DALLAS – Texas A&M rolled to a 52-28 win at then-No. 9 South Carolina last Thursday to earn the season’s first Football Writers Association of America National Team of the Week honor. The announcement came exclusively on SiriusXM Radio’s “College Sports Today,” hosted by Mark Packer and Eddie George.
Sophomore quarterback Kenny Hill had a record-setting debut at the helm of the Texas A&M offense. In his first career start, Hill broke Johnny Manziel’s school record with 511 passing yards to go with three touchdown passes.
Texas A&M (1-0) snapped South Carolina’s 18-game home winning streak, which was the nation’s longest, and won its first conference opener since 2007 and first as an SEC member. Hill torched South Carolina early as A&M bolted to a 31-14 lead at the half. Hill finished with the most passing yards allowed in Steve Spurrier’s 10 seasons as the head coach of Gamecocks. Tra Carson ran for three touchdowns, and Malcome Kennedy had 14 catches for 137 yards as the Aggies racked up 680 total yards.
“That (A&M) team was so much better than us, it wasn’t funny,” Spurrier said after the game.
The top 25 polls took notice as the Aggies were the biggest movers in the Associated Press Top 25 and the Amway Coaches Poll. Texas A&M shot from No. 21 to No. 9 in this week’s edition of the AP Top 25, and the Aggies also received a pair of first-place votes. Texas A&M hadn’t received a first-place vote in the media poll since 1995. In the coaches poll, the Aggies rose seven spots from No. 20 to No. 13.
The Aggies’ win also spawned a variety of individual kudos for the record-setting quarterback. Hill shared the Southeastern Conference Co-Offensive Player of the Week with Georgia running back Todd Gurley. Other awards include being named one of eight Manning Award “Stars of the Week,” and earning National Offensive Player of the Week honors from the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award, College Sports Madness and the College Football Performance Awards.