The Aggies didn’t just win a football game on Saturday night.
They took a huge step in breaking the norms of what Texas A&M football has been over the past decade. For the first time since joining the SEC, the Ags walked into Death Valley and came out victorious. The final score, 49-25, doesn’t even begin to reflect just how dominant this team was from start to finish.
Coming into the weekend, LSU was 20–1 at home under Brian Kelly. Across the country, many people expected this to be the game where A&M’s usual late-season struggles began to show up, but what we saw instead was something entirely different: A team that refused to waver in the face of adversity.
The Aggies started fast, scoring two touchdowns in the first quarter, but the self-inflicted wounds in the second quarter were absolutely terrible. Two interceptions, one of them at the goal line, a blocked punt for a safety and the defense committing a drive-extending unsportsmanlike penalty after a huge third-down stop that eventually led to a touchdown. I’ve experienced teams that don’t know how to respond to adversity like that, especially on the road. It takes a team with a high level of trust, talent and discipline in that situation to get momentum back on your side the way A&M did in the second half.
After all that chaos, the Aggies went into halftime down just four. When they came out of the locker room, they put their foot on the gas and never looked back. What followed was one of the most dominant second halves you’ll ever see in SEC play — 35 unanswered points and a complete dismantling of LSU in their own house.
This wasn’t luck. This was culture. This was maturity. This was belief.
It was the kind of win that shows the rest of the country what Aggie football has become: Tough, relentless and absolutely confident in who they are.
I’ve said this before, but nights like this are where great quarterbacks separate themselves. Not with the stats, but with how they respond when they’re thrown into the fire.
Reed had a fantastic start, but after a rough second quarter with two interceptions, I was interested to see how he would respond. He came out in the third quarter and bounced back to lead this team on a 35-point run. He finished with 202 yards passing, two touchdowns through the air and another two on the ground.
For a quarterback, road games show you the character in which he leads his team. It shows fans if they are going to step up when adversity arises or if they are going to fold. Reed showed us exactly the kind of leader he is. He steps up.
What makes Reed special isn’t just his arm talent. It’s his elusiveness. His ability to create outside the pocket completely changes how defenses have to game plan. LSU tried to contain him, but once he broke contain, the game tilted.
His 108 rushing yards weren’t all designed QB runs. A lot of those yards were instinct and intelligence. When lanes opened up in the LSU defense, Reed turned broken plays into first downs. When receivers were covered, he used his legs to extend drives. It’s that blend of control and chaos that makes him dangerous, and it’s exactly what the Aggies will need from him down the stretch as defenses tighten up in November.
That’s the mark of a complete quarterback. Not just managing a game, but taking it over when the moment demands it. Reed did exactly that in Death Valley.
Throughout this season, the Aggies have leaned heavily on the strong play of both the running backs and the offensive line, and this game was no exception. Starting with the running backs, Rueben Owens II, Jamarion Morrow, Amari Daniels and EJ Smith have all stepped up to keep the ground game rolling after Le’Veon Moss’s injury. Each of these backs brings a unique skill set that makes this the most complete running back room in the entire country. They’re physical. They’re fast. Their combination with the offensive line makes them a dangerous force as we look to finish the season strong.
While the running backs deserve plenty of credit for the offense’s success on the ground, their dominance wouldn’t be possible without the power up front. Throughout this game, the offensive line controlled the trenches. Their physicality and discipline paved the way for an impressive 224 rushing yards, a testament to just how dominant this group has become. Another feat was allowing zero sacks and keeping Reed clean from consistent pressure. In a hostile environment like Death Valley, avoiding sacks is crucial. They’re momentum-shifting plays that ignite the crowd, and this line completely neutralized that threat.
This offensive line is the backbone of this team. They set the tone. Trey Zuhn III, Chase Bisontis, Mark Nabou Jr., Ar’maj Reed-Adams and Dametrious Crownover are the foundation that this team’s success has been built on. Their consistency will be essential for this team to achieve what I think they can throughout this season.
Momentum in college football is everything, and the return game ignited it.
