All week, the energy was palpable in Aggieland. Coach Mike Elko has taken over the Texas A&M football program, sophomore quarterback Conner Weigman is healthy and Kanye West’s “POWER” made its long-awaited return to the speakers of Kyle Field. But Notre Dame cared not for A&M’s bounce-back hopes.
In a game marked by the start of a new era in College Station, the No. 7 Fighting Irish spoiled the Aggies’ fun in a 23-13 defeat on Saturday.
With less than seven minutes left in the game, Notre Dame marched 83 yards to break the 13-13 deadlock and put a dagger in the heart of A&M’s winning dreams via a 21-yard touchdown run by sophomore running back Jeremiyah Love.
The Maroon and White had a chance to rescue their moribund offensive performance with a potential game-tying drive with 1:53 remaining. Weigman, who finished 12-for-30 with two interceptions, threw three incompletions to end A&M’s chance at a comeback bid. Notre Dame iced the game with a 46-yard field goal to extend its lead to 10 points.
“Well, hats off to Notre Dame,” Elko said. “They came in here, and they beat us. There’s really no two ways around it. To the Aggie fans, I thank you. Thank you for showing up tonight. Thank you for making this a really special day. You deserved better, and we didn’t give it to you.”
It was an uneven start for the offenses in the first quarter with both teams kicking a field goal. Weigman had the A&M offense in position for a touchdown before its opening drive fizzled out in the red zone. Elko called on graduate kicker Randy Bond to nail a 34-yarder, putting the Aggies up 3-0.
Notre Dame senior QB Riley Leonard showed off his athleticism early with a nine-yard run that ended in a targeting penalty and ejection for sophomore safety Dalton Brooks. A well-timed tunnel screen pass got the Fighting Irish just inside field goal range for graduate K Mitch Jeter to tie the game at three.
“It wasn’t fun,” Elko said of playing against Leonard. “I told him I loved him after the game. I will be rooting for the kid for the rest of his life.”
The second quarter was more of the same as the defenses dragged both teams into a rock fight where big plays were few and far between. The Aggies eked out enough offense to generate a field goal drive that put them up 6-3.
Midway through the second quarter, Weigman overthrew a pass intended for junior wide receiver Noah Thomas into the waiting arms of sophomore safety Adon Shuler. The Aggies’ defense kept the Irish to just a field goal on a short field. Weigman’s second pick came just before halftime in a throw across the middle that last season’s interception leader, graduate S Xavier Watts, nabbed. A&M’s defense held strong to end the half, only allowing 139 total yards of offense to the Irish.
“He’s a great player, and he’s going to take us to great places this season,” junior offensive tackle Trey Zuhn III said of Weigman’s struggles. “I think he did a great job staying composed throughout the whole game.”
The A&M offense continued to sputter, finishing the day 4-for-13 on third downs. The Maroon and White were stymied on a drive when Weigman seemed to think he had a free play from an Irish offsides penalty, but the officials disagreed and his pass fell harmlessly to the ground for a turnover on downs.
The bottom fell out for A&M’s stout run defense in the third quarter when junior RB Jadarian Price broke containment and scampered for a 47-yard score to put the Irish up 13-6 and shift the pressure onto a lifeless Aggie offense.
“I feel like the breakdown was me,” sophomore linebacker Taurean York said. “I missed a tackle on the long touchdown. They ran for 200 yards, and most of that was in the second half. It’s on me at the end of the day.”
The Maroon and White mounted an eight-play, game-tying drive at the start of the fourth to take the ball 85 yards to the house, capped off by junior RB Le’Veon Moss’ 1-yard plunge into the end zone. The Aggies relied on their stable of running backs on the drive as four players, including Weigman, gained yards on the ground.
“We learned that we have glimpses where we’re a really good football team,” Zuhn said. “But we need to learn how to focus and strain every single play, every single down, every single drive to be successful.”
The Aggies will look to rebound against a 1-1 McNeese State team coming to Kyle Field on Saturday, Sept. 7 at 11:45 a.m.
