Texas A&M will be seeking another first when the Aggies go on the road looking for their first-ever SEC road victory against Ole Miss in Oxford, Miss., at 6 p.m. on Saturday. The Aggies logged their first SEC victory last Saturday with a 58-10 win over Arkansas at Kyle Field.
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- The 2012 Texas A&M-Ole Miss matchup will be the Aggies' first-ever trip to Oxford, Miss., and the Aggies' fifth-ever visit to the state of Mississippi. A&M has played teams from Mississippi 16 times, but just four within the borders of the state of Mississippi. A&M beat Ole Miss, 23-20, in Jackson, Miss., in 1980, and defeated Southern Miss three times -- once in Jackson and twice in Hattiesburg, Miss.
- A&M leads the all-time series with Ole Miss, 4-0-0, with the 1980 meeting being the most recent action between the two schools. In that game, Aggie QB Mike Mosley rushed for a game-high 116 yards and scored twice, and the Aggie defense, led by DE Keith Baldwin's two sacks, pressured Ole Miss QB John Fourcade into four interceptions.
- In Texas A&M's first-ever road game in the Big 12 Conference, the Aggies beat Iowa State, 24-21, in Ames, Iowa in 1996.
- The game will be televised nationally by ESPNU with Clay Matvick (play-by-play), Matt Stinchcomb (analyst) and Angela Mallen (sideline) calling the action.
Winning on the road
First-year Aggie head coach Kevin Sumlin's teams have won seven straight games on the road -- six at the University of Houston and one at Texas A&M. Sumlin's last road loss was at Texas Tech in the Cougars' regular season finale in 2010.
freshman leader manziel
Aggie redshirt freshman QB Johnny Manziel is the NCAA's top freshman in three statistical categories: passing efficiency (170.88 rating), total offense (365.0 yards per game) and points responsible for (24.0 points per game).
manziel hits 1,000
Just four games into the season and his career, Johnny Manziel has already surpassed the 1,000-yard mark in passing yards. No other A&M freshman has hit 1,000 passing yards that quickly.
He joins Jerrod Johnson and Ryan Tannehill as Aggie QBs that reached 1,000 passing yards in the fourth game of a season -- Johnson with 1,306 in 2009 and 1,274 in 2010, and Tannehill with 1,139 in 2011.
He also joins Johnson and Tannehill as the only Aggie QBs that hit 1,000 passing yards in the fourth starts of their careers. Johnson had 1,195 after his first four starts as a redshirt sophomore in 2008, while Tannehill had 1,126 yards after his first four starts as a redshirt junior.
Seniors within range of milestones
- Senior WR Ryan Swope needs just three catches to become the second Aggie to hit the 200-catch plateau in career catches. The other Aggie with 200 catches is Jeff Fuller.
- Senior WR Uzoma Nwachukwu is 121 receiving yards away from becoming the fourth Aggies to hit the 2,000-yard level in career receiving yards (Fuller, Terrence Murphy and Swope).
- Senior RB Christine Michael is 30 yards from becoming the 13th Aggies to hit the 3,000-yard level in career all-purpose yards.
trends and notables
- The Aggies have scored TDs via fumble return, interception return and punt return in a single season for the first time since 1997. R.C. Slocum's 1997 squad scored TDs via INT return (1), fumble return (3), kickoff return (1) and punt return (1).
- In his last 10 games, junior Damontre Moore has piled up 23.0 tackles for loss, and has had at least 1.5 in every game.
- More than half of the catches by freshman receivers Mike Evans and Thomas Johnson have resulted in a first down or a touchdown (23-of-39).
- Fifteen of the Aggies' 20 catches on third downs have produced a first down or touchdown.
- The Aggies have been dominant in the middle two quarters so far in 2012, but especially in the second quarter when they've outscored their opponents, 89-3. In the second and third quarters, A&M has outscored its opponents, 134-9.
