October 25, 2003
Postgame notes and quotes from Saturday's 38-10 loss to No. 18 Oklahoma State at Kyle Field...
TEXAS A&M POSTGAME NOTES
LEWIS MOVES TO NO. 2 ON FRESHMAN RUSHING CHART: Redshirt freshman Courtney Lewis rushed for a career-best 171 yards - the fourth-best performance by a freshman in school history -- on a career-high 26 carries. His previous highs were 158 yards vs. Baylor and 16 carries against Utah and Pittsburgh. For the season, Lewis has run for 748 yards and passes Curtis Dickey (726 yards in 1976) to move into second place on A&M's freshman rushing chart behind Greg Hill (1,216 in 1991).
TOP FIVE FRESHMAN RUSHING PERFORMANCES 1. Greg Hill vs. LSU (1991) 212 2. Darren Lewis vs. TCU (1987) 194 3. Dante Hall vs. Texas Tech (1996) 184 4. Courtney Lewis vs. OSU (2003) 171 TOP FIVE FRESHMAN SEASON RUSHING YARDS 1. Greg Hill (1991) 1,216 2. Courtney Lewis (2003) 748 3. Curtis Dickey (1976) 726 4. Darren Lewis (1987) 668 5. Dante Hall (1996) 642
MURPHY MOVES UP CHARTS: Junior wide receiver Terrence Murphy continued his climb up A&M's receiving charts with a season-best 98 yards on a season-high six receptions today. For his career, Murphy has posted 97 catches to rank seventh in A&M history and 1,404 receiving yards to rank sixth on the A&M chart. For the season, Murphy is tied for the team lead with 25 catches and ranks second in receiving yards with 378. Murphy also had three carries for 38 yards today. He came into the game leading the nation in yards per touch at 22.6 and today had 10 touches for 157 yards, an average of 15.7 yards per touch.
FOR THE RECORD: The 12th Man Kickoff Team representative was Blake Kendrick, a junior linebacker from Willis, Texas. The original 1983 12th Man Kickoff Team was recognized on its 20th anniversary...today's attendance of 79,153 was a season high.
TEXAS A&M POSTGAME QUOTES
Running Back Courtney Lewis: "We need to execute all of our plays from the first drive to the last drive. We have to make things happen and get more touchdowns in the red zone. The o-line deserves credit (for my game). The receivers made some key blocks downfield and allowed me to see the field better and it allowed me to run through the holes successfully. "
Safety Jaxson Appel: "We just have to make plays when the opportunity is presented to us. That's the main thing we're not doing right now. We're not playing consistent enough."
Quarterback Reggie McNeal: "We came in with a good game plan but we just didn't execute. We got down in the red zone and just couldn't put it in. All you can do is go back to work and get ready for next week."
Coach Dennis Franchione: "We didn't get things going. We didn't put up much pressure and we were missing opportunities. We have a lot of work to do and we're struggling a little right now. We will continue to improve. I know these guys will. And we have plenty of room to do so. We're not over confident but we believe in our abilities. The team is frustrated as they well should be. There were two things in the first half that could have changed the momentum of the game -- the series that ended in the interception and the missed field goal. Those series could have made it 14-10. We struggled when we got inside the 20, but other than that we moved the ball well. When you have to go 80 yards, the defense is going to make you earn it. We need to capitalize on every opportunity. If we don't, we make it hard on ourselves. Going in, I thought Oklahoma State would beat Nebraska if they played again and I still do. They are a nice ball team. Courtney Lewis was a bright spot for us. He's gaining experience, getting better and making tough, hard-nosed runs. For a redshirt freshman, he's done some really good things. We have to put ourselves in position to win and eliminate as many mistakes as we can. I told my players if it doesn't hurt to lose, they shouldn't be here. We are the only ones who can get it done. We fought hard and things didn't turn out like we wanted, but I'm proud of them. Nobody gave up."
OKLAHOMA STATE POSTGAME QUOTES
Coach Les Miles: "We had great respect for Texas A&M. We felt like they were a good football team. We realized that coming to Kyle Field and leaving with a win was going to take a great effort. Our guys had planned on coming here and playing hard. They were going to try to play their best and they did. It was a strong effort by us. It was a rewarding afternoon. It was a lot better than the Texas Tech game. A&M has good players and they are a well-coached team. They know how to make plays. We played well and this was an important game. At this time, we control our own destiny. If we take care of our business, we can win it. Josh Fields made some tremendous plays today. He's a darn good quarterback. Tatum Bell is having a great year. If he continues to play like this, he will distinguish himself with the other great tailbacks from Oklahoma State. Nobody looked at film and didn't have respect for this Texas A&M team. As we prepared, no one looked at this game in any other way than it would be a tremendous challenge to come play here. The focus was task-specific. We knew who we were playing and we knew where we were playing them at. This is a historic venue and a great stadium and a great crowd. You have to come in here and get after it and play a great football game."