News release from Texas A&M Athletics:
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION – The No. 15 Texas A&M football team cruised past New Mexico State, 38-3, Saturday night in front of 105,000-plus at Kyle Field. Prior to the game, the Aggies (8-2) honored 26 seniors for all their contributions to the program.
Marcel Reed guided the offensive attack for the Maroon & White as the redshirt freshman completed 20-of-31 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns. The dual-threat quarterback also added four carries for 41 yards and a touchdown, marking the third time this season he has thrown for two scores and rushed for one. Theo Melin Öhrström was Reed’s top target on the night as the sophomore logged five catches for 111 yards, both of which were career highs.
On the ground, Amari Daniels totaled a game-best 84 yards on five carries to go along with a score. EJ Smith added 60 yards on 15 carries as the Aggies surpassed 200 yards rushing for the sixth time this season.
Malick Sylla led the way defensively as the junior racked up five tackles, four of which were solos, a career-high 3.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sack. Nic Scourton followed with four tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss, while Tristan Jernigan also chipped in four tackles and a 0.5 tackle for loss.
The Aggies raced out to a 17-0 start in the opening quarter, scoring on all three drives. After Reed connected with Noah Thomas for a 16-yard score on the first drive of the night, Daniels broke free for a 71-yard touchdown run on the first play of the Maroon & White’s ensuing drive as the Aggies led 14-0 at the 9:43 mark. Randy Bond capped off the scoring in the opening quarter with a 37-yard field with 4:26 left on the clock.
Texas A&M registered the lone points of the second quarter as Reed found Moose Muhammad III for a 6-yard score with 13:45 showing on the clock. Bond’s extra point gave the Aggies a 24-0 advantage at the break.
Reed tacked on another touchdown in the third quarter as the signal caller took it himself from 5-yards out to stretch the advantage to 31-0. In the fourth, New Mexico State broke through on the scoreboard with a 48-yard field goal as 13:34 remained in the game. A 5-yard touchdown pass from Miles O’Neill to Ashton Bethel-Roman closed out the scoring on the night as the Aggies rolled to a 38-3 victory.
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Texas A&M Football Post Game Notes
No. 15 Texas A&M 38, New Mexico State 3
Kyle Field (Bryan-College Station, Texas)
Team Notes
– Texas A&M’s offense churned out a season-best 565 yards, the third 500-yard game of the season and the fifth time going over 400 yards.
– The A&M quarterbacks combined on a season-best 356 passing yards, the first 300-yard game by the Aggies.
– Texas A&M outgained New Mexico State in total offense in first half 387-104, including 235-35 passing.
– Texas A&M’s offense went over 100 yards both passing (148) and rushing (125) in the first quarter en route to 273 yards.
– Tonight marked the first time two tight ends tallied 50-plus receiving yards in a game since 2006 when Joey Thomas (2004-07) caught three passes for 84 yards and Martellus Bennett (2005-07) made five catches for 54 yards against Louisiana.
– The Texas A&M defense reached double digits in the TFL column for the third time in 2024 with 10.0.
– Texas A&M quarterbacks sprinkled the ball around to 12 different receivers, including eight with multiple catches.
– Attendance for the New Mexico State game was 105,815, marking the 11th-highest attendance all-time at Kyle Field and the third-highest this season.
Individual Notes
– Freshman QB Marcel Reed threw for a season-best 268 yards, connecting on a pair of touchdown passes and adding a third of his own on the ground.
– Reed is the first Aggie QB to pass for two touchdowns and rush for another three times in a season since Kellen Mond (2017-20) did so three times in 2019.
– Junior RB Amari Daniels’ 71-yard touchdown run in the first quarter was his second rushing score of 50-plus yards this season.
– Sophomore TE Theo Melin Öhrström had a career day, catching five passes for 111 yards. He became the first Aggie tight end to eclipse the 100-yard mark since Jace Sternberger (2018) had 145 yards on seven catches against South Carolina in 2018.
– Junior WR Noah Thomas’ 16-yard touchdown grab in the first quarter moved him into a tie with four other Aggies for 14th all-time at A&M, upping his career total to 11.
– Graduate WR Moose Muhammad III had a 6-yard catch in the end zone to make it 12 in his career and move into a tie with Chad Schroeder (2003-06) for 13th all-time.
– Freshman QB Miles O’Neill made his first career appearance in the fourth quarter, completing 5-of-6 passes for 51 yards and a touchdown pass.
– Freshman WR Ashton Bethel-Roman logged his first career touchdown reception with a 5-yard snag in the final minute of the game.
– Graduate RB EJ Smith logged season highs for rushes (15) and rushing yards (60).
– Junior DL Nic Scourton registered 1.5 tackles for loss in the game, marking the eighth game this season he has had at least 1.0 TFL.
– Junior DL Cashius Howell has recorded at least one pass breakup and QB hurry in five games this season, including three of the last four.
– Junior DL Malick Sylla registered a career-high 3.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks in the win.
– Graduate K Randy Bond’s 37-yard field goal in the first quarter moved him into a tie with Todd Pegram (2002-05) and Tony Franklin (1975-78) for fourth all-time at A&M with 56 career makes.
– Bond made 4-of-4 PAT attempts to improve to 109-of-109 for his career. The 109 extra-points ties Josh Lambo (2013-14) for ninth on the A&M career list.
– Graduate K Drake Bhatia recorded his first career point with a PAT in the final minute.