After earning their fourth consecutive win against South Carolina last week, the Aggies will hit the road to face No. 4 Georgia for the first time since a 44-20 loss in 2009.
Wrapping up the last home game of the season, the Aggies made some key plays and continued building their confidence.
A&M coach Jimbo Fisher said he was pleased with the Aggies’ performance.
“We knew going in that it would be a very physical football game,” Fisher said. “We were able to make plays even when they were doing it right.”
The Aggies garnered 540 yards of total offense, the most A&M has earned against an SEC team since 2016.
A&M quarterback Kellen Mond threw for 221 yards and a touchdown and ran for another. It was the 14th time in his career he had rushed and passed for a touchdown in the same game.
The victory was big for Mond, as it earned him third place on the Aggies’ career list for pass completions with 565 and moved him into fourth place on the Aggies’ career list for passing yards with 6,917 total. Additionally, Mond joined Johnny Manziel and Jerrod Johnson as the only three Aggies to throw for over 2,400 yards in a season. Mond also became the third Aggie to hit the 50 mark in career passing touchdowns.
Despite his and A&M’s recent success, Mond said his focus is still on the Aggies’ upcoming matchup.
“It’s a big thing, and definitely the number one thing is confidence in yourself and believing in what you can actually do,” Mond said. “No matter what, I still have to get out on the field and compete.”
Defensively, the Aggies made some key plays and set several career highs. The defense forced a three-and-out on the opening drive for the fourth time this season.
Junior defensive tackle Justin Madubuike recorded two quarterback hurries, matching his career high. Sophomore linebacker Anthony Hines also added to his career high, earning 2.5 tackles for loss.
“The growth we’ve had is clear,” Hines said. “All goes back to practice. We’ve really been on our P’s and Q’s and are focusing in on the little things that it takes to be successful, and I think it’s starting to really show on the field.”
Going into his final collegiate home game, A&M senior defensive back Charles Oliver had a career-high six pass break-ups.
“I knew going into the game to not let emotions get the most of me,” Oliver said. “I knew that it would be my last so I just wanted to do something special. They gave me the opportunity, and I took it.”
The Bulldogs are 9-1 on the season and 6-1 in SEC play. Last week, Georgia edged out Auburn 21-14 and moved up to the fourth spot in the College Football Playoff rankings.
“On the road, you can’t make anything bigger than what it is,” Mond said. “At the end of the day, it’s just a football game. You can’t hype it up too much because it’ll add extensive pressure on yourself. We’ve just got to go in there and play our game.”
The Aggies will head to Sanford Stadium in Athens to face the Bulldogs on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m., and the game will be televised on CBS.