Texas A&M
4-7 , 2-5
Missouri
7-3 , 3-3
Aggies Fall at Missouri, 45-22
Nov 15, 2003 | Football
November 15, 2003
Brad Smith bounced back from a four-turnover game with 136 yards rushing, three touchdowns and no giveaways in Missouri's 45-22 victory over Texas A&M Saturday.
Smith, a sophomore, became the first player in school history to rush for 1,000 yards in two seasons and had scoring runs of 7, 19 and 9 yards. Zack Abron had 141 yards on 20 carries with a 2-yard run to break the school record for career touchdowns and scoring for Missouri (7-3, 3-3 Big 12).
Texas A&M (4-7, 2-5) was unable to recover from a 77-0 loss to top-ranked Oklahoma last week, although the Aggies ended a seven-quarter touchdown drought with a pair of fourth-quarter scores. The Aggies are 0-5 on the road and will finish with a losing record for the first time since 1982.
Missouri led 16-0 only 5:34 into the game. The Tigers scored a touchdown on their opening drive for the first time all season, got a safety on Texas A&M's first possession on a low snap to the punter and Abron scored on the second drive.
Smith, who last season became the second quarterback in NCAA history to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000, has 1,089 yards rushing and 1,559 passing on the season.
Abron has 39 career touchdowns and 234 career points, breaking the records formerly held by Corby Jones (1995-98).
Dustin Long replaced a struggling Reggie McNeal at quarterback in the second half for Texas A&M and threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Tim Van Zant early in the fourth quarter. McNeal had 45 yards on 15 carries and was 6-for-12 for 78 yards and lost a fumble, while Long was 23-for-29 for 252 yards.
Todd Pegram added three field goals for Texas A&M.
Damien Nash scored two touchdowns on runs of 14 and 9 yards in the fourth quarter for Missouri.
Missouri established control early with seven gains of 10 or more yards in the first quarter, three of them in the opening drive capped by Smith's 7-yard scoring run. The Tigers opened the game with a 22-yard run by Smith, a 21-yard carry by Abron and a 16 yard pass from Smith to J.D. McCoy.
Texas A&M's first drive was a disaster. Terrence Murphy stepped out of bounds at the 3 on the kickoff return when the ball stopped just before rolling out, and punter Jacob Young took a knee in the end zone trying to field a low snap.
Missouri is 2-6 in the series against Texas A&M, but has won the last two years.
Team Stats
TA 0, MU 7
MU - Smith, Brad 7 yd run (Matheny, Mike kick), 7 plays, 71 yards, TOP 2:09
TA 0, MU 9
MU - Missouri Team 12 yd safety
TA 0, MU 16
MU - Abron, Zack 2 yd run (Matheny, Mike kick), 5 plays, 40 yards, TOP 1:55
TA 3, MU 16
TA - Pegram, Todd 33 yd field goal 7 plays, 23 yards, TOP 3:06
TA 3, MU 22
MU - Smith, Brad 19 yd run (Abron, Zack rushfailed), 3 plays, 34 yards, TOP 0:29
TA 6, MU 22
TA - Pegram, Todd 42 yd field goal 11 plays, 55 yards, TOP 4:10
TA 6, MU 25
MU - Matheny, Mike 44 yd field goal 9 plays, 34 yards, TOP 2:55
TA 9, MU 25
TA - Pegram, Todd 31 yd field goal 10 plays, 66 yards, TOP 4:23
TA 9, MU 31
MU - Smith, Brad 9 yd run (Nash, Damien rushfailed), 7 plays, 62 yards, TOP 2:43
TA 15, MU 31
TA - Van Zant, Tim 8 yd pass from Long, Dustin (Lewis, Courtney rushfailed) 9 plays, 80 yards, TOP 2:43
TA 15, MU 38
MU - Nash, Damien 14 yd run (Matheny, Mike kick), 7 plays, 76 yards, TOP 2:35
TA 22, MU 38
TA - Farmer, Derek 1 yd run (Pegram, Todd kick), 14 plays, 67 yards, TOP 5:04
TA 22, MU 45
MU - Nash, Damien 9 yd run (Matheny, Mike kick), 5 plays, 48 yards, TOP 2:30
