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    • The Aggies are 4-0 in SEC play
    Albany

    The Aggies are 4-0 in SEC play

    Madoc Meredith Posted on

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    The Texas A&M football team defeated the stubborn but fighting Mississippi State team 34-24 on Saturday. A&M’s offense has garnered a lot of attention and headlines this season, from the quarterback contributions of Conner Weigman and Marcel Reed to the emergence of running back Le’veon Moss to the fast start to the season.

    But it was the defense that helped the Aggies remain undefeated in SEC play.

    Here are three takeaways from A&M’s 34-24 win over Mississippi State:

    Why did the Aggies win? Watch out for third downs

    Texas A&M was 9 of 13 in third-down conversions. Mississippi State was 4 of 13.

    It was this continuation of a streak here and there that blocked A&M’s path to this game, because statistically it looked closer than a 10-point game. The Bulldogs had a total yardage gain of 355-354, threw for 230 yards compared to A&M’s 217 and averaged 3.5 yards per carry compared to A&M’s 3.8. But the Aggies finished the game with 22 first downs, while the Bulldogs had 17, and when you include fourth-down plays in must-convert situations, Mississippi State was 8 of 21.

    A tale of two teams: The Aggies have a special season ahead of them

    Texas A&M improves to 6-1 overall and 4-0 in the SEC. With five games remaining on the schedule, the Aggies face seemingly favorable matchups with South Carolina, New Mexico State and Auburn, sandwiched by top-10 challenges at Kyle Field against LSU and Texas. If things turn out the way they probably should, A&M will be 9-1 and 6-0 minus results against LSU and Texas.

    Tennessee beat Alabama today. Georgia plays Texas tonight. The last few weeks will be a great finish to the SEC and the Aggies – 4-0 in the SEC for the second time since joining the conference in 2012 – are in the conversation.

    We’ll find out the kickoff time for next Saturday’s game against LSU on Sunday. The Aggies are 4-0 in the SEC for just the second time since joining the conference in 2012.

    Mississippi State has lost six straight.

    A Tale of Two Quarterbacks: Conner Wiegman vs. Michael Van Buren Jr.

    It’s been a tough season for Mississippi State freshman Michael Van Buren Jr., who was thrust into the Bulldogs’ starting lineup. Here’s the good news – Van Buren was a three-star prospect coming out of Baltimore when he signed with Mississippi State and is now playing in the SEC. But what a start he was in for early in his college career: His first start was at Texas, his second start was against Georgia and Saturday was his third start, his first home start, against No. 14 A&M.

    Van Buren finished 22 of 41 for 242 yards. 3 touchdowns and an interception. Meanwhile, Weigman didn’t provide the box score – 15 of 25 for 217 yards, a touchdown and two picks – but he got the win and made a few big plays, including a 58-yard pass to Jabre Barber.

    The defining moments were mostly game-changing for Texas A&M

    This 58-yard pass from Weigman to Barber was the biggest play of the game in terms of yards.

    All eyes are on A&M linebacker Scooby Williams (6 tackles, 2 TFL, 0.5 sack), who left the field late in the game but had one of his greatest moments: stuffing a Bulldogs run on fourth-and-1 With 4:05 remaining in the game, A&M was defending a 10-point lead. The fans in Starkville were happy about the 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty as the Aggies celebrated, but they weren’t so thrilled that A&M retained possession.

    And it may not be talked about much, but Weigman’s 26-yard pass to Tre Watson with 8:36 left in the third certainly proved to be a big play, too. It came on third-and-23 from Mississippi State’s 36-yard line and helped turn into a short field goal midway through the third and a 24-17 lead. Without that finish, the Aggies would have bounced back in a game against Mississippi State, 21-17.

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    Madoc Meredith
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