Following a tough loss to No. 1 Clemson last week, No. 16 Texas A&M got back on track by defeating Lamar 62-3 Saturday in College Station.
After the offense struggled against the Tigers last week, the Aggies put up 633 yards of total offense against Lamar.
The defense was the highlight of the game, as they held the Cardinals to 197 total yards and three points.
“Obviously it was good to get out there and hold them to nothing, or basically nothing, but they shouldn’t have gotten anything,” sophomore defensive lineman Bobby Brown said. “Not knocking them as a team or anything, but when we play and play well, no offense should be able to mess with us.”
The Aggies got off to a fast start, scoring on all five of their first half drives and accumulating 312 yards of total offense.
A&M’s opening drive stalled in the red zone, resulting in a 21-yard field goal from sophomore Seth Small.
On their next drive of the game, the Aggies used less than four minutes to cover 68 yards, ending the seven-play drive with a two-yard run into the end zone by sophomore Jacob Kibodi.
A&M’s dominant offensive start continued on its next drive.
Mond’s 36-yard pass to junior wide receiver Jhamon Ausbon late in the first quarter put A&M in scoring position for the third time in the first quarter; however, three plays later, Ausbon dropped another pass on third-and-5, and the Aggies had to settle for a 32-yard field goal by Small.
“I’m honestly mad because I dropped the ball,” Ausbon said. “I just try to do everything I can on each play. Coach Fisher calls the plays and Kellen threw it. I just want to make sure I don’t have any more drops this season.”
Lamar started out the second quarter with Jordan Hoy’s pass to Mason Sikes for 16 yards. A&M was slow to stop Lamar’s early momentum, but Brown eventually did, blocking Lamar’s field goal attempt.
Freshman Isaiah Spiller was instrumental throughout the second quarter for A&M, rushing for 38 yards and scoring on a 2-yard plunge a few plays later. Mond added a touchdown on a 12-yard run late in the second quarter, leaving the score at 27-0 to end the first half.
“Offensively, I thought we had good balance,” said Fisher. “We had two critical drops in the first half that I thought cost us points that would have been really critical. Also, we have the field goal kicker. Seth [Small] had another outstanding game kicking the ball.”
Early in the third quarter, A&M’s opening drive looked promising before defensive back Cameron Hayes intercepted Mond’s pass for a return of 11 yards.
Spiller widened the score to 34-0 with a 34-yard run midway through the third quarter.
Lamar avoided a shutout with a 32-yard field goal by Bailey Giffen halfway through the third quarter.
With a little over a minute remaining in the third, Mond completed a pass to Ausbon for a touchdown to make the score 41-3. A&M then put quarterback Zach Calzada in the game, who threw a 25-yard touchdown to tight end Jalen Wydermeyer on the first play of the drive.
The fourth quarter started out with both teams exchanging turnovers. A 37-yard punt by Lamar led to a 41-yard return for Roshauud Paul. After another Lamar punt, the Aggies took over at the 42-yard line with James Foster as the quarterback.
A&M converted with a 4th down conversion at the Lamar 35-yard line to keep the drive alive, allowing Cordarrian Richardson to make the final score for the Aggies.
A&M will return to Kyle Field to take on No. 8 Auburn on Saturday, Sept. 21. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. and will be televised on CBS.