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You only needed to look to the skies on Saturday to notice it was going to be a dismal day for somebody. Just before kickoff, dark clouds loomed over Kyle Field in an ominous fashion, and for the Wyoming Cowboys (1-1), those clouds never lifted.
The Texas A&M Aggies (1-1) blanked the Cowboys 31-0 in a game that saw the re-emergence of the Aggie defense, which scored 10 points off turnovers, grabbed three interceptions and had a blitzing scheme that destroyed a potent Cowboy offense that put up 53 points last week.
Maybe it was the return to Kyle Field, maybe it was the new pre-game entrance that included a solemn "battle-cry" drum cadence from the Aggie Band, or perhaps it was the inspiration from the Junction Boys who made a halftime appearance that sparked a victory. Whatever it was, the Aggies should find more of it.
A&M looked like a completely different team than the one that suffered an embarrassing 41-21 loss to No. 14 Utah just 11 days ago.
"This came at the right time," said A&M head coach Dennis Franchione. "It's very tough to get a shutout in college football."
A&M held the Cowboys to only 181 yards of total offense on 62 plays, including -3 yards rushing, a historical number that conjures up images of Wrecking Crew defenses past. In total, the Aggies held the Cowboys to 2.9 yards per play, and -0.1 yards per rush.
"Give (A&M) a lot of credit. They were tough," said Wyoming head coach Joe Glenn. "We didn't execute mentally or physically. We felt going into the game that we had some stuff that would work. But we had a couple of penalties that took away momentum. We just have to execute better, throw the ball sharper and stay longer on our blocks. They have big, strong guys up front, and we were just overwhelmed."
The defensive job was more than enough for A&M junior quarterback Reggie McNeal to engineer a career-best performance, throwing for 298 yards and one touchdown while completing 17 of 24 attempts.
"I saw a big change in Reggie this week," Franchione said. "He knew the game plan and prepared well."
McNeal wasn't so quick to accept all the accolades.
"The main difference today was protection from the line," McNeal said. "I could pick receivers all day and run if I had to."
After nursing a thumb injury suffered in the loss to Utah, McNeal did not miss a day of practice in the week leading up to the game and gave a brilliant performance that included a scramble from 22 yards out to score with 2:44 left in the first quarter.
A&M defensive back Jonte Buhl intercepted a pass from Wyoming quarterback Corey Bramlet on the ensuing drive to set up a 40-yard field goal from Todd Pegram and put the Aggies up 10-0 going into halftime.
On the Cowboys' first play from scrimmage in the second half, A&M linebacker Justin Warren intercepted a pass from quarterback J.J. Raterink at the Wyoming 23-yard line and hauled it in for the score to give the Aggies a 17-point lead. A&M never looked back from there.
"That was the straw the broke the camel's back," Glenn said. "That was the first nail in the coffin and we couldn't rebound from that."
A&M added another rushing touchdown from Chris Alexander from one yard out, and with six minutes left in the game, McNeal hit true freshman Kerry Franks for an 84-yard touchdown pass, the ninth-longest in Aggie history. Franks, the only true freshman to see action for A&M, was one of nine different receivers to catch a pass on the day.
"He is Terrence (Murphy's) protégé," McNeal said of Franks.
When the dust cleared, the Aggies had posted 481 yards of total offense on the Cowboys, including 128 receiving yards from Franks. The Cowboys had few defensive breakdowns on the day, but that strike was one of them.
"We're going to go back to the drawing board," Glenn said. "Maybe we need to subtract some stuff if we're making so many mistakes. It's better to do a little and do it well."
Glenn pulled starting quarterback Bramlet in the second quarter in favor of Raterink to remedy his offensive frustrations, sparking controversy over the Cowboys' starting quarterback job. Glenn acknowledged that maybe it's time for a change, responding to questions about Raterink possibly challenging for the starting job with "we'll see."
A&M played the game without the services of sophomore running back Courtney Lewis, who is rehabilitating from a leg injury, and senior wide receiver Terrence Murphy, who was shaken up in the third quarter and did not return to the game.
Senior tailback Keith Joseph was the leading rusher for the Aggies, compiling 82 yards on 20 attempts. Franchione said he knows that to stay successful, you have to take a win in stride.
"The defense needed a performance like today badly," he said. "But you can't spend too much time basking in the glory of a win."
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