- The Aggies have given up just one turnover and zero points after turnovers in 2012.
- A&M already has three turnover-free games in 2012 (in four games). It's the most turnover-free games by the Aggies since 2010 when they had four.
- The Texas A&M defense recovered its first fumble of the season last week against Arkansas. The fumble, forced by DE Damontre Moore, was scooped up by CB Tramain Jacobs and returned 28 yards for a touchdown. It was A&M's first fumble return for a TD since DE Paul Freeney rumbled 58 yards for a score against Army in 2008.
- Texas A&M is completing 67.3 percent of its pass attempts in 2012, which is well ahead of the school record percentage of 61.6 set last season when NFL first-round draft pick Ryan Tannehill took the majority of snaps at quarterback.
- Fifteen Aggies have already made at least one catch in 2012, and A&M used 12 different receivers against Arkansas.
- The Aggie defense has allowed 14 20-yard plus offensive plays in 2012, or an average of 3.5 per game.
- Opponents are completing only 52.5 percents of their passes after connecting on 62.4 percent in 2011.
- Freshman WR Mike Evans has led the Aggies in catches in every game.
- The Aggies have four pickoffs after four games, after making just seven in 13 games in 2011.
- A&M has rushed for 200-plus yards in three straight games, while opponents' high rush game is 142 yards for the season.
Trends and Notables (continued)
- Texas A&M and Florida State are the only FBS programs that rank in the NCAA top 35 in the four major offensive and defensive statistical categories: total offense/defense, passing offense/pass efficiency defense, rushing offense/defense and scoring offense/defense.
- In the kicking game, punter Ryan Epperson has no touchbacks on 17 boots and kicker Taylor Bertolet has registered a touchback on 26-of-34 kickoffs.
- Senior CB Dustin Harris has 18 punt returns in the first four games of 2012 after logging just 18 last year when he led the NCAA FBS with a 18.6 average.
- A&M opponents have just four punt returns in 2012 for a total of 11 yards with a long return of five yards.
- Opponents average 32:52 in time of possession to the Aggies' 27:08.
- The Aggie defense is limiting opponents to 26 percent in third-down situations (18 of 68).
- Texas A&M has four individual SEC statistical leaders: Johnny Manziel (total offense, 365.0), Ryan Epperson (punting, 46.7), Damontre Moore (sacks, 1.5; tackles for loss, 2.62)
- In the SEC team statistics, the Aggies lead in scoring offense (48.2), net punting (46.1), opponent 3rd-down conversion defense (26.5 percent) and red zone defense (54.5 percent).
Defense among elite company
The Texas A&M defense, flourishing in new defensive coordinator Mark Snyder's 4-3 scheme, is one of 15 teams in the NCAA FBS ranked in the top 35 of the four main statistical categories: total, rushing, pass efficiency and scoring defense. Other teams ranked in the top 35 of all four stats are Alabama, BYU, Connecuticutt, Florida State, Iowa State, LSU, Michigan State, North Carolina, Notre Dame, South Carolina, Stanford, TCU, Texas Tech and Utah State.
The defense's stinginess is in stark contrast to 2011's numbers when were ranked No. 59 or worse in three of the four statistical categories.
Texas A&M in 2012 NCAA Defensive Rankings
Category NCAA rk___ Avg. 2011 RK____ 2011 Avg.
Total...................... No. 33_____ 338.5 yards No. 59______ 378.2 yards
Rushing................. No. 21_____ 106.0 yards No. 12______ 101.9 yards
Pass Efficiency..... No. 16_____ 101.1 rating No. 67______ 130.98 rating
Scoring.................. No. 8______ 11.8 points No. 70______ 28.2 points
Manziel has nose for endzone
Redshirt freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel has a knack for finding the endzone. After four games, Manziel ranks No.4 nationally in points responsibility with an average of 24.0 points per game.
