Texas A&M vs Missouri - Postgame Notes and Quotes
Nov 14, 1998 | Football
November 14, 1998
Texas A&M Postgame Notes
AGGIES CLINCH AT LEAST SHARE OF SECOND STRAIGHT SOUTH DIVISION CROWN --- With today's win, the Aggies guaranteed themselves of at least a share of their second straight Big 12 South Division. The Aggies are 7-0 in Big 12 play and hold a one-game lead over Texas in the standings (Texas plays Texas Tech in Lubbock later today). The Aggies take on the Longhorns on Nov. 27 in Austin.
NGUYEN SOLIDIFIES BUTKUS/LOMBARDI STATUS WITH 17 TACKLES --- Senior linebacker Dat Nguyen, a finalist for the Butkus Award and Lombardi Trophy, finished the game with a season-high 17 tackles, including three for losses of six yards and one sack. For the year, Nguyen has 118 tackles with 19 for losses, both team highs. Today's game marks Nguyen's 27th career double-digit tackle effort and his sixth with at least 17 stops. Of those six games, four were against ranked teams. Nguyen now has a school record 488 career tackles, an average of 10.6 per game.
SOPHOMORES ANTHONY, FLEMONS ALSO SHINE IN WIN --- Inside linebacker Cornelius Anthony and defensive end Ron Flemons, both sophomores, posted career highs in tackles. Anthony had 11, while Flemons had nine. Another sophomore, Roylin Bradley, tied his career best with eight tackles, including a game-high two sacks. Bradley now has seven sacks, which ties him with senior Warrick Holdman for the team lead.
ANOTHER AGGIE WIN AT KYLE --- The Aggies has posted 13 consecutive wins at home. Slocum has posted a 54-5-1 record at Kyle Field in 10 seasons. During the 1990's, Kyle Field has been the nation's fourth-toughest place to place, yielding only four opponent victories.
SENIORS CLOSE OUT KYLE FIELD CAREER WITH VICTORY --- Eighteen members of the Aggie Senior Class of 1998 played their final game at Kyle Field, and went out in grand style with 17-14 victory. It was the seniors' 13th straight win at Kyle Field. During their four-year careers, the Aggies posted a 20-4 record at Kyle Field and haven't lost on their home turf since the Texas Tech game in 1996. Their current overall record is 34-14-1.
FIFTH 10-WIN SEASON FOR SLOCUM --- This season marks the 11th time in school history that the Aggies have won 10 or more games in a season, and the fifth time in 10 seasons under Slocum. The Aggies have now won 10 consecutive games since falling to Florida State in the season-opener.
WEST, MINOR ONLY OPPONENTS OVER 100 AGAINST WRECKING CREW -- Missouri's Devin West rushed for 113 yards on 26 carries, marking the first time since the season-opener that an individual has rushed for over 100 yards against A&M. Florida State's Travis Minor rushed for 146 on 34 carries in the Kickoff Classic.
The Tigers rushed for 214 yards, a season-high by an A&M opponent, however, the Tigers' 78 passing yards were the second-lowest by an A&M opponent. The Aggies have held their opponents to less than 100 yards passing in three straight games and less than 300 yards in total offense in five straight games.
MISSOURI ENDS WRECKING CREW'S SCORELESS STREAK --- Missouri quarterback Corby Jones' 10-yard touchdown run in the second quarter was the first points allowed by the Aggies' Wrecking Crew defense in seven quarters (since Oklahoma), and the first touchdown allowed in 11 quarters (since Texas Tech). On Missouri's drive, Jones also had a 20-yard run, which is just the fourth run allowed by the Aggies of 20 or more yards in length all season.
*** With eight yards rushing against Missouri, senior Sirr Parker became the 13th A&M player to reach 2,000 yards in career rushing. Parker now has 2,004 *** This game marked the first time all season that the Aggies have trailed at halftime. Missouri has led at the break in every game this season. *** Today's game also marked the first time the Aggies haven't scored a first half touchdown since last year's Big 12 Championship game against Nebraska. *** Today's game marked the 48th consecutive start by A&M linebacker Dat Nguyen, a Lombardi Trophy and Butkus Award finalist. *** It was the first time all season that the Aggies were scoreless in the first half, and the first time the Aggie were involved in a scoreless first half.
