Texas A&M
8-1 , 8-1
Tennessee
3-7 , 3-7
No. 5 Aggies Win Seventh Straight SEC Game, 34-13, at Tennessee
Dec 19, 2020 | Football
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP)-- Kellen Mond threw for 281 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 59 yards and a score to lead Texas A&M closed its case for inclusion in the College Football Playoff with a 34-13 victory over Tennessee on Saturday.
Isaiah Spiller ran for 89 yards and a touchdown, and Ainias Smith scored once rushing and once receiving.
Mond completed 26 of 32 passes as the Aggies (8-1, No. 5 CFP) finished their regular season and hoped for an upset or two within the CFP's top four.
Tennessee (3-7) has lost seven of its last eight games, ramping up speculation about Jeremy Pruitt's future as Vols coach.
Harrison Bailey and J.T. Shrout combined to throw for 189 yards and two touchdowns for the Vols.
The Aggies had trouble getting separation in the second half. Up 24-13 at halftime, the Aggies flirted with pulling away in the third quarter, but a red zone interception ended the threat.
It wasn't until the 9:02 mark of the fourth quarter that Texas A&M got some breathing room. Mond engineered an 88-yard drive, with a key play of a 28-yard pass to Jalen Wydermeyer, that ended with a 1-yard run by Smith for a 31-13 lead.
Smith had two big runs accounting for 50 yards on the Aggies' last possession. It ended in a 21-yard field goal that accounted for the 34-13 final.
Mond was impressive in the first half, completing 19 of 22 passes for 183 yards as the Aggies led, 24-13. He threw a 4-yard scoring pass to Ainias Smith and also ran for a TD from five yards.
Texas A&M, ranked third in the nation in third-down conversion percentage (55%), didn't punt in the first half. The Aggies converted on 6 of 7 third-down opportunities. They controlled the ball for more than 21 minutes.
Bailey led Tennessee to the game's opening score. The freshman hit Jacob Warren with a 33-yard scoring pass to cap a five-play, 75-yard drive.
Mond answered with a 75-yard drive of his own that included five passing plays of double digits. He ended it with a 5-yard run.
The Aggies took the lead when Spiller bulled over from 3 yards to cap a 69-yard drive four plays into the second quarter. Texas A&M's advantage went to 17-7 when the Aggies turned a Bailey fumble into a 23-yard field goal by Seth Small.
Shrout came off the bench and made an immediate impact for the Vols. He hit Cedric Tillman twice for 61 yards, the payoff being a 46-yarder while diving into the end zone.
After a missed PAT, the Aggies moved the ball 75 yards in 11 plays and scored on a 4-yard pass from Mond to Smith 15 seconds before intermission.
??? THAT'S OUR COACH.#GigEm pic.twitter.com/OyYcZT2CRj
— Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) December 19, 2020
Postgame Notes
- Texas A&M’s 8-1 record against SEC opponents this season marks the most wins in conference play for the Aggies since going 8-0 in the SWC in 1991.
- A&M’s seven-game winning streak in league play marks the program’s most consecutive SEC victories.
- The Aggies allowed the second-fewest rushing yards in a game this season as they held Tennessee to just 24 yards on the ground. Earlier in the year, A&M limited Mississippi State to minus-2 rushing yards as a team.
- This was the fourth time this season A&M has limited its opponent to 50-or-fewer yards on the ground.
- A&M, which leads the SEC and ranks ninth nationally in time of possession, controlled the game for 44:09 against Tennessee, the team’s highest mark in the category since joining the SEC prior to the 2012 season.
- The Aggies closed out an SEC road win with 17 unanswered points for the second straight game after putting up 17 points in the fourth quarter at Auburn.
- Today’s captains at Tennessee were LB Buddy Johnson, OL Carson Green and OL Ryan McCollum.
- For the 18th time in his career, senior QB Kellen Mond passed and rushed for a touchdown in the same game after scoring on a 5-yard run to put A&M on the board in the first quarter and later sending a 4-yard toss to sophomore RB Ainias Smith in the end zone just before the half.
- Mond finished the 30th win of his career as a starting QB with 281 yards through the air and 59 on the ground, tallying at least 200 passing yards and 50 rushing yards in a game for the fifth time in his career.
- Junior WR Hezekiah Jones had a career day with 66 yards on seven catches.
- Sophomore RB Ainais Smith recorded his third multi-touchdown game of the year. For the second time this season, Smith scored a receiving and rushing touchdown in the same game.
- Sophomore RB Isaiah Spiller fought his way into the end zone on the 3-yard run and has now scored at least one touchdown in five of A&M’s seven straight victories.
- Senior LB Buddy Johnson added two tackles on the day to reach 200 for his career.
- Junior DL Bobby Brown III took down Tennessee’s QB midway through the fourth quarter to record a sack in each of the last six games he has played in.
- Junior DB Brian George made the first start of his A&M career and finished the game with his first interception, picking off a pass in the end zone late in the fourth quarter.
- Sophomore DL DeMarvin Leal and junior DL Tyree Johnson each forced a fumble and sacked the quarterback in the game.
- Junior PK Seth Small sailed four PATs through the uprights against Tennessee to take sole possession of seventh on A&M’s all-time career list, making 122 of his 123 attempts.
Gallery: Football at Tennessee
Jimbo Fisher
"This team truly played a total team game, and is one of the most selfless football teams I have ever been around. Offensively, we had 497 yards and gave up 213 and a couple of big plays, but we adjusted to that. Offensively, 4-4 scores in the first half. Had a couple things in the second half that put us in tough situations. That third down call we should have been more patient, but we came back and put our will back on them. We drove, got the score, got the field goal and got the last one. I am just so proud of our guys. Defense did an outstanding job, and the kicking game was good.
"I haven’t lobbied and haven’t said a word, but we are 8-1 in the SEC. We lost to the No. 1 team in the country. I want to see someone else go 8-1 in this league. We can play with anybody and we deserve it. You’re going to hear me say it now, that we deserve to be in it. That is up to the committee, but I believe that firmly. We can play with anybody."
Team Stats
TAMU 0, UT 7
UT - Warren,Ja. 33 yd pass from Bailey,H. (Wilson,T. kick) 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:32
TAMU 7, UT 7
TAMU - Kellen Mond 5 yd run (Seth Small kick), 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 5:56
TAMU 14, UT 7
TAMU - Isaiah Spiller 3 yd run (Seth Small kick), 12 plays, 69 yards, TOP 6:12
TAMU 17, UT 7
TAMU - Seth Small 23 yd field goal 9 plays, 33 yards, TOP 5:30
TAMU 17, UT 13
UT - Tillman,C. 46 yd pass from Shrout,J. (Wilson,T. kickfailed) 4 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:44
TAMU 24, UT 13
TAMU - Ainias Smith 4 yd pass from Kellen Mond (Seth Small kick) 11 plays, 75 yards, TOP 3:50
TAMU 31, UT 13
TAMU - Ainias Smith 1 yd run (Seth Small kick), 13 plays, 88 yards, TOP 7:06
TAMU 34, UT 13
TAMU - Seth Small 21 yd field goal 8 plays, 68 yards, TOP 5:19
