October 30, 1999
SLOCUM TALLIES CAREER WIN #100 -- With today's victory over Oklahoma State, A&M head coach R.C. Slocum joined an elite group of head coaches who won the 100th game of their careers in 11 seasons or sooner. Hall-of-Famer George Woodruff, who coached at Penn, Illinois and Carlisle from 1892-1905, reached 100 in just his eighth season (1898). Since 1960, only two coaches have reached 100 faster than Slocum. Oklahoma's Barry Switzer won game #100 in the third game of his 11th season (1983) and Nebraska's Tom Osborne reached in the fourth game of his 11th year (1983). Other coaches reaching the century mark in wins in their 11th seasons were: Penn State's Joe Paterno (9th game in 1976), Florida's Steve Spurrier (9th game in 1997), Oklahoma's Bud Wilkinson (6th game in 1957) and Chicago's Amos Alonzo Stagg (6th game in 1900). Stagg also coaches at Springfield (1890-91) and Pacific (1933-46).
Today's win is the:
600th in the history of the A&M football program. A&M becomes only the 18th Division I program to reach 600 victories.
54th win at Kyle Field in the 1990s (54-4-1).
18th straight win by the Aggies at Kyle Field
4th straight by the Aggies vs. Oklahoma State
Today's attendance of 74,008 was the 10th-largest in Kyle Field history and the largest against an opponent from outside the state of Texas. A&M has had two games with crowds over 74,000 for the first time in school history with the Texas game still upcoming. Through five games, A&M has averaged 70,525 fans. The school record for season home attendance is 66,623 set in 1987.
Senior receiver Matt Bumgardner had the best game of his career today, setting career highs in receptions (5), yards (79) and touchdowns (2). All three of his career TDs have been against OSU as his only other one came last year against the Cowboys.
Senior wide receiver Leroy Hodge's seven catches for 77 yards against the Cowboys are both career-highs.
Senior running back D'Andre "Tiki" Hardeman's third-quarter touchdown plunge was the 31st rushing TD of his career and the 35th overall score of his career. He ranks sixth in school history in rushing TDs and fourth in total TDs. His 210 career points ranks 10th in school annals.
Senior running back Eric Bernard had the best all-purpose yardage game of his career, rushing 15 times for 80 yards and grabbing two passes for 40 yards for a total of 120 yards. Against BYU in the 1996 Pigskin Classic, Bernard had 113 all-purpose yards (108 rushing/5 receiving).
TIDBITS -- Today's 12th Man Kickoff Team representative was Eric Stanford, a sophomore from Waco's Robinson High School. ... Game captains for the Aggies were: Shane Lechler, Seth McKinney, Michael Jameson, Matt Bumgardner.
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OKLAHOMA STATE HEAD COACH BOB SIMMONS:
"We had some real good drives. We have to find out what we did successfully and what we did not do successfully and work on the unsuccessful things. Defensively, we played pretty well. I felt like the kids were ready to play. We had a real big first drive but we didn't put any points on the board. You can't do that on the road. I like the personnel that I have. Has our execution been good? No. We have to work on that."
(on Tony Lindsey not starting) "During the course of the week his shoulder had been bothering him. He could throw the short route but not the long one. We made the decision to try to win the ball game and that's why we played B.J. Tiger. B.J. handled the game plan and we didn't scale back our offense any because he was in the bal lgame.
(on field goal kicking) "I'm not pleased at all. We have got to do something about that."
(on fake field goal) "It was a check off and we got what we wanted. One guy didn't hear the check off and it cost us."
OKLAHOMA STATE TIGHT END MARCELLUS RIVERS:
"What can you say? You get down there in the strike zone and we went blank. To be a good football tem, you can't do that. We wanted to come out and move the football. We did that but penalties and mistakes hurt us."
(On Tiger starting at QB) "Regardless of who is back there, they will lead us. We have to carry on and handle our assignments."
OKLAHOMA STATE QUARTERBACK B.J. TIGER:
(on starting game) "I found out right before the game. Tony (Lindsey) said he was hurt. I practiced hard like I was going to start, just like I do every week. I was prepared but I just didn't get the job done. We have to fight harder when we get into the red zone."
(on wet field) "The defense has the advantage on a slick field but we work on ball protection and wet conditions in practice."
OKLAHOMA STATE LINEBACKER JACK GOLDEN:
"We've been playing good on third downs earlier in the season, but the last two weeks we are struggling to stop the other team. That's something we need to work on. We knew they were going to come out and throw the ball, even with the wet weather. We tried to mix in different coverages but they did a good job throwing the ball."
