of its own. The final sack count: A&M 5, UCLA 0.
"We were just trying to make him get off his platform, and make him run," said Myles Garrett, who had 1.5 TFLs and 2 hurries while occupying blockers at an endless rate.
"Hurries and hits on the quarterback take their toll," says Sumlin. "We went into the game wanting to get Josh Rosen off the spot. When he sets his feet on rhythm he's deadly."
The Aggies simply wreaked more havoc than the opposition, putting themselves in position to win. The game ended with linebacker Shaan Washington breathing down Rosen's neck when he threw to the goal line. Justin Evans' deflection sealed the victory. Insert a nod to Evans here – he had 8 tackles, 2 interceptions and the final pass breakup.
Special teams can never be discounted, therefore Shane Tripucka must be mentioned. All he had to do was replace one of the best statistical punters in NCAA history in Drew Kaser. He was sensational. Tripucka averaged 47.3 per punt, dropping two inside the 5-yard line.
"He really gave them long fields," says special teams coordinator Jeff Banks. "I couldn't be any happier for his performance."
What does it all add up to?
Not as much as you might think to the Aggies.
See above…it's one game.
There was no elation in the locker room. In fact more of the talk centered on learning from their mistakes.
The celebration could've certainly been described as subdued.
"We expect greatness around here, we know the potential of this football team," stated Christian Kirk in the locker room following the win.
Kevin Sumlin's postgame speech suggests he agrees.
"The message was 'As good as we played at times, we had a real lapse'," he states. "We can play better."
The Aggies did the math after overtime. They deduced that it simply added up to 1-0.
That's not enough for them to rejoice. Complicated formulas will need solving in the near future. With the schedule this team will play, and an SEC road trip on the horizon, they know it's all part of the equation.
Players Mentioned
DB
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DL
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LB
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