Texas A&M
Texas Tech
Red Raiders Knock Off No. 5 A&M, 21-19
Oct 02, 1999 | Football
October 02, 1999
The 5th-ranked Texas A&M football team's trip to the South Plains turned sour, as the Texas Tech Red Raiders upset the Aggies 21-19 Saturday night before 53,513 fans at Jones Stadium and a national television audience.
A&M (3-1, 0-1 Big 12) held a 10-0 lead with just under four minutes to play in the first quarter. The Aggies took the opening kickoff and drove 61 yards in 11 plays, culminating in a Terence Kitchens 36-yard-field goal to go up 3-0. After the teams exchanged possessions, Tech's second drive of the game stalled at their own 30-yard-line. On 4th-and-18, Brandon Jennings blocked a Red Raider punt and Jay Brooks picked up the loose ball and ran it nine yards into the end zone to put A&M up by 10.
After the Aggies were forced to punt out of their own end zone early in the second quarter, the Red Raiders put together a quick six play, 46-yard drive ending in a 15-yard touchdown pass from Rob Peters to Dee Jackson to cut the Aggie lead to 10-7. Just over two minutes later, Tech capped a 33 second, four play, 60-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run by Sammy Morris to give the home team a 14-10 lead. They closed out the half with a 69-yard, eight-play drive ending in a nine-yard scoring strike from Peters to Darrell Jones with 25 seconds to play in the half, giving Tech a 21-10 halftime edge.
Following a Morris fumble on the second play of the second half, A&M drove down to the Red Raider nine-yard line, but was forced to settle for a 27-yard field goal by Kitchens to cut the deficit to 21-13 with 12:44 to play in the quarter. The "Wrecking Crew" defense stopped Tech on a 4th-and-1 on the next possession, giving A&M the ball on their own 43-yard-line. Seven plays later, Kitchens connected again, this time on a 51-yarder with 6:15 to play in the third to make the score 21-16.
A&M's first drive of the final quarter ended on an interception, but the Aggies were able to once again chip into the Tech lead on their next possession. Following a missed field goal attempt by Red Raider placekicker Chris Birkholz, A&M moved 54 yards in seven plays and got a 27-yard field goal from Kitchens to cut the lead to two.
After another A&M drive ended with a turnover, the Aggies would get the ball one last time with 4:16 to play in the game. Down by two and sitting on their own 32-yard-line, A&M marched down to the Red Raider 27-yard-line. Facing 2nd-and-13, A&M quarterback Randy McCown scrambled out of the pocket and found Matt Bumgardner for a 20-yard completion down to the Tech 10, but a holding call wiped out the gain. A&M could never rebound from that, as McCown's final pass on 4th-and-28 was picked off by Antwan Alexander on the Tech 20 to seal the upset for the Red Raiders.
"You have to give credit to Texas Tech," A&M head coach R.C. Slocum said. "They played exceptionally well. We knew it was going to be a difficult task against Texas Tech. We had some plays to make but we didn't make them, while Tech was able to make the crucial plays."
McCown finished the day 20-for-38 with 273 yards passing and two interceptions. He was also the leading ground-gainer for A&M, mustering 33 yards on 11 carries. Chris Taylor (6 catches, 103 yards) and Bethel Johnson (3 catches, 65 yards) posted big receiving nights.
"We were successful moving the football, but we couldn't get it done in the red zone," McCown said. "We had several opportunities in the red zone, but we couldn't punch it in. It's very frustrating."
Senior All-American Shane Lechler averaged a whopping 57.2 yards on five punts, breaking his own single game school record of 54.7 (set against Iowa State in 1996). His longest boot of the day was a 68-yarder. It was the eighth 50-plus punt average game of Lechler's career.
With the win, Tech moves to 2-2 overall and 1-0 in Big 12 play. The Red Raiders have now beaten the Aggies in four of the last five meetings between the two schools.
"I'm proud of the way the players never quit and kept on battling," Slocum said. "Now we have the opportunity to see how we respond to adversity."
Texas A&M returns to Kyle Field Saturday afternoon when they play host to the Baylor Bears (1-4, 0-2 Big 12). Kickoff for the non-televised game is set for 1 p.m. (CDT).
