Texas A&M
Oklahoma
Heupel, Sooners Defeat No. 10 A&M, 51-6
Oct 23, 1999 | Football
October 23, 1999
Josh Heupel passed for three touchdowns and rushed for three touchdowns, leading the Oklahoma Sooners to a 51-6 victory over 10th-ranked Texas A&M before an overflow homecoming crowd of 74,552 fans at Memorial Stadium and a national television audience.
The Sooners racked up 552 yards of offense on the evening, 165 on the ground and 387 through the air. A&M was held to 230 yards of total offense and just 64 on the ground.
OU took the opening kickoff 53 yards, setting up Huepel to guide his team on a 9-play, 40-yard scoring drive to open the game, capping it by calling his own number on a one-yard plunge with 11:43 to play in the first quarter. The drive remained alive when the Sooners successfully executed a fake field goal attempt on the A&M 22-yard-line.
After A&M went three-and-out on the ensuing drive, Huepel guided the Sooners on a 71-yard, seven-play scoring drive, giving OU a 14-0 lead on Curtis Fagan's first career touchdown catch, an eight-yarder with 6:51 left in the opening quarter.
Following a blocked Terence Kitchens field goal, OU was able to sustain another drive with trickery, this time cashing in on a fake punt from their own 31-yard-line as Seth Littrell rumbled 41 yards to the A&M 28. The Sooners cashed in with a 19-yard Tim Duncan field goal to increase the lead to 17.
Heupel scored his second touchdown of the game midway through the second quarter, ending an 83-yard drive with another one-yard touchdown run to give OU a commanding 24-0 lead. After the Aggies fumbled the ensuing kickoff, Duncan added a 27-yard field goal to increase the Sooner lead to 27.
Texas A&M would follow this score with their only points of the game, as senior quarterback Randy McCown found Chris Taylor in the back of the end zone for a 37-yard touchdown pass. The Aggies' attempt for two points failed.
OU closed out the first-half scoring on the ensuing drive, marching 77 yards in just over two minutes with Heupel notching his third one-yard touchdown run of the game, making the score 34-6.
The Sooners would put 17 more points on the scoreboard before the final whistle, as Heupel threw third-quarter scoring strikes of 22 (to Trent Smith) and 26 (Brandon Daniels) yards, respectively. Duncan would close out the scoring in the fourth quarter with a 27-yard field goal, making the final 51-6 in favor of the Oklahoma.
Heupel finished the day 31-for-50 through the air for 372 yards and three touchdowns. McCown, who left the game early in the third quarter with a shoulder injury, completed 9-of-21 passes for 131 yards and a touchdown. Redshirt freshman Vance Smith was 1-for-6 for five yards, while true freshman Mark Farris finished the evening 3-for-10 for 30 yards.
OU's Reggie Skinner led all rushers with 106 yards on 15 carries. Ja'Mar Toombs was the Aggies' leading workhorse on the ground, notching 45 yards on 11 carries. Bethel Johnson caught five passes for 64 yards, while Chris Taylor hauled in three throws for 57 yards and a touchdown. Michael Thornton led the Sooners receiving corps, catching six passes for 62 yards.
With the loss, A&M falls to 5-2 overall and 2-2 in the Big 12 Conference. OU improves to 4-2 on the year and 2-1 in Big 12 play. The Sooners head to Boulder next weekend to meet Colorado, while the Aggies play host to Oklahoma State in a crucial South Division matchup. Kickoff for the game at Kyle Field is set for 2:30 p.m.