2012 NCAA Points Responsibility
Rk. Player, School___________ Pts resp for/G
1. Geno Smith, West Virginia________ 31.5
2. Nick Florence, Baylor_____________ 25.5
3. Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M____ 24.0
4. Seth Doege, Texas Tech__________ 22.5
5. Kolton Browning, La.-Monroe_____ 21.0
Johnny Football in the NCAA Rankings
Category____________ NCAA Rk Avg.
Rushing/G_____________ No. 43 91.5
Passing Yards/G________ No. 27 273.5
Passing Efficiency______ No. 11 170.88 rtg
Total Offense/G________ No. 6 365.0
Scoring/G______________ tNo. 32 9.0 pts
Points Responsible For__ No. 3 24.0 pts
freshman leaders
The impact made by the Aggies' freshman class is undeniable with at least three freshman statistical leaders in every game this season.
Freshman Statistical Leaders Through Four Games
Category vs. Florida vs. SMU SC St. Arkansas
Passing Johnny Manziel (173) Manziel (294) Manziel (174) Manziel (453)
Rushing Johnny Manziel (60) Manziel (124) -- Manziel (104)
Total Offense Johnny Manziel (233) Manziel (418) Manziel (252) Manziel (557)
Receptions Mike Evans (7) Evans (6) Evans (5) Evans (6)
Receiving Yards Mike Evans (60) Evans (123) -- --
KO Return Yards Trey Williams (58) Williams (30) -- Williams (27)
All-Purpose Yards Trey Williams (104) Manziel (124) -- --
Tackles -- De'Vante Harris (7) -- --
NEW FACES in New places
Texas A&M's depth chart is brimming with first-year players. The two-deep chart features 16 that are new to the team or redshirted last season, including 10 true freshmen.
Closer Look at the Depth Chart
Offense (8): WR Mike Evans, WR Derel Walker, WR Sabian Holmes, WR Thomas Johnson, OL Germain Ifedi, OL Mike Matthews, OL Joseph Cheek, QB Johnny Manziel
Defense (6): DL Julien Obioha, LB Michael Richardson, DB De'Vante Harris, DB Tramain Jacobs, DB Johntel Franklin
Specialists (3): PK Taylor Bertolet, PK Davis Plowman, KOR Trey Williams
Bold Caps denotes 2012 starter
New scheme, same results
Aggie defensive boss Mark Snyder's new 4-3 defensive scheme gets pressure from all over the front seven with a whopping 11 defenders with at least a half-sack, including five defensive linemen, five linebackers and a defensive back.
Similar to last year when they led the nation in sacks, the Aggies are again near the top of the NCAA quarterback sacks chart with 16 in the first four games despite logging no sacks of Arkansas QB Tyler Wilson. Last season the Aggies led the nation with 51 sacks (3.9 per game).
2012 NCAA Team QB Sack Leaders
Rk. School QBS/G
1. Tulsa............................. 5.20
2. South Carolina............... 4.40
San Jose State............... 4.40
4. Buffalo.......................... 4.25
5. Arizona State................ 4.20
6. Texas A&M................... 4.00
USC................................ 4.00
Moore on incredible defensive run
Texas A&M junior defensive end Damontre Moore is building on his strong play down the stretch in 2011 with an All-America-type beginning to 2012. In his last 10 games, Moore, in his first season at DE after lining up at LB his first two seasons, has compiled an incredible 12 sacks and 23 tackles for loss.
