September 28, 2002
Dustin Long threw Texas A&M's first passing touchdown in seven regular-season games, leading the 24th-ranked Aggies to a 31-3 victory over Louisiana Tech on Saturday night.
Long, one of three quarterbacks to play for the Aggies this season, hit Jamaar Taylor for a 25-yard touchdown in the first quarter.
Long's TD pass to Taylor was the first Aggie regular-season touchdown pass since Oct. 20, 2001 against Kansas State. Mark Farris had a postseason touchdown pass in last season's Galleryfurniture.com Bowl.
It was the first game for the Aggies (3-1) with assistant head coach Kevin Sumlin calling the offensive plays. Coach R.C. Slocum stripped offensive coordinator Dino Babers of his play-calling duties after last week's 13-3 loss to No. 5 Virginia Tech.
The Aggies didn't put Louisiana Tech (2-3) away until they scored two late fourth quarter touchdowns on a 6-yard run by Derek Farmer and a 3-yard run by Dwain Goynes.
Farmer rushed for 119 yards on 19 carries, including a 35-yard run in the third quarter that was the Aggies' longest of the season. Long completed 13 of 26 passes for 205 yards. Freshman Reggie McNeal played briefly and completed 2 of 4 passes for 33 yards.
The Aggies got a 32-yard field goal from Todd Pegram in the first quarter. Pegram missed a 46-yard field goal in the second quarter and a 22-yard attempt in the third period.
Joe Weber ran through a gapping hole for a 6-yard touchdown with 4:20 to go in the second quarter. The Aggies almost took a 17-0 lead into halftime, but quarterback Luke McCown ran 53 yards to set up a 25-yard field goal by Josh Scobee with 26 seconds left in the half.
McCown's run was the longest this season against A&M's defense, ranked No. 6 nationally against the rush.
McCown entered the game ranked No. 9 nationally in total offense, but he had a rough day against the Aggies. He completed 19 of 37 passes for 136 yards and threw one interception while leading the Bulldogs with 53 yards on 11 carries.