Texas A&M
(#20) Kansas State
(#20) Kansas State 36, (#14) Texas A&M 17
Oct 18, 1997 | Football
October 18, 1997
After valiantly fighting an uphill battle all day long, Texas A&M's all-everything linebacker Dat Nguyen stood outside the visiting locker room at Wagner Field and assured the media that the Aggies would have no trouble bouncing back from Saturday's 36-17 loss to Kansas State.
Nguyen, the emotional leader of a defense that was asked to do far too much against the emotionally-charged Wildcats, even suggested that there was probably a silver lining or two coming from the Aggies clouded performance. He just couldn't think of any immediately.
This may be as difficult as trying to find a needle in a Kansas corn field. The Aggies (now 5-1 and 2-1 in Big 12 play) were outplayed, out muscled, and basically outmatched from the opening kickoff to the final whistle. Remarkably, they weren't completely out of it until late in the fourth quarter.
But, while the score remained relatively close throughout much of the game, there was never a doubt who was the superior team on this particular day.
No one among the crowd of 43,601 fans in Wagner field - or in the regional television audience - would probably argue with that point. In fact, the sea of purple clad fans behind the bench voiced their opinion of the previously 14th-ranked Aggies throughout the closing minutes, chanting "over-rated, over-rated."
It was total domination, and it was a total ugly scene for anyone wearing maroon. But not quite as ugly as the final statistics. Here are a few of the most telling and terrifying numbers:
The Aggies, who entered the game averaging over 440 yards of total offense, managed just 90 yards of offense against the Wildcats. Not in a quarter. Not in a half. In the entire game. It marked the lowest offensive output in R.C. Slocum's nine-year career as the A&M head coach. In fact, it was at least the lowest offensive total since 1975. The records prior to that were unavailable.
A&M, which was ranked fifth nationally in rushing a 278 yards per game, finished with a total of minus 35 yards rushing against the Wildcats. The longest run of the day was three yards. And Dante Hall, who suffered a bruised knee in the first offensive play of the game and never returned, finished as the team's second-leading rusher with just two yards. The leader, D'Andre Hardeman, had three yards.
The A&M offense ran just 37 plays and held the ball for just slightly over 18 minutes. That left the Wrecking Crew on the field almost as long as the painted Wildcat emblem. The A&M defense held its own for a long time, but the offense didn't come close to living up to its end of the bargain.
A&M was completely whipped, and yet, the Aggies won the battle of the turnovers. In fact, A&M didn't have a turnover. It could have been worse had the Wildcats not committed two turnovers and 12 penalties.
The A&M offense didn't even come close to picking up the slack. The Aggies did produce two touchdowns against the Wildcats, but they both came with an asterisk attached to them.
The first A&M touchdown came on a blocked punt by Ronald Patton and a 27-yard return by Michael Williams. The second touchdown, a 1-yard run by Hardeman, came after Brandon Jennings intercepted a pass and returned it to the KSU 1.
Despite the offensive struggles, both of A&M's touchdowns pulled the Aggies within six points of the lead. And a few minutes after William's return of the blocked punt, the A&M defense put the Aggies in position to take the lead.
With 9:40 left in the game and the Aggies trailing 16-10, Trent Driver forced a KSU fumble at the Wildcat's 49, and Jennings recovered. The Aggies had the strong wind at their back. They had the ball in KSU territory. They had a boost of momentum.
But then the A&M offense had three miserable plays - all incomplete passes - and the Aggies were forced to punt. That series, more than any other, probably best summarized the entire game.
Indeed, the Wildcats (5-1, 2-1) deserve plenty of credit. They were, without a doubt, the best team A&M has played this season. And they were certainly led by the best quarterback A&M has faced this year, Michael Bishop.