BYNUM BOOTS AGGIES TO VICTORY --- Aggie sophomore placekicker Russell Bynum booted the Aggies to 17-14 victory against Missouri, matching a career-high with three field goals on Saturday. Bynum hit from 38, 21 and 39 yards to match the three field goals he hit against Southern Mississippi earlier this year.
AGGIE PUNTER SHANE LECHLER SHINES AGAIN --- Aggie junior All-American punter Shane Lechler, whom Slocum has called the team's MVP, once again played a huge role in the Aggie win. Despite a steady rain, Lechler averaged 44.0 yards on six punts, and had a huge 69-yarder that was downed on Tiger 2. That poor field position paid dividends for the Aggies when they got the ball back four plays later and quickly drove just 44 yards for a touchdown. Today's game was the seventh "rain game" of the year for the Aggies.
AGGIES EXCEL VS. TOP 25 TEAMS IN 1998 --- The Aggies have won three straight games against ranked teams since the 23-14 season-opening loss to then-No. 2 Florida State in the Kickoff Classic. The Aggies' three wins this season against ranked teams is the most of the Slocum era and run his career record vs the Top 25 to 15-16, including a 9-4 mark at Kyle Field.
"THEY REMEMBER NOVEMBER" --- Aggie head coach R.C. Slocum is fond of saying "They remember November," and for good reason. Under Slocum, the Aggies have posted a 31-2 record in the month of November, including a 30-1 mark in the last nine years. The two losses were to Arkansas in 1989 and Texas in 1996.
Missouri became the first Big 12 team to win the time of possession battle with the Aggies in 1998. The Tigers held the ball 31:02, while A&M had the ball 28:58.
The Aggies had a 3-1 advantage in turnovers, but A&M's one fumble was crucial. After Brandon Jennings had seemingly thwarted a late Missouri scoring drive with an interception, the junior tried to lateral the ball to a teammate and fumbled the ball back to Missouri. The Tigers made A&M pay by scoring a tying touchdown after the fumble. The Aggies came into the game averaging a plus turnover margin of +1.0, which ranked No. 12 nationally and No. 2 in the Big 12.
Penalties were few and far between for both teams. The Aggies were flagged twice for 20 yards, while the Tigers were penalized just once for five yards.
The Aggies allowed just 5-of-14 third-down conversions, but were victimized by three successful fourth-down conversions by the Tigers.
A&M quarterback Randy McCown completed passes to seven different receivers.
The Aggie defense sacked Missouri quarterback Corby Jones four times, while A&M QB Randy McCown was not sacked for the first time this season.
The Aggies' average starting position in the second half was the A&M 46, while Missouri's average second half starting point was the MU 27.
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Texas A&M Postgame Quotes
Texas A&M Quarterback Randy McCown
"My shoulder was tender on some of the plays, but we wanted to come out and win for our seniors in their last game at Kyle Field. I wasn't going to miss this one for the world. This win says a lot about our team. We had some injuries, but we just rolled with the punches. We might get down, but we never give up. Words cannot describe a guy like Dat. He is a great player. He's great on and off the field. I'm just happy to get off this field with a win for the seniors. Our defense didn't play as well as we would like, but our offense did a tremendous job. They pounded Missouri. You could tell at the end they were tired. This game may define our whole year. We missed a couple of good plays but we never gave up and that says a lot for our seniors. They are the leaders of this team. This is big-time. I can't say enough about our seniors. I wanted to see these guys go out with a victory. I love them to death."
Texas A&M Running Back Dante Hall
"I'm gonna go home and watch the K-State game, then find something to eat and then go back and watch the Texas game. I'm happy for the seniors. They are a great bunch of guys. I told one of the players the offense finally got a chance to win the game but then the almighty defense came back and won it again for us. We could hhad a lot more points on the board. We kind of shot ourselves in the foot a lot."
Texas A&M Head Coach R.C. Slocum
"I have a lot of respect for Larry Smith and his team. He has done a great job with that program. I knew today would be a chore for us. It's hard for a team to go without a break for 10 straight Saturdays. It just shows the character of this football team. We are just working to be Big 12 South champions. We have one more to play to be out-and-out champions."
