The defense took a few drives to find their rhythm, and the offense hit a lull in the second and third quarters, but ultimately Texas A&M did what good teams do: break the will of their opponent en route
to an easy win. The Ags took down the Florida Gators 34-17 at Kyle Field on Saturday night – here are some of the numbers that tell the tale.
Salient Stats
- 0: Negative offensive plays for the Texas A&M offense. One of the best ways to ensure offensive success is to stay ahead of the chains, and A&M did that all night thanks to never losing a single yard on a play, whether it was a run, a sack or a completed pass. The next best way to ensure the offense keeps moving is to limit penalties, and speaking of which…
- 3: Penalties for the Aggies all night, including only one on the offense. THAT was a clean game, and a season-low for A&M. It comes on the heels of A&M only getting two penalties in the second half of the MSU game, so maybe this team is finally having some things lock in on that front. If they can continue to limit penalties, the sky is the limit for this team. Just like limiting negative plays, avoiding costly penalties helps keep you in much more manageable third down situations. Speaking of which…
- 52.9%: A&M’s third down conversion rate in this game, their highest of the season. It turns out converting on third downs, limiting penalties and having no negative plays makes for a pretty darn good offensive day!
- 6: Different A&M players caught multiple passes (another season high). Florida clearly made it a point to contain KC and Mario, and it won’t be the last time a team employs that tactic. When they do, it’s important that A&M finds ways to get other players involved, and they did so with success on Saturday, especially to the tight ends.
- 34: Points for the Ags, the most Florida has given up all season. It wasn’t a perfect day for the offense, but keep in mind that was a very strong defense they were facing, with their previous high of points allowed coming at Miami, who scored 26.
- 8: Tackles by LB Daymion Sanford. He had yet another very impactful game, even with fellow LB Scooby Williams officially off the injury report. Sanford is a major bright spot on a defense that has been filled with bright spots in the past three games.
- 21: Sacks on the season for the Aggie defense, ranking No. 5 nationally. Led by DE Cashius Howell, this defense has absolutely terrorized opposing QBs the past three weeks, adding three more sacks to their tally this week, and altering several other DJ Lagway throws that led to incompletions.
- 74: Rushing yards for Florida, the third straight game that A&M has held opponents below 80 yards rushing. Certainly that is aided slightly by sack yardage, but after the way the game started, holding Jadan Baugh to 65 yards on 18 carries (3.6 YPC) feels like a massive victory for this defense.
- 0: Losses when winning at halftime for Mike Elko. This team definitely feels like it is learning how to close out games, and let’s hope that continues as they hit the road for the first time in SEC play next weekend in Fayetteville.