Texas A&M managed to make history Saturday, which, under normal circumstances, might be cause for celebration.
Not this time. There aren’t many ways to produce 457 yards of offense without reaching the end zone, but Mike Elko’s Aggies found all sorts of creative methods in a 17-9 loss to No. 21 South Carolina. It was one of those afternoons where the box score and scoreboard appeared in conflict with one another.
According to Luke Evangelist, Texas A&M became the first team in college football history to gain at least 450 yards, commit zero turnovers and score zero touchdowns in the same game.
That’s almost impressive. Almost.
All Those Yards and Absolutely Nothing to Show for Them
The numbers look like something somebody pasted from the wrong game. Texas A&M finished with 26 first downs, 206 rushing yards and 251 passing yards. The Aggies held the ball for more than 34 minutes and never gave it away.
If you had told a Texas A&M fan that the Aggies would put up those numbers on offense before the game, they might’ve fainted.
Instead, the Aggies scored just nine points.
The historical implications are almost as difficult to comprehend as the performance itself. College football has produced more than its fair share of offensive disasters, but Texas A&M hasn’t had one quite this bad in more than 30 years.
A Blast From a Rather Miserable Past
On Dec. 2, 1995, No. 16 Texas A&M hosted No. 9 Texas in the final Southwest Conference meeting between the rivals.
The Aggies entered with an impressive 31-game home winning streak, but that day ended with a 16-6 loss and a celebration for the Longhorns, who claimed the final Southwest Conference championship.
What made the defeat unusual was the box score. Texas A&M gained 404 yards, recorded 24 first downs and completed 21 passes for 256 yards. The Aggies ran 79 offensive plays, yet their only points came on a pair of field goals.
Sound familiar?
There was one major difference. Texas A&M threw three interceptions and lost three fumbles in the 1995 game, giving the Longhorns some assistance in keeping the Aggies out of the end zone.
That’s what makes Saturday’s defeat to South Carolina even stranger. Texas A&M gained more yards than it did in 1995 and committed six fewer turnovers. Yet not much changed, at least on the scoreboard. Zero touchdowns came as a result of the effort, leaving the team with another sad loss in what’s been a very sad season.
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