Damonster's Last 10 Games
Opponent_____________ QBS____ TFL
Missouri________________ 0.0_____ 1.5
at Oklahoma____________ 0.0_____ 2.0
at Kansas State_________ 2.0_____ 3.5
Kansas_________________ 2.0_____ 2.0
Texas__________________ 1.0_____ 1.5
vs. Northwestern _______ 1.0_____ 2.0
Florida_________________ 3.0_____ 3.0
at SMU_________________ 2.0_____ 2.0
South Carolina State____ 1.0_____ 3.0
Arkansas_______________ 0.0_____ 2.5
Total________________ 12.0___ 23.0
2012 NCAA Individual QB Sack Leaders
Rk. Player, School_______________ QBS/G
1. Quanterus Smith, W. Kentucky_______ 1.6
2. Damontre Moore, Texas A&M_____ 1.5
Stephon Tuitt, Notre Dame__________ 1.5
Travis Johnson, San Jose State_______ 1.5
Khalil Mack, Buffalo_______________ 1.5
2012 NCAA Individual TFL Leaders
Rk. Player, School_______________ QBS/G
1. Khalil Mack, Buffalo_______________ 3.7
2. Damontre Moore, Texas A&M_____ 2.6
3. Travis Johnson, San Jose State_______ 2.5
Derrick Matthews, Houston_________ 2.5
5. Three Players____________________ 2.4
NCAA Active Career QB Sacks/G Leaders
Rk. Player, School_______________ QBS/G
1. Jarvis Jones, Georgia_______________ 1.0
2. Jadeveon Clowney, South Carolina____ 0.8
3. Damontre Moore, Texas A&M_____ 0.7
4. Seven players____________________ 0.6
net gain for epperson
Incumbent starter Ryan Epperson, who fought off a strong challenge from sophomore Drew Kaser to win the 2012 punting job, has opened the 2012 season with several eye-opening performances. He is averaging 46.7 on 17 boots, and ranks No. 1 in the SEC and No. 7 in the NCAA.
Eight of his 14 punts have been downed inside the opponent 20 yard line with no touchbacks, and only four of his punts have been returned.
The Aggies' season net punt average stands at 46.1 and ranked No. 1 nationally. Last year, the Aggies were No. 94 nationally with a 35.0 net punt average.
2012 SEC Individual Punting Leaders
Rk. Player, School_____________ Avg.
1. Ryan Epperson, Texas A&M____ 46.7
2. Dylan Breeding, Arkansas______ 45.4
3. Kyle Christy, Florida___________ 45.4
4. Brad Wing, LSU_______________ 45.2
5. Richard Kent, Vanderbilt_______ 45.2
2012 NCAA Team Net Punting Leaders
Rk. School__________________ net Avg.
1. Texas A&M_________________ 46.1
2. Air Force___________________ 44.6
3. Florida_____________________ 43.4
4. Texas _____________________ 43.3
5. Marshall___________________ 43.2
Big Crowds at Kyle Field
Texas A&M's three sellout crowds to start 2012 have pushed its sellout streak to 11 games, which is easily a school record. A&M's sellout streak dates back to the 2010 Nebraska game, which set the Kyle Field record with an attendence of 90,079. Kyle Field was filled to 105.0 percent capacity in 2011 and the average attendance of 87,183 broke the previous high by over 4,000 fans per game.
Kyle Field's Biggest Crowds
RK Crowd Opponent (Year) Result
1. 90,079 No. 8 Nebraska (2010) W, 9-6
2. 88,645 No. 25 Texas (2011) L, 27-25
3. 88,253 No. 12 Texas (2007) W, 38-30
4. 87,555 No. 5 Texas (2001) L, 21-7
5. 87,361 Baylor (2011) W, 55-26
6. 87,358 No. 6 Oklahoma State (2011) L, 30-29
7. 87,206 Notre Dame (2001) W, 24-3
8. 87,188 No. 1 Oklahoma (2000) L, 35-31
9. 87,224 No. 24 Florida (2012) L, 20-17
10. 86,951 SMU (2011) W, 46-14
Swope Sets Sights on Receiving Records
- After breaking A&M's single season receptions record in back-to-back seasons, senior wide receiver Ryan Swope is within range of most of the career receiving standard in the Aggies' record book.
- For his career, Swope has 197 catches for 2,244 yards and 18 touchdowns.
- Swope posted a school record with six 100-yard receiving games last season, and has nine for his career (ties for school record with Fuller).
