All week long we had been reading about how Baylor gets up for this game and about how much better their players seem to be when they face A&M and about how narrow the margins of victory had become for the Ags. Scott and I guessed that this was probably Baylor's best chance to go for a win at Kyle Field.
We figured A&M would be lucky to have 70, maybe 74 thousand people. It looked for a while like we would be right. With the temperatures expected to be in the mid-90's by the end of the game we guessed a lot of people might sit this one out at home. We were pleasantly surprised. Over 82,000 people attended the game with another good turnout by the students.
Things started out slowly. The Ags held Baylor to one first down (compared to 7) in the first quarter, but at the end, it was tied 3-3. The Ags had several long sustained drives in the first half, but ran into difficulties scoring points. Their first drive ended in a missed field goal and that made it look, for a little while, like it was going to be one of 'those' games. They would go on to miss three in the game, including two that were inside the Baylor 20.
On the positive side though, they finally got it in gear close to halftime. By the end of the game Lane, Goodson, McGee, and Johnson all scored TD's. Goodson's came on a 55-yard screen pass (I had, moments earlier, hinted to Scott that Goodson didn't seem like he had his A stuff with him). The Ags ended with over 550 yards of offense, 200 of those being passing yards. The crowd did its part to help out the passing game by cheering every long passing play, even if the catch wasn't made. And, son of a gun, if passing didn't help open up the running game a little. Hmm....
Defensively, I don't know if the Ags played as well as the stats might indicate. Baylor only had 7 first downs, but could have had more if their receivers hadn't dropped so many third-down catches. Blake Symanzki, Baylor's QB, had all the time in the world to make his passes. I don't know if A&M had any sacks. A&M's defense did well stopping Baylor's running game. The passes that Baylor did complete were short for the most part. A&M gave up only one long pass-play later in the game (to set up their only TD). It was an improvement over their Miami performance. Marquis Carpenter had both of A&M's two interceptions (including one on a foiled faked punt).
This win really doesn't give Francione any more breathing room. He's still on a hot seat. This was one of those games most people expected A&M to win. We were relieved though that it finally wasn't a close game. I think the real tests start next week. The 'Pokes of Okie State can be dangerous when they want to be and they'll definitely be motivated after last year's OT loss. However, on a day when both Oklahoma and t.u. lose their conference openers, I'll enjoy this win for a little bit.
BTHO Oklahoma State!
Patrick
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