Texas A&M 51, Wyoming 3: Postgame Notes and Quotes
Sep 09, 2000 | Football
September 09, 2000
Texas A&M Postgame Notes
FARRIS SHINES IN HOME STARTING DEBUT --- Sophomore quarterback Mark Farris completed 14-of-21 passes for 272 yards and two touchdowns in his first start at Kyle Field. It was the most prolific home starting debut by an A&M since 1996 when Branndon Stewart threw for 275 yards against Tulsa. Farris connected with his new best friend Robert Ferguson for a pair of touchdowns, including a 93-yarder which was the second-longest reception in school history.
FERGUSON MAKES HIMSELF AT HOME --- Junior wide receiver Robert Ferguson had a huge Kyle Field debut with 7 catches for 174 yards and 2 touchdowns. It was the best home debut ever by an A&M receiver. The only A&M receiver with a 100-yard game in his home debut was tight end Rich Siler, who grabbed 6 passes for 107 yards in a 1983 loss to Cal-Berkeley. Ferguson had a pair of touchdowns, including a 93-yarder that was the second-longest in school history. Ferguson's 174 yards tied for the fifth-best effort in school history (with Chris Cole against North Texas in 1998). The school record is 250 yards on 13 catches by Ken "Dude" McLean in 1965.
BIG HOME CROWD FOR AGGIES --- Tonight's attendance of 69,273 marked the fourth-largest home-opener crowd in school history. The record for a home opener is 72,577 against Oklahoma in 1994. The other two crowds were: 71,282 against LSU in 1987 and 70,057 against LSU in 1995.
FIRST DRIVE SCORING --- The Aggies scored a touchdown on its first possession, changing a trend that plagued them throughout 1999. Last season, the Aggies scored just one touchdown on their first possession (10th game of season against Missouri).
TOUCHDOWN TOOMBS --- Junior fullback Ja'Mar Toombs had a pair of rushing touchdowns against Wyoming, giving the 275-pounder three multi-TD games in his last four regular season games.
TAYLOR PASSES 1,000 CAREER RECEIVING YARDS --- With 48 yards on 2 catches against Wyoming, senior Chris Taylor eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in career receiving yards. His career total is 1,009 on 57 catches. He needs 223 more yards to match Brian Mitchell's (1991-94) 1,232 yards and enter A&M's career top 10. The school record is 1,576 by Tony Harrison (1990-93). In tonight's game, Taylor racked up 115 all-purpose yards - 48 receiving and 66 on punt returns - on just five touches.
FLEMONS BREAKS SACK DROUGHT --- Senior defensive end Ronald Flemons, who is in third year as a starter, broke a long quarterback sack drought with a first-quarter trap of Cowboy QB Jay Stoner. It was Flemons' first sack since the 1998 Southern Mississippi game, a span of 24 games.
OTHER FIRSTS --- Robert Ferguson's 7-yard TD reception from Mark Farris was the first of his career. It was also Farris's first-career TD pass ... Greg Porter's second-quarter grab was the first official catch of his career. He did have a catch against Penn State in the Alamo Bowl, which isn't included in official stats ... Ty Warren's third-quarter sack of Cowboy backup QB Matt Swanson was the first of his career...Redshirt freshman QB Colby Freeman made his playing debut tonight and turned in a 13-yard rush for a first down on his first play ... On the next play, sophomore running back Maurice Harris had a 11-yard tote for a first down on his first career carry ... junior running back Amon Simon posted his first career TD run with a one-yard plunge late in the game.
GAME CAPTAINS/12TH MAN KICKOFF --- Today's captains for Texas A&M were: senior tight end RoDerrick Broughton, junior defensive end Evan Perroni, senior outside linebacker Roylin Bradley and freshman punter Cody Scates...Representing the Texas A&M student body on the 12th Man Kickoff Team against Wyoming was Scott Stickane, a redshirt freshman from Trophy Club, Texas.
Texas A&M Postgame Quotes
HEAD COACH R.C. SLOCUM:
"This was a good home opener for us. I saw a lot of positive things but we still have a lot of work to get done. I was pleased with the way the team prepared during the week. I was especially pleased we were able to play a lot of players."
QUARTERBACK MARK FARRIS:
"We played a good game tonight and it's good to get that first win under our belt. We didn't have a lot of plays in the first half, but we made the most of our opportunities. We put points on the board. We did a lot of good things as a team tonight and we still have some things we need to get done this week. Wyoming fought hard, but we just wore them down."
WIDE RECEIVER ROBERT FERGUSON:
"We played an all-around team game tonight. Everybody played well. This is the type of score we want to see on the scoreboard each week. We just need to continue to work hard and play hard each week. We've got the ability and we showed a little bit of that tonight."
On the 93-yard pass play: "The defender fell down. Mark (Farris) made a great pass. I just concentrated on the ball and made the catch. I saw nothing but green and took it to the house."
LINEBACKER BRIAN GAMBLE:
"I thought we made a lot of improvement tonight. There is an old adage that says 'You make your most improvement between the first and second game.' I think we showed that tonight. We improved on both offense and defense. We turned it up a notch in practice tonight and I think it showed. Wyoming is a good team and we played better on offense, defense and special teams."
