Texas A&M 49 - Iowa State 35: game recap

Aggies get first Big 12 win of 2008

Texas A&M and head Coach Mike Sherman Saturday picked their first Big 12 Conference win this season. They beat the Iowa State Cyclones, 49-25, in Ames, IA.

The Aggies (3-5, 1-3 Big 12) avoided a shutout in league play. The Cyclones fell to 2-6 overall and 0-4 in Big 12 play.

Aggie quarterback Jerrod Johnson had another career high day. He completed 31 of 39 passes for 381 yards. He tossed four touchdown passes. On the receiving end were the McCoy brothers, Jaime and Terrance, who had 13 grabs for 177 yards and three touchdowns.

Redshirt Freshman Ryan Tannehill with six catches for 78 yards broke A&M’s freshman receiving records for catches and yards. True Freshman Jeff Fuller grabbed sole possession of the school freshman touchdown receiving record. He caught his eighth TD catch of the year. It was an eight-yard catch in the fourth quarter.

In reality, it was a test to determine the worst of the worst. But weak defenses on both teams gave the fans plenty of offensive show.

Cyclone Quarterback Austen Arnaud threw for 371 yards. It was a career high for the Cyclone QB. Arnaud pulled the Cyclone within 42-28 when he threw a nine-yard pass half-way through the forth quarter.

However, Johnson answered that score when he pitched a strike to Jeff Fuller for a TD. Then Arnaud threw a TD pass to Collin Franklin only 52 seconds later.

The Cyclones put up 574 yards of offense. Amazingly, the Aggies still allowed the fewest points in conference play this year.

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The win served to elevate the Aggies out of the cellar of the Big 12. Jeff Sagarin rated the Aggies at No. 95 in the NCAA above Iowa State at No. 111. Covers.com, a rating service for bettors, was not impressed by the Aggies. Covers dropped the Aggies one place to No. 96 among NCAA teams.

The Aggies play the Colorado Buffalos at Kyle Field in College Station. The game will be at 1:05 p.m. CT Saturday. The Buffalos are a three-point favorite.

By Jay Goode
Big 12 Fans Texas A&M Correspondent

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