Terry Bussey and KC Concepcion gave the Aggies life every time the ball touched their hands. Concepcion’s 79-yard punt return touchdown in the third quarter completely flipped the script. In one play, the energy in Tiger Stadium shifted. But this wasn’t the only time Concepcion was able to make big plays with the ball in his hands on punt returns. He totaled 132 yards in the return game, averaging 49 yards over his three returns. These yards were crucial in the field position battle and allowed the Aggies to have positive field position on the majority of their drives.
Bussey was equally impactful, giving the offense favorable field position when he got his opportunities. Bussey racked up 68 yards on two returns, one of which opened the third quarter for 43 yards. Those hidden yards matter on the road, and the Aggies played on the front foot all night because of it.
When you combine these return yards with the offensive production, the Aggies were able to put up a total performance that completely overwhelmed LSU.
This defensive performance deserves its own spotlight. This front seven was violent, disciplined and relentless — everything you want from a championship-caliber defense. The defense held LSU to just 60 rushing yards and 218 passing yards. This defensive group continues to show growth week to week, and they bounced back in a big way after a stumble against Arkansas. This level of defense is what we will need moving forward to win out the rest of SEC play.
Taurean York was the quarterback of the unit once again. He was everywhere, diagnosing plays pre-snap, adjusting alignments and meeting running backs in the hole with bad intentions. He finished the night with another physical, sideline-to-sideline performance that perfectly embodies what this defense is about: toughness and trust.
Cashius Howell was a force off the edge. His explosiveness and first-step quickness continue to make life miserable for offensive tackles. He was disruptive all night, collapsing the pocket and recording two sacks throughout this game, forcing LSU’s quarterback off his spot and setting the edge in the run game. Howell plays with an intensity that you can feel while watching the game, and this is exactly the type of player that you want to have coming off the edge for your defense. He prides himself on dominating every snap he plays. Alongside Howell, T.J. Searcy (1.5 sacks), Rylan Kennedy (one sack) and Marco Jones (0.5 sacks) also found ways to impact Garrett Nussmeier on defense, further showing the depth of this defensive front.
Our defensive backs battled all night and prevented Nussmeier from getting into a rhythm. This group as a whole was heavily challenged Saturday night, and I feel that they were the silent winners of this game. Throughout the game, our secondary held Nussmeier to just 168 yards through the air. Tyreek Chappell, Will Lee III, Marcus Ratcliffe, Dezz Ricks and Dalton Brooks stood tall against this challenge, allowing just 4.8 yards per reception and eliminating the majority of LSU’s explosive plays.
Up front, DJ Hicks and Albert Regis were also dominant. Anchoring the interior, these two defensive tackles ate up double teams and still found ways to get penetration in the pass rush. Their strength at the point of attack allowed the linebackers behind them to play free, and that’s what made this front so effective in the second half.
The combination of the front seven, along with the strong secondary behind them, gives the Aggies a unit that can physically impose its will on any offense in the country. When this group is playing downhill, A&M controls the game.
It wasn’t just about tackles or sacks; it was about intent. These guys played with conviction. They attacked the LSU offense relentlessly. This defense suffocated LSU in the second half, giving up just seven points and only 24 yards (not including the last drive when A&M pulled its starters). Mike Elko’s defense outmuscled, outlasted, outhustled and outworked LSU in their own stadium.
That’s how you win on the road in the SEC.
What separates this Aggie team from those of the past isn’t just talent.
It’s maturity.
When LSU took the lead and Death Valley came alive, most teams would’ve cracked. But not this one. This group didn’t flinch. They regrouped, responded and stormed out of halftime to drop 35 unanswered points in one of the most hostile environments in college football.
That kind of turnaround doesn’t happen by luck. That’s the culture that Elko has built. That’s the leadership that defines this program. That’s belief in what A&M has become.
You can see Elko’s impact all over this program — the discipline, the accountability, the quiet confidence. I can see it in every player who lines up expecting to win, not hoping to. These Aggies don’t ride emotion; they ride execution. They don’t celebrate surprises. They deliver on standards, and that’s what gets you to 8-0.
For years, I was part of the A&M program when we talked about winning a national championship, but we never had the right leadership pieces in place to do that. Saturday night proved to the nation that the right pieces have finally been put in place.
The Aggies didn’t just make a statement. They made it clear that this is what Aggie football is now.
Gig ‘Em and BTHO Missouri
