By halftime of Saturday’s matchup between Texas A&M and Miami, the game remained scoreless. In fact, save for a lone third-quarter field goal for the Hurricanes, the first three quarters were sloppy at baseline, made worse by untenable wind (Miami’s kicker missed three field goals in the outing, with said wind largely to blame).
It set everyone up for a dramatic final fifteen minutes. Texas A&M tied the game at three-all with 8:03 to play before Miami answered with the game’s lone touchdown—an 11-yard
pass from Carson Beck to Malachi Toney, redemption for Toney’s earlier lost fumble.
The Aggies managed to bring up 1st and Goal at the Miami 5-yard line, poised to tie things up with just 33 seconds left in the game, but on third down, Marcel Reed was intercepted by Miami’s Bryce Fitzgerald (his second pick of the game) to seal the win for the Hurricanes.
In a game full of misfires from both teams, one player managed to consistently get his job done: Hurricanes running back Mark Fletcher Jr., who ran for 172 yards on 17 carries, averaging more than 10 yards per rushing attempt. His long run of the day was inarguably the play of the game, not just as a recognition of his consistency but also because it set up Beck and Toney for that touchdown.
With just under four minutes left in regulation, still tied at 3-3, Miami started its drive at its own 14-yard line. With a handoff to Fletcher, it was off to the races. Fletcher found a lane in the middle, getting himself to the outside easily. Then he just kept going—for fifty-six yards, his career-long run.
He was finally tackled at the A&M 30-yard line, but the play very quickly turned the tides for the ‘Canes. Fletcher carried the ball on each of the next five plays, getting Miami to A&M’s 11-yard line, from which they would tack on their touchdown.
Watch Fletcher leave a trail of dust behind him in the play of the game:
What this means for Ohio State
The game was, for all intents and purposes, The Fletcher Show. Much of Saturday’s outcome came down to mistakes: Carson Beck struggled, but he never turned the ball over (he did fumble it, but the ‘Canes recovered). The Aggies had better numbers offensively (326 yards to Miami’s 276), but Marcel Reed gave it up twice. His final interception ended the Aggies’ chances.
But it also came down to Fletcher.
Fletcher’s numbers have been decent all season, but Saturday was by far his best game, worth noting particularly because A&M is arguably the best team the ‘Canes have faced to-date. His three other 100-yard-plus outings have come against South Florida, Florida, and Stanford. He’s averaging just under 78 yards per game.
It was as if the high stakes flipped a switch for Fletcher, and the stakes will only increase against the Buckeyes, so that could be an additional motivator for a guy who had the game of his life this weekend. Personally, though, I don’t think we’re likely to see a repeat of these numbers, come New Year’s Eve.
The Buckeyes, motivated coming off a loss, already have a top-five rushing defense—and the best overall—in the country, compared to A&M’s 40th-best rushing defense and 19th-best overall defense.. The Silver Bullets have given up an average of just 84.46 rushing yards per game, while A&M has allowed 130.77.
All this to say, if Beck looks even half as sloppy against OSU as he did this past weekend, Miami can’t rely solely on Fletcher to carry the team. It will take a far more coordinated, more well-rounded attack to end the Buckeyes’ season than what we saw in College Station yesterday.
