Rice Owls vs Texas A&M Aggies Match Player Stats On Aug 31, 2013

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Aug 31, 2013


No. 6 Texas A&M 52, Rice 31: Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel returned from a first-half suspension to throw three touchdown passes and help the host Aggies pull away from the upset-minded Owls.

Manziel, forced to sit for a violation involving improper autograph signings, led the Aggies to 10 points on his first two possessions before leading a back-breaking 93-yard touchdown drive early in the fourth quarter as Texas A&M (1-0) coasted after leading by only seven points at halftime. The first redshirt freshman to win the Heisman went 6-for-8 for 94 yards and rushed for 19 yards on six carries.

Aggies backup quarterback Matt Joeckel acquitted himself well subbing for Manziel in the opening half, finishing 14-for-19 for 190 yards with a 71-yard touchdown pass to freshman Ricky Seals-Jones. Oregon transfer Tra Carson rushed for 76 yards and two touchdowns, backfield mate Ben Malena scored twice and ran for 82 yards and Mike Evans had two touchdown receptions as the Aggies overcame the loss of six key defensive players to suspension.

Charles Ross ran for 107 yards and a pair of touchdowns and caught a 19-yard scoring pass for Rice (0-1), which piled up 509 yards of total offense. Quarterback Taylor McHargue was 18-for-29 for 180 yards with two touchdown passes but threw two momentum-changing interceptions early in the second half.

McHargue did his best Manziel impression in leading Rice to touchdowns on its first two possessions, but Joeckel responded by directing the Aggies on three straight touchdown drives, sandwiching a pair of short scoring runs by Carson around the long strike to Seals-Jones. The Owls got within 28-21 when Jordan Taylor outjumped a defender to haul in a deflected pass with 10 seconds left in the half.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Manziel saluted the raucous crowd of 86,000-plus at Kyle Field upon entering the game 20 seconds into the second half and showed he didn't lose his swagger, taunting one Rice defender with an autograph-signing gesture before picking up an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty for jawing with another player after his third touchdown pass. ... McHargue, who accounted for 139 yards midway through the first quarter and wound up with 78 yards rushing, was replaced by Driphus Jackson after throwing the two third-quarter picks. ... The Aggies also suspended six defensive starters - CB De’Vante Harris, LB Steven Jenkins, DE Gavin Stansbury, DL Kirby Ennis, DB Floyd Raven and DB Deshazor Everett - and backup WR Edward Pope for violating school athletic department rules. Everett, who missed only the first half, was ejected in the fourth quarter under the new "targeting" rule and must sit out the first half next week, while Harris, Jenkins, Stansbury and Pope were suspended two games apiece and will be eligible to return against national champion Alabama on Sept. 14.