- He set another school record with four touchdown receptions against Baylor in 2011. His 206 receiving yards (on 11 catches) against the Bears was the fifth 200-yard game in A&M history.
- A second-team All-Big 12 pick last year, Swope is the SEC's leading active pass catcher in receptions, receiving yards and receiving TDs.
- Easily the team leader in offensive 20-yard plays last year with 16, including seven 20-yard plus TD plays.
- Was a running back at Austin Westlake High School, but lined up at WR from day one at Texas A&M.
- Aggies are 8-2 in Swope's 100-yard receiving games, and are 8-4 when he has 8 or more catches.
Career Receptions
Player Rec. Years
Jeff Fuller 233 2008-11
Ryan Swope 197 2009-
Terrence Murphy 172 2001-04
Uzoma Nwachukwu 134 2009-
Bethel Johnson 117 1999-02
Career Receiving Yards
Player Yards Years
Jeff Fuller 3,092 2008-11
Terrence Murphy 2,600 2001-04
Ryan Swope 2,440 2009-
Uzoma Nwachukwu 1,879 2009-
Bethel Johnson 1,740 1999-02
Career Touchdowns
Player TDs Years
Jeff Fuller 34 2008-11
Bob Long 19 1966-68
Ryan Swope 18 2009-
Uzoma Nwachukwu 16 2009-
Tony Harrison 14 1990-93
C-Mike returns
- Christine Michael's first name is pronounced: CHRIS-tin, not Christian or chris-TEEN
- Michael's last two seasons have been cut short due to season-ending injuries. He broke his right leg in game 8 in 2010 (vs. Texas Tech) and tore his left ACL in game 9 in 2011 (vs. Oklahoma).
- Perhaps the team's hardest worker, Michael was far ahead of his projected rehabilitation schedule. During spring drills, new head coach Kevin Sumlin had to monitor Michael to make sure he wasn't doing too much. At the time Sumlin said: "I had to tell him to go sit down, and I look back up and he's back in there. I'm going to have to have a meeting with him, but a good meeting. He wants to play."
- Despite missing nine games the past two seasons due to season-ending injuries, Michael is the SEC's leading active rusher with 2,457 career yards.
- Has nine career 100-yard plus rushing games, including four in nine games last season. Aggies are 7-2 in games when C-Mike rushes for 100-plus yards.
- His 2,457 career rushing yards rank No. 12 in school history.
- Was well on his way to his first 1,000-yard season in 2011 with 899 yards in nine games, including a monster 32-carry, 230-yard, three-TD effort against Arkansas.
Harris to the House
Senior Dustin Harris earned SEC Co-Special Teams Player of the Week after shredding South Carolina State for 246 punt return yards, including a breath-taking 96-yard sprint for a touchdown. Harris' 246 punt return yards shattered his own single game school record from last season and the Southeastern Conference's 64-year old record. Harris' long return was the second-longest in school history behind Bob Goode's 98-yarder against Ellington Field in 1945. Harris broke his old school record of 162 yards set vs. Kansas last year, and eclipsed the SEC record of 203 yards set by Vanderbilt's Lee Nalley against Kentucky in 1948. It was the third punt return touchdown of Harris' career, joining his 54-yarder against Louisiana Tech in 2010 and his 72-yarder vs. Kansas in 2011. He matched the career school record for punt return touchdowns originally set by Kevin Smith from 1988-91.
Two of the nation's most dangerous punt returners in 2011 resided in the SEC with Joe Adams of Arkansas and Tyrann Mathieu of LSU, but the NCAA leader was in College Station. Harris was the NCAA statistical champ with an average of 18.6 yards on 18 punt returns with one touchdown.