Texas A&M Tight end Dan Campbell
"When you make bad plays and bone-headed plays and then you bounce back, that is what championship teams are made of. I just want to thank everyone on this team for saving my butt for what I did out there. Today, the biggest thing for me is that I will never put maroon on and walk on to Kyle Field again. I was okay until I saw Dat and he broke me down in tears. This has been a heck of a ride. I just can't express it in words. I'm very thnkful that I came to Texas A&M. I really hope Texas wins tonight. Then we will have a Texas and Texas A&M game to see who goes to St. Louis. That would really be the big time. We need the days off before then. I'm not going to do anything but sit at home and eat potato chips. When we wake up in the morning and we stretch and look out the window and we see that it's pouring down rain, we say 'it's time to go play football.' It seems like it only rains on gameday for us."
Texas A&M offensive lineman Cameron Spikes
"It was just great to be in that type of ballgame. We need to beat Texas. That's our goal. We need to go down there to win."
Texas A&M Defensive Back Brandon Jennings
(on attempted pitch after interception that was fumbled) "At first, our guy was open. Then, the receive had his hand on the ball and when I tried to pitch it, he knocked it loose."
Texas A&M Punter Shane Lechler
"That 69-yard one was ugly. I think it went 30 yards in the air. It had some good forward spin and got back there."
Texas A&M Placekicker Russell Bynum
"I don't look at it as pressure. It was just another kick, it just happened to be at the end of the game. It felt great after the kick, like a big weight was lifted off my shoulders."
Texas A&M Linebacker Dat Nguyen
"They are the best team we've played against overall. They found a weakness and attacked it with their inside running. Corby Jones is a tremendous player. He's up there with Bishop (Michael, of K-State). West is a tough runner and their o-line is very tough and physical. I think we needed that. Rich (Coady) and I didn't go to sleep last night until 2 a.m. We talked and talked. We both came here five years ago and we didn't think we'd ever play a down here. Everything I ever dreamed or hoped came true. The fans, 12th Man, student body, have been so good to me. It's hard to leave.We did such a good job of covering receivers today. Then, there were a lot of gaps for Jones to run. It's hard to stop a player like that. We did some not-so-smart things but that's part of the game. You have to overcome those mistakes. That's how you win games, by overcoming mistakes and playing your hardest. I just wanted to win this game, just come out with a W. I didn't care about the score. Russell (Bynum) did a great job. You can't ask for any better in the rain."
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Missouri Postgame Quotes
Missouri Head Coach Larry Smith
"The game came down to the end. Our defense stopped them but we had a critical error (muffed punt). The mishandled punts really cost us. We had a chance to win the game but we've got to make plays. Both of our kickers are true freshmen walk-ons. (Hammerich) is our regular long-range field goal kicker. I think the wet field caused him to slip a little bit. This was one of those games where the team that made the critical mistakes is the team that loses. Our guys are feeling anger, severe anger. It's not really frustration. We've got a No. 1 team coming in next week and we can't let this loss bury us. We have a ways to go (against top 10 teams). We can't just play them, we've got to beat them.."
Missouri Quarterback Corby Jones
"We just didn't end up getting it done. That last drive we had showed we can do it, but it's just like against the other top 10 teams we've played. We just can't cap it off. I'm never surprised about our offensive line. They can blow anybody off the ball. They've done it all year and they did it again today. I'm just frustrated right now. We have a big one next week against K-State. We have to bounce back and get it done against them.."
Missouri Safety Caldrinoff Easter
"I'm from Houston (Nimitz HS) and this game was double-tough for me. I wanted to win and maybe I tried too hard to win. We feel like we can play with anybody and we feel like we can beat anybody. (On HS teammate Dante Hall) He's happy here at A&M, but I think he wishes he was playing at Missouri with me, too. It was a great feeling playing against him. He's a good running back."
Missouri Punt Returner Randy Potter
"I just messed up. I just dropped the ball. I had confidence. I just made two dumb mistakes today. I should have caught the ball whether someone ran into me or not."
Missouri Placekicker Brian Long
"This is the third time this year the kicking game has really let the team down. We haven't been holding up our end of the deal. We really need to put something together next week to prove that we can do it."
