I’ve tried to write this one three different times and then had to start over. I’m truly at a loss for words for what we just witnessed.
This is simply the kind of game Texas A&M does not win. We all know about the streaks: No ranked road wins since 2014, no ranked non-conference road wins since 1979. Years of history tell you we’d come up short. But it wasn’t just the history, it was the vibes.
The Aggies surrendered a blocked punt for a touchdown on the opening drive of the game. They missed a field
goal at the end of the half. They extended multiple Notre Dame drives with penalties (and killed some of our own with penalties as well). We gave up a fourth down conversion with only a handful of minutes left. We had a kickoff return for a touchdown called back for holding. We had back to back procedure penalties in the red zone with the game on the line.
There were SO MANY MOMENTS when this team could have folded. When previous A&M teams DID fold. But this team did not. What they did do, was deliver Aggie fans a four-hour roller coaster of emotion that culminated in one of the most memorable finishes in recent memory, and a 41-40 Texas A&M win over Notre Dame.
If feels like there’s too much to even attempt to cover accurately about what happened in this game, but I’ll try to call out a few key points.
- Mario Craver: We saw him dominate lesser opponents, but seeing him do it (and elevate his game even further) in a game of this magnitude was a sight to behold. Seven catches for 207 yards and a touchdown, and just made Notre Dame defenders look silly every time he had the ball.
- Aggie run defense: It may have felt like were were getting gashed at times, but the A&M run defense really showed up today a lot better than many of us feared against a pair of vaunted Irish RBs. But 136 yards on 39 attempts against this team is respectable, if far from perfect.
- Marcel Reed: As was the case for a lot of the team, it was not a perfect day. His early INT led to a Notre Dame touchdown. He missed two open deep balls in the third quarter that would have been drive-changers. But he looked calm in the pocket, got the ball to his playmakers, and most importantly, delivered a perfect ball when it mattered most to seal the win.
- Nate Boerkircher: You’d be forgiven if you didn’t even know his name headed into this game, as the Nebraska transfer came to Aggieland supposedly as a blocking tight end, but he made just his second catch of his career in the biggest possible moment, and did the thing. Aggies are all too familiar with soul-crushing dropped passes. But this one sure feels like it erases some of that pain.
Now this wasn’t a perfect performance. Far from it. The offense, even after scoring 41 points, left some stuff on the table. The defense has some big questions to answer. But it sure feels a lot better to try and answer those questions as an undefeated team than one still searching for a signature win for what feels like the first time in forever.
Ultimately, this is only game three of 12. The good will of this game can quickly get undone if you falter in others where you shouldn’t. But college football is about opportunities, and by winning this game, the Aggies get the opportunity to keep playing, and keep dreaming, for something special in 2025.
