In a season which the LSU Tigers are exceeding expectations as a Top Five team and are heading to Atlanta as the SEC West Champions playing against a team that has disappointed this season in the 4-7 Texas A&M Aggies, the roles were simply reversed for 60 minutes of football as the Texas A&M Aggies looked like the better team tonight in a 38-23 shocking upset over a LSU football team that was in the middle of the conversation when it came to teams competing for a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Texas A&M running back Devon Achane puts on one of the best performances in Texas A&M history with 215 yards and two touchdowns on 38 carries. LSU’s defense simply could not bring him down despite Achane dealing with an ankle injury.
“It shows the type of team we can be. Just showing that it wasn’t the season we wanted but came out to beat a top ten team.”
Texas A&M running back Devon Achane on performance
The Aggies offense leaned heavily on their star running back and rightfully so, but quarterback Conner Weigman made crucial plays when needed as he completed 12 of 18 passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. Moose Muhammad had five catches for 94 yards and an incredible touchdown grab when stealing the ball away from LSU’s Sage Ryan to put the Aggies up by two touchdowns. Overall, the Aggies accounted for 429 total yards with 274 of those yards coming on the ground. It was also the first time this season that the Aggies have scored 30 or more points against a FBS team.
However, the biggest play was made by the Aggies defense when Edgerrin Cooper forced a fumble on LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels and it was scooped and scored by Demani Richardson to give Texas A&M the lead back at 24-17.
From that point on, Texas A&M gained control and never looked back outscoring LSU the rest of the way.
“I think there was some momentum swing there. I don’t know if we ever really recovered from it.”
LSU Head Coach Brian Kelly on Texas A&M’s scoop and score
Texas A&M set the tone early in the football game marching on a methodical 15 play, 90-yard drive, which was capped off by a Devon Achane 10-yard touchdown run to give the Aggies a 7-0 lead.
LSU’s offense did answer on the next series marching on a 12 play, 75-yard drive capped by a John Emery touchdown run to tie the game at seven a piece.
In the second quarter, the Aggies had another impressive drive again marching 58 yards inside the Tigers’ 10, but the Tigers’ defense holds to a field goal.
Damian Ramos later ties the game at 10, but once again, LSU’s defense has trouble stopping Texas A&M’s offense as Weigman throws a three-yard touchdown pass to Donovan Green and thus giving the Aggies a 17-10 lead at halftime.
The Tigers start the second half strong by forcing a three and out on defense and then going on a 9 play, 71-yard scoring drive as Emery scores his second touchdown of the night from 19 yards out to tie the game again at 17.
After forcing a second straight three and out, it looked as if the Tigers had momentum on their side and would gain control of the game, but the scoop and score by Richardson gave the Aggies all the momentum and the Tigers just could not mentally overcome it.
“We needed more juice, more fire, and we seemed to lack that today. That’s on me.”
LSU Head Coach Brian Kelly on team’s energy throughout the game
The Aggies would add two more touchdowns with one coming on a 21-yard touchdown pass from Weigman to Muhammad and the other coming on a 10-yard run from Achane.
LSU did score quickly taking a minute and 20 seconds off the clock with John Emery scoring his third rushing touchdown of the game to make it a 15-point game at 38-23 with 6:21 left to play as the two-point conversion attempt was no good.
There was a glimmer of hope as LSU would get the ball back with four minutes left to play. Those hopes were dashed when on fourth down and 15, Daniels throws it to the back of the end zone where Jaray Jenkins had the catch for a moment but did not hold on to the football long enough to complete the process of the catch.
Achane and the offense runs the rest of the clock and completes the top five upset winning by a 38-23 final score.
It certainly was an embarrassing performance for the Tigers with a lot on the line in the final two weeks of the season.
“We just weren’t out best today. I’d like to give you a reason why we weren’t our best, but we just weren’t and we needed to be better.”
LSU Head Coach Brian Kelly on team’s performance
One of the few bright spots for the Tigers tonight was the running game as John Emery had three touchdown runs and Noah Cain averaged four yards per carry rushing for 44 yards.
Jayden Daniels finished the game completing 21 of 35 passes for 189 yards while rushing for 84 yards on the ground. Daniels had an ankle injury towards the end of the game on the Tigers’ two-point conversion.
The loss puts LSU at 9-3 to end the regular season and now, the Tigers will have to focus on the SEC Championship Game against #1 Georgia next Saturday.
“This has been one of the most enjoyable years of my career, watching these guys grow. This was not a step back. This was a bump in the road. They will learn from this.”