2011 NCAA Punt Return Leaders
1_ Dustin Harris, Texas A&M __ 18.6
2_ Joe Adams, Arkansas_________ 16.9
3_ Jared Abbrederis, Wisconsin_ 15.8
4_ Tyrann Mathieu, LSU_________ 15.6
5_ Devon Wylie, Fresno State____ 15.4
A&M Season Punt Return Average
1_ Dustin Harris, 2011 ________ 18.6
2_ Aaron Glenn, 1993___________ 19.9
3_ Yale Lary, 1951______________ 16.2
4_ Carl Roaches, 1972__________ 15.1
5_ Kevin Smith, 1991___________ 14.5
A&M Game Punt Return Yards
1 Dustin Harris 246 vs. South Carolina State, 2012
2 Dustin Harris 162 vs. Kansas, 2011
3 Aaron Glenn 131 vs. Mizzou, 1993
4 Rod Harris 123 vs. La. Tech, 1987
5 Billy Mitchell 116 at Houston, 1994
A&M Long Punt Returns
1 Bob Goode 98 vs. Ellington Field, 1945
2 Dustin Harris 96 vs. South Carolina State, 2012
3 Charlie Royalty 93 at Villanova, 1948
4 Carl Roaches 84 vs. Rice, 1972
5 Aaron Glenn 76 vs. Missouri, 1993
Aggies in the NFL
Texas A&M had 18 former players on NFL Opening Day active rosters.
Aggies on NFL Opening Day active rosters
#85 Martellus Bennett, TE, New York Giants
#71 Michael Bennett, DL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
#95 Rocky Bernard, DL, New York Giants
#79 Red Bryant, DL, Seattle Seahawks
#96 Ron Edwards, DL, Carolina Panthers
#25 Mike Goodson, RB, Oakland Raiders
#42 Cyrus Gray, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
#63 Geoff Hangartner, OL, Carolina Panthers
#96 Kellen Heard, DL, St. Louis Rams
#41 Jorvorskie Lane, FB, Miami Dolphins
#9 Shane Lechler, P, Oakland Raiders
#60 Kevin Matthews, OL, Tennessee Titans
#58 Von Miller, LB, Denver Broncos
#48 Don Muhlbach, DS, Detroit Lions
#32 Jordan Pugh, DB, Washington Redskins
#17 Ryan Tannehill, QB, Miami Dolphins
#74 Cody Wallace, OL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
#94 *Ty Warren, DL, Denver Broncos
* -- Injured in season-opener, placed on
Injured Reserve
Practice Squad
#79 Ben Bass, DL, Dallas Cowboys
#37 Terrence Frederick, DB, New York Giants
#83 Jeff Fuller, WR, Miami Dolphins
#63 Tony Jerod-Eddie, DL, San Francisco 49ers
#80 Jamie McCoy, TE, Pittsburgh Steelers
#77 Lucas Patterson, DL, Kansas City Chiefs
Injured Reserve:
#4 Randy Bullock, PK, Houston Texans
NFL Coaching Staffs:
Dennis Allen, Oakland Raiders (Head Coach)
Dan Campbell, Miami Dolphins (Tight Ends)
Kyle Caskey, Cincinnati Bengals (Offensive Quality Control)
Jerry Fontenot, Green Bay Packers (Tight Ends)
Johnny Holland, Oakland Raiders (Linebackers)
Gary Kubiak, Houston Texans (Head Coach)
Kirk Parrish, Seattle Seahawks (College Scouting Coordinator)
Shawn Slocum, Green Bay Packers (Special Teams Coordinator)
TEam captains, leadership council
- Team captains, selected by player voting, are seniors LB Sean Porter, DB Steven Terrell, OL Patrick Lewis and WR Ryan Swope.
- Leadership Council, also selected by player vote, is comprised of SENIORS: LB Sean Porter, TE Michael Lamothe; JUNIORS: OL Jake Matthews, OL Luke Joeckel; SOPHOMORES: QB Jameill Showers, RB Brandon Williams; FRESHMEN: QB Johnny Manziel, WR Mike Evans.