(On Bumgardner) "I didn't think the (scouting report) said anything about him but it will next week."
OKLAHOMA STATE DEFENSIVE TACKLE COURTNEY MALLORY:
"We felt we played them hard. We had their running game in check. It was frustrating to stop them on first and second downs and then let them convert on third downs. We're not going to hold our heads down. We've got four games left and we're going to play them hard."
TEXAS A&M QUARTERBACK RANDY McCOWN:
"I knew we could come back. To be able to play today the way we did means so much to me. Everybody showed so much heart and gave so much effort. It really, really means a lot to me for everybody to come together and play this hard. I spoke to the seniors earlier today and we just came out and showed everybody who we are. You may not see it on the outside, but on the inside we have what it takes. We're going up to Lincoln next week, and we're not going to give up. I could have broken my back and still cared less, because we got a win today. I attribute our win to a total, complete team effort. This was the most satisfying win all year."
(on the play of Matt Bumgardner) "I'm so happy for Matt. He's my roommate and he's been through so much. He was able to come up with the big plays because he played his heart out."
TEXAS A&M OFFENSIVE LINEMAN CHRIS VALLETTA:
"We know we can run the ball. We pride ourselves in that. We just have to be more consistent in it. We have a big challenge next week against Nebraska, but we displayed the type of character our team has by bouncing back today, because we have the heart of a champion."
(on the play of Randy McCown) "Randy is the type of guy who never shows you he's hurt. We all wouldn't want to play with anybody else at the helm."
TEXAS A&M FULLBACK JA'MAR TOOMBS:
"Today was a positive note. I think just the display of emotion after this game shows the character of this team. We got our pride taken from us last week, but got our feet back on the ground today."
TEXAS A&M WIDE RECEIVER MATT BUMGARDNER:
"We're not used to what happened to us last week. I think the team responded well today. It was good to get things back on track and get a win today."
TEXAS A&M DEFENSIVE BACK SEDRICK CURRY:
"Last week was a shot to our pride, but we just had to put the Oklahoma game behind us. Coach Hankwitz did a good job of making us focus on this game."
TEXAS A&M LINEBACKER BRIAN GAMBLE:
"We played with a lot of emotion. We came out on defense like we did at the beginning of the season. We made some big plays early, and we were able to continue making big plays throughout the game. When you play that well on defense, you're going to win a lot of games. Every team is going to have its setbacks. The key is how you respond to those setbacks. We're going to keep playing hard and see where it takes us. It took us a long way today. We put ourselves in a good position today. If we win out, then we will be in a good position at the end of the year. We just want to take it one game at a time. I saw some people with "Wrecking Crew" caps at the end of the game, and this week I've got to say that I was pretty proud."
TEXAS A&M HEAD COACH R.C. SLOCUM:
"I'm proud of the way the team played today. The team went to work in practice last week, and that effort showed in the way we played today."
(about Randy McCown's starting status due to injury) "It was never a question. If he could play, he was going to start.
"I thought Randy had a really good day. He practiced very well all week. He has a slight separation [of his left shoulder] but he was able to overcome that and have an efficient passing day for us. We needed a bunch of people on the team to step up today because we have a lot of injuries to key guys. We're playing without guys like Dante' Hall, Bethel Johnson and Jason Glenn, so we had to have somebody pick up their slack."
(on the 100 wins) "It's fitting that the 100th win came in a game where we really needed to get a win. The thing I'm most proud of is the record that we have here at Kyle Field in the '90s. I was telling the players and the recruits after the game that, in this decade, there have been about four days that our guys have had to leave this stadium after a loss. That means more to me than the 100 victories."
(on the play of the offensive line) "I'm pleased with the way the offensive line played. Because of the nature of Oklahoma State's defense, they are a very hard team to execute against. They have an aggressive scheme and a bunch of big, physical guys. Our offense did a good job of executing against what I consider to be a very good defense."
(on B.J. Tiger starting over Lindsay) "I've said all week that I thought Tiger had done a good job all season and that he's a good player. They have very similar games, and it didn't change the way that we wanted to attack their offense."
(on the seniors) "We talked a bunch this week about having people step up into leadership roles for us. Last year we won, but we also sent seven players to the NFL. Those seniors made a lot of plays for us, but their leadership cannot be underestimated. People assume that since we won last year, we would be the favorites again. But it's even harder to win because everyone is gunning for the champions. Being picked to win in the preseason means nothing. What matters is this team and this year's seniors. They stepped it up today."