Texas A&M
7-4 , 5-3
Texas
9-2 , 7-1
No. 12 Texas Rides 27-Point Quarter to 43-17 Win Over A&M
Nov 24, 2000 | Football
November 24, 2000
Chris Simms threw for 383 yards and three touchdowns to lead the 12th-ranked Texas Longhorns to a 43-17 victory over the 22nd-ranked Texas A&M Aggies Friday before 84,012 fans at Royal Memorial Stadium.
The sophomore quarterback broke open a tight contest in the third quarter, leading the Longhorns (9-2, 7-1 Big 12) to four touchdowns on their four possessions in the period by completing all eight passes he threw for 234 yards and three scores. Texas, which led 10-7 at the break, exploded for 27 points in the third to take a 37-17 lead into the final frame.
The 'Horns got on the board first when free safety Greg Brown picked off a Mark Farris pass on the Aggies' first play from scrimmage and raced 10 yards into the end zone.
A&M (7-4, 5-3) would respond early in the second quarter when, on 3rd-and-10 deep inside UT territory, redshirt freshman running back Richard Whitaker took the handoff on a draw play and cut 15 yards through the defensive secondary for a touchdown.
Kris Stockton would connect on a field goal from 34 yards out on the ensuing drive, giving Texas a 10-7 lead at the break.
UT took the third quarter kickoff and quickly marched into A&M territory on the first three plays of their drive. Roy Williams then took the ball on a reverse on first down from Simms and scampered 40 yards for the score to increase the Longhorn lead to 10. Williams, who ended the day with 125 all-purpose yards, would score again on Texas' next drive on a 20-yard slant pass from Simms to put UT up 24-7.
A&M would respond with a 56-yard bomb from Farris to junior wide receiver Mickey Jones on the ensuing drive, cutting the lead to 10. Farris, who ended the day 25-of-43 passing for 290 yards, became the Aggies' most prolific single-season passer with 2,551 yards. The old mark of 2,463 was set by Kevin Murray in 1986.
Sandwiched around a 40-yard Terence Kitchens field goal were two long touchdown passes by Simms, a 55-yarder to Sloan Thomas and a 70-yarder to B.J. Johnson. Johnson finished the afternoon with 187 yards receiving on eight catches.
Stockton would add a pair of field goals from 31 and 30 yards, respectively, in the fourth to close out the scoring.
Senior Chris Taylor was A&M's leading receiver, grabbing eight balls for 72 yards. Taylor finished his career with 1,316 yards on 83 catches. Junior fullback Ja'Mar Toombs was A&M's leading ground-gainer with 53 yards on 13 carries.
The Aggies, eligible for postseason play for the 11th time in R.C. Slocum's 12 seasons as head coach, now await bowl selections after the Big 12 Championship Game on Dec. 2.
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Team Stats
TAMU 0, UT 7
UT - Brown, Greg 10 yd interception (Stockton, Kris kick)
TAMU 7, UT 7
TAMU - Whitaker, Richa 15 yd run (Kitchens, Teren kick), 12 plays, 49 yards, TOP 5:47
TAMU 7, UT 10
UT - Stockton, Kris 34 yd field goal 7 plays, 40 yards, TOP 2:34
TAMU 7, UT 17
UT - Williams, Roy 40 yd run (Stockton, Kris kick), 4 plays, 71 yards, TOP 1:18
TAMU 7, UT 24
UT - Williams, Roy 20 yd pass from Simms, Chris (Stockton, Kris kick) 8 plays, 81 yards, TOP 3:46
TAMU 14, UT 24
TAMU - Jones, Mickey 56 yd pass from Farris, Mark (Kitchens, Teren kick) 6 plays, 73 yards, TOP 1:43
TAMU 14, UT 31
UT - Thomas, Sloan 55 yd pass from Simms, Chris (Stockton, Kris kick) 3 plays, 56 yards, TOP 1:06
TAMU 17, UT 31
TAMU - Kitchens, Teren 40 yd field goal 7 plays, 51 yards, TOP 2:25
TAMU 17, UT 37
UT - Johnson, B.J. 70 yd pass from Simms, Chris (Stockton, Kris kickblocked) 3 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:37
TAMU 17, UT 40
UT - Stockton, Kris 31 yd field goal 7 plays, 38 yards, TOP 2:30
TAMU 17, UT 43
UT - Stockton, Kris 30 yd field goal 5 plays, 20 yards, TOP 1:55
