Texas A&M
Kansas State
Texas A&M 30, Kansas State 28
Oct 22, 2005 | Football
October 22, 2005
Reggie McNeal ran for 119 yards and one touchdown and threw for another score, and Texas A&M held on for a 30-28 victory over Kansas State on Saturday.
McNeal ran 26 yards for a touchdown on A&M's first official snap. He put the Aggies up 23-8 with a 5-yard pass to Chad Schroeder late in the third quarter, before Kansas State mounted a comeback that ultimately fell short.
Freshman Jorvorskie Lane added 98 yards rushing and two TDs for the Aggies (5-2, 3-1 Big 12), including a clutch 2-yard scoring run late in the fourth quarter, to help coach Dennis Franchione win his first game in his native Kansas since he left Pittsburg State in 1989.
Kansas State (4-3, 1-3) lost its fifth straight against Texas A&M and its sixth straight against a Big 12 South team. The Wildcats have not beaten a South Division opponent since their 35-7 shocker over then-No. 1 Oklahoma in the 2003 conference title game.
Allan Evridge threw three touchdown passes for the Wildcats, including a 4-yarder to Jordy Nelson with 1:27 left that cut A&M's lead to 30-28. But Schroeder recovered the ensuing onside kick at Kansas State's 47, sealing the Aggies' victory.
Evridge's 42-yard pass to Jermaine Moreira got Kansas State within 23-21 with just over eight minutes left in the game, but Evridge was stuffed by Johnny Jolly on the 2-point conversion try. McNeal had runs of 32 and 19 yards on A&M's answering drive, capped by Lane's second TD run.
The failed conversion was symptomatic of Kansas State's ongoing running woes. They had only 27 yards rushing Saturday, the third time this season they've been held under 50 yards, and failed to convert on fourth-and-2 from A&M's 5-yard line in the third quarter.
Evridge finished with 357 yards passing, five yards short of Kansas State's freshman record, but was plagued by a series of dropped balls in the open field -- four alone by wide receiver Yamon Figurs.
After Kansas State went three-and-out on its first possession, an interference penalty and a personal foul call gave Texas A&M a short field for McNeil's first score. Lane's 2-yard run later in the first quarter, after Kansas State's Jeff Snodgrass was wide left on a 38-yard field goal attempt, made it 14-0.
After the safety, Kansas State got on the board later in the second quarter on Evridge's 52-yard TD throw to Figurs and 2-point pass to Parrish Fisher.
Running back Courtney Lewis, who missed the two previous games for Texas A&M with an undisclosed injury, returned Saturday. Lewis, the Aggies' leading rusher in 2003 and 2004, had four carries for 19 yards and caught two passes for 15 yards.
Texas A&M Postgame Notes
POSSESSION DOMINATION --- The Aggies controlled the clock in a big way against the Wildcats, holding the football for 38 minutes and 35 seconds, which is easily the highest single game time of possession in the Dennis Franchione era at A&M. It is the most by the Aggies since they controlled the ball for 40:27 in a 34-10 victory over Baylor in 1987.
The past two games, the Aggies have a combined 31 minute, 28 second advantage in time possession and have held the ball for 75 minutes and 44 seconds (37:09 vs. Oklahoma State last week).
LUFKIN EXPRESS --- The duo of quarterback Reggie McNeal and Jorvorskie Lane, both from Lufkin High School, combined to gash the KSU defense for 217 yards and three touchdowns on 44 carries. Lane's 28 carries were a career high and matched the high number of carries by an individual during the Franchione era (Courtney Lewis also had 28 carries against Clemson in 2004). McNeal rushed for a game-high 119 yards on 16 carries, marking his fourth 100-yard game of the season and the sixth of his career.
LIMITING THIRD DOWN CONVERSIONS --- A weak point for much of the season, the Aggies's third-down defense shined for the second straight week against Kansas State. The Aggies limited the Wildcats to 3-of-14 on third-down chances. The past two weeks, the Aggies have limited opponents to 8-of-26 on third-down tries in victories over Oklahoma State and Kansas State.
ROAD WIN FOR AGGIES --- The Aggies tallied their first road victory of 2005 with a 30-28 win over Kansas State in Manhattan on Saturday. It was A&M's first since Oklahoma State last season and the third road win of the Franchione era.
GOOD HANDS PEOPLE --- Chad Schroeder, who was featured on last week's "Good Hands People" game program cover, showed his good hands by gobbling up Kansas State's last ditch onside kick in the fourth quarter.
ANOTHER PICK FOR APPEL --- Four-year starter Jaxson Appel tallied the first two interception game of his career with a pair of picks against Kansas State. The pickoffs were also the 10th and 11th of his career, and Appel currently ranked in a tie for No. 6 on A&M's career interception list.
TURNOVER TALE --- Under Coach Fran, Texas A&M is a perfect 13-0 when winning the turnover battle. The Aggies did so again Saturday.
FIRSTS ---
True freshman Jorvorskie Lane made the first start of his career. He lined up out wide in the Aggies' empty offensive set. Later in the game, Lane was tackled for a loss for the first time on his 50th carry of the season.
Junior Chad Schroeder returned punts for the first time in place of Jordan Chambless, who injured his knee last week and is out of the remainder of the season. After scoring a touchdown on his first five touches of the season, Schroeder ended a touchdown-less streak that dated back to the Baylor game.
FOR THE RECORD --- Game captains were QB Reggie McNeal, OG Aldo De La Garza, 31 Archie McDaniel and DL Red Bryant ... The 12th Man was John Ray ... Former A&M linebacker Roylin Bradley, now a scout for the San Francisco 49ers, was in the KSU press box. ... Former Kansas State head coach Jim Dickey (1978-85), who gave Dennis Franchione his first collegiate coaching job, serves as a consultant for the Aggies and traveled with the team to Manhattan.