LSU Head Coach Brian Kelly on moving forward after the loss
Texas A&M ends the regular season at 5-7 and wins back-to-back games for the first time since September.
LSU still has a chance to end the season with a SEC Championship and possibly a New Year’s Six Bowl Game with an upset win over Georgia, but with the loss tonight, all hopes of a potential berth in the College Football Playoff are dashed.
Offensive Cumulative Stats:
| STAT | LSU | Texas A&M |
|---|---|---|
| NET TOTAL YARDS | 384 | 429 |
| NET RUSHING YARDS | 187 | 274 |
| Rushing Attempts | 32 | 50 |
| Average Per Rush | 5.8 | 5.5 |
| Rushing TDs | 3 | 2 |
| Yards Gained | 200 | 282 |
| Yards Lost | 13 | 8 |
| NET PASSING YARDS | 197 | 155 |
| Completion-Attempts | 22-36 | 12-18 |
| Completion Percentage | 61% | 67% |
| Avg Per Completion | 9.0 | 12.9 |
| Passing TDs | 0 | 2 |
| TOTAL 1ST DOWNS | 25 | 25 |
| Rushing 1st Downs | 10 | 18 |
| Passing 1st Downs | 12 | 7 |
| Penalty 1st Downs | 3 | 0 |
| TOTAL PLAYS | 68 | 68 |
| Avg Yds/Play | 5.6 | 6.3 |
| Rushing-Passing | 32-36 | 50-18 |
Offense Efficiency Comparison:
| STAT | LSU | Texas A&M |
|---|---|---|
| RED ZONE ATTEMPTS | 4-4 | 4-4 |
| Red Zone Points | 23 | 24 |
| RZ TDs Rush-Pass | 3-0 | 2-1 |
| RZ FG Made-Att | 1-1 | 1-1 |
| RZ Turns | 0 | 0 |
| 3rd Downs | 4-11 | 10-15 |
| 4th Downs | 0-1 | 1-1 |
| Penalties | 5-42 | 4-47 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 2-1 | 0-0 |
| Pts Off Turns | 0 | 6 |
| POSSESSION TIME | 28:19 | 31:41 |
Special Teams Comparison:
| STAT | LSU | Texas A&M |
|---|---|---|
| Punts-Avg | 4-41.5 | 3-41.3 |
| Inside20 | 2 | 0 |
| Field Goals | 1-1 | 1-1 |
| Kick Returns | 0-0 | 1-17 |
| Punt Returns | 0-0 | 1-3 |
Defensive Comparison:
| STAT | LSU | Texas A&M |
|---|---|---|
| TACKLES | 76 | 58 |
| Solo Tackles | 36 | 38 |
| Tackles for Loss | 4 | 2 |
| TFL Yards | -7 | -13 |
| Pass Breakups | 2 | 3 |
| QB Hurries | 2 | 3 |
| Sacks | 0 | 1 |
| Sacks Yards | -0 | -5 |
| Takeaways FR-INT | 0-0 | 1-0 |
| Forced Fumbles | 0 | 2 |
| Fumble Recoveries | 0 | 1 |
| FR Yards | 0 | 27 |
| Interceptions | 0 | 0 |
| INT Yards | 0 | 0 |
| TDs INT-FR | 0-0 | 0-1 |
LSU Passing:
| # | PLAYER | C-A | YDS | TD | I | C% | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | DANIELS,JAYDEN | 21-35 | 189 | 0 | 0 | 60 | 105.4 |
| 13 | NUSSMEIER,GARRETT | 1-1 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 167.2 |
| PASS TOTALS | 22-36 | 197 | 0 | 0 | 61 |
LSU Receiving:
| # | PLAYER | NO | YDS | TD | LNG | AVG | TGT | C% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | NABERS,MALIK | 7 | 69 | 0 | 18 | 9.9 | 10 | 70 |
| 7 | BOUTTE,KAYSHON | 4 | 43 | 0 | 22 | 10.8 | 4 | 100 |
| 4 | EMERY JR.,JOHN | 3 | 11 | 0 | 8 | 3.7 | 4 | 75 |
| 21 | CAIN,NOAH | 2 | 25 | 0 | 15 | 12.5 | 5 | 40 |
| 86 | TAYLOR,MASON | 2 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 40 |
| 80 | BECH,JACK | 1 | 15 | 0 | 15 | 15 | 3 | 33 |
| 10 | JENKINS,JARAY | 1 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 3 | 33 |
| 2 | LACY,KYREN | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 3 | 33 |
| 11 | THOMAS JR.,BRIAN | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 50 |
| 9 RECEIVERS | 22 | 197 | 0 | 22 | 9 | 39 | 56 |
LSU Rushing:
| # | PLAYER | ATT | YDS | TD | LNG | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | DANIELS,JAYDEN | 12 | 84 | 0 | 24 | 7 |
| 4 | EMERY JR.,JOHN | 9 | 55 | 3 | 19 | 6.1 |
| 21 | CAIN,NOAH | 11 | 48 | 0 | 12 | 4.4 |
| 4 RUSHERS | 32 | 187 | 3 | 24 | 5.8 |
LSU Punting:
| Punter | NO | YDS | AVG | LNG | I20 | 50+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRAMBLETT,JAY | 4 | 166 | 41.5 | 49 | 2 | 0 |
LSU Field Goals:
| Kicker | Time | Dist | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ramos,Damian | 2nd-05:38 | 34 | GOOD |
| TOTAL | 1-1 | LONG OF 34 |
LSU All-Purpose Yards:
| Player | Tot | Rush | Rec | KOR | PR | IR-FR | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DANIELS,JAYDEN | 84 | 84 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| CAIN,NOAH | 73 | 48 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| NABERS,MALIK | 69 | 0 | 69 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
LSU Defense:
| # | Player (Starter) | TotTk | Solo | Sack | TFL | Int | BrUp | QBH | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 99 | Roy,Jaquelin (DL) | 12 | 5 | 0 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Brooks Jr.,Greg | 8 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | Baskerville,Micah (LB) | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | Penn III,Greg (LB) | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Ward,Jay (DB) | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Gaye,Ali (DE) | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Garner,Mekhi (DB) | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Ojulari,BJ (DE) | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | Foucha,Joe (DB) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | Burns,Major (DB) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | Jones,Sai’vion (DE) | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 90 | Guillory,Jacobian (DL) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Perkins Jr.,Harold (LB) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 92 | Wingo,Mekhi (DL) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 17 | Carter,Zavier (LB) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | Tolan,DeMario (LB) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | Weeks,West (LB) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Emery Jr.,John | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Ramos,Damian | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TOTALS | 76 | 36 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
LSU Punt Returns:
| Returner | NO | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD |
|---|
LSU Kick Returns:
| Returner | NO | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD |
|---|
LSU Team Stats By Quarter:
| 1st | Rush | Pass | CAI | TotY | Avg | 3rds | Pens | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 5 | 8-36 | 7-32 | 4-7-0 | 68 | 4.5 | 1-2 | 0-0 |
| 2nd | 6 | 5-28 | 12-77 | 7-12-0 | 105 | 6.2 | 2-4 | 2-17 |
| 3rd | 7 | 13-77 | 8-33 | 6-8-0 | 110 | 5.2 | 1-3 | 1-10 |
| 4th | 7 | 6-46 | 9-55 | 5-9-0 | 101 | 6.7 | 0-2 | 2-15 |
| Total | 25 | 32-187 | 36-197 | 22-36-0 | 384 | 5.6 | 4-11 | 5-42 |
LSU Scoring Summary:
| Qtr | Clock | Score | Type | Play | Drive | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 14:00 | TD | RUSH | Emery Jr.,John 4 yd rush PAT kick by Ramos,Damian (Good) | 12/75/05:54 | 7-7 |
| 2 | 05:38 | FG | Ramos,Damian 34 yd Field Goal | 10/59/03:45 | 10-10 | |
| 3 | 09:40 | TD | RUSH | Emery Jr.,John 19 yd rush PAT kick by Ramos,Damian (Good) | 9/71/04:34 | 17-17 |
| 4 | 06:21 | TD | RUSH | Emery Jr.,John 3 yd rush | 6/75/01:25 | 38-23 |
Texas A&M Passing:
| # | PLAYER | C-A | YDS | TD | I | C% | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | WEIGMAN,CONNER | 12-18 | 155 | 2 | 0 | 67 | 175.7 |
Texas A&M Receiving
| # | PLAYER | NO | YDS | TD | LNG | AVG | TGT | C% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | MUHAMMAD III,MOOSE | 5 | 94 | 1 | 39 | 18.8 | 5 | 100 |
| 1 | STEWART,EVAN | 4 | 42 | 0 | 13 | 10.5 | 6 | 67 |
| 18 | GREEN,DONOVAN | 2 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 6.5 | 4 | 50 |
| 9 | THOMAS,NOAH | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 100 |
| 4 RECEIVERS | 12 | 155 | 2 | 39 | 12.9 | 18 | 67 |
Texas A&M Rushing:
| # | PLAYER | ATT | YDS | TD | LNG | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | ACHANE,DEVON | 38 | 215 | 2 | 29 | 5.7 |
| 4 | DANIELS,AMARI | 4 | 39 | 0 | 23 | 9.8 |
| 15 | WEIGMAN,CONNER | 7 | 21 | 0 | 12 | 3 |
| 3 RUSHERS | 50 | 274 | 2 | 29 | 5.5 |
Texas A&M Punting:
| Punter | NO | YDS | AVG | LNG | I20 | 50+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CONSTANTINOU,NIK | 3 | 124 | 41.3 | 45 | 0 | 0 |
Texas A&M Field Goals:
| Kicker | Time | Dist | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bond,Randy | 2nd-09:23 | 25 | GOOD |
| TOTAL | 1-1 | LONG OF 25 |
Texas A&M All-Purpose Yards:
| Player | Tot | Rush | Rec | KOR | PR | IR-FR | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACHANE,DEVON | 215 | 215 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| MUHAMMAD III,MOOSE | 97 | 0 | 94 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| STEWART,EVAN | 42 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Texas A&M Defense:
| # | Player (Starter) | TotTk | Solo | Sack | TFL | Int | BrUp | QBH | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | Johnson,Antonio (DB) | 10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 26 | Richardson,Demani (DB) | 8 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 45 | Cooper,Edgerrin (LB) | 7 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Chappell,Tyreek (DB) | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | Gilbert,Jardin (DB) | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | Jackson,McKinnley (DL) | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1 | Anderson,Bryce (DB) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Raikes,Isaiah (DL) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | Jones,Jaylon (DB) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Overton,LT (DL) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Russell Jr.,Chris (LB) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | White Jr.,Andre (LB) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Stewart,Shemar (DL) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | White,Enai (DL) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 88 | Nolen,Walter (DL) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 92 | Sylla,Malick (DL) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Turner,Shemar (DL) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 6 | Achane,Devon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Muhammad III,Moose | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Green,Donovan | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 47 | Bond,Randy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TOTALS | 58 | 38 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
Texas A&M Punt Returns:
| Returner | NO | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MUHAMMAD III,MOOSE | 1 | 3 | 03 | 3 | 0 |
Texas A&M Kick Returns:
| Returner | NO | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MOSS,LE’VEON | 1 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 0 |
Texas A&M Team Stats By Quarter:
| 1st | Rush | Pass | CAI | TotY | Avg | 3rds | Pens | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 7 | 10-54 | 5-36 | 5-5-0 | 90 | 6 | 3-3 | 1-12 |
| 2nd | 8 | 14-83 | 7-46 | 4-7-0 | 129 | 6.1 | 4-5 | 0-0 |
| 3rd | 4 | 9-56 | 4-13 | 1-4-0 | 69 | 5.3 | 0-2 | 0-0 |
| 4th | 6 | 17-81 | 2-60 | 2-2-0 | 141 | 7.4 | 3-5 | 3-35 |
| Total | 25 | 50-274 | 18-155 | 12-18-0 | 429 | 6.3 | 10-15 | 4-47 |
Texas A&M Scoring Summary:
| Qtr | Clock | Score | Type | Play | Drive | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 04:54 | TD | RUSH | Achane,Devon 10 yd rush PAT kick by Bond,Randy (Good) | 15/90/07:37 | 7-0 |
| 2 | 09:23 | FG | Bond,Randy 25 yd Field Goal | 12/58/04:37 | 10-7 | |
| 2 | 01:10 | TD | PASS | Green,Donovan 3 yd reception thrown by Weigman,Conner PAT kick by Bond,Randy (Good) | 9/72/04:23 | 17-10 |
| 3 | 07:03 | TD | FUMB | Richardson,Demani 27 yd fumble return PAT kick by Bond,Randy (Good) | 24-17 | |
| 4 | 14:54 | TD | PASS | Muhammad III,Moose 21 yd reception thrown by Weigman,Conner PAT kick by Bond,Randy (Good) | 8/83/03:03 | 31-17 |
| 4 | 07:46 | TD | RUSH | Achane,Devon 10 yd rush PAT kick by Bond,Randy (Good) | 8/77/04:43 | 38-17 |
