After getting his helmet pulled off, Texas A&M's Jerrod Johnson attempts a pass Saturday in Waco.

A&M loses 41-21 to Baylor, falls to sixth in Big 12 South

By: Brad Cox

Posted: 11/17/08

For the second time in 22 years, Baylor knocked off the once prominent Texas A&M football program at Floyd Casey Stadium. Behind freshman quarterback Robert Griffin, the Bears rolled to a 41-21 victory on Saturday.

In the Aggies' first drive of the game, the offense stalled on the Baylor 47-yard line, setting the tone for A&M's offensive struggles. A&M Head Coach Mike Sherman was asked what was most discouraging in the loss and after a long pause, he said the offense.

"I thought our offense would be more functional in the game and that they would keep our defense off the field," Sherman said.

Baylor responded with a 61-yard drive that featured a 30-yard rush by Jay Finley and was capped by a 42-yard field goal. With the 3-0 lead, the Bears led the Aggies for the first time since leading A&M 7-6 in the first quarter of the 2006 meeting between the two schools.

"We prepared well, but they found ways to outsmart our offense," said freshman running back Cyrus Gray, who ran for 23 rushing yards in the loss.

Griffin stole the show in the second quarter. After sophomore Aggie quarterback Jerrod Johnson fumbled the ball in A&M territory, setting up another Bears field goal, and Johnson threw his first interception of the game in the next drive, Griffin made a 49-yard pass to junior receiver Ernest Smith to spark the Baylor offense.

Johnson threw four interceptions in the game.

"That's not all on him necessarily," Sherman said about Johnson's turnovers. "You can't win a game when you turn the ball over like that."

The resulting 74-yard drive was capped by an option touchdown rush to the right side of the field. Griffin made a perfect toss to senior running back Jacoby Jones who took the ball into the end zone to give Baylor a 13-0 lead.

The Aggies responded with a big play of their own. Johnson made a 51-yard pass to junior running back Mike Goodson, who landed on the Baylor 1-yard line. Senior full back Jorvorskie Lane charged to the left side of the offensive line to score his 47th career-rushing touchdown two plays later.

However, Griffin fired back in the next drive with a 31-yard touchdown pass to freshman receiver Kendall White. The Aggie defense struggled to contain Griffin in the remainder of the game.

Johnson threw his second interception of the game in the resulting drive and the Aggies went to the locker room facing a 20-7 deficit.

With the momentum on their side, the Bears came out firing on all cylinders in the third quarter. In the quarter, Griffin completed a 55-yard touchdown pass to senior receiver Thomas White, sophomore running back Jay Finley ran in a 13-yard touchdown rush to cap a 99-yard drive and Jones rushed for an 18-yard touchdown run.

By the end of the third quarter, the Bears held a comfortable 41-7 lead against the Aggies. Griffin finished the game with 241 passing yards, two passing touchdowns and 56 rushing yards. He was 13-23 through the air.

"[Griffin is] a good athlete," said junior linebacker Matt Featherston, who recorded a game-high 14 tackles. "He is very quick and very strong. We tried to scheme it up so that we had more than one guy on him. Whenever he had one-one-one matchups, we tried to make the best of it, but he did his thing on the ground. He is just a great athlete."

The Aggies tallied two meaningless touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Lane rushed in for his 48th career-rushing touchdown with 8:49 remaining in the game and Johnson connected with freshman receiver Jeff Fuller on 5-yard touchdown pass with 3:45 remaining in the game.

The touchdown pass was Johnson's 20th of the season, a single-season A&M record. The reception, Fuller's 8th touchdown reception of the season, ties a school record set by Bob Long in 1967 and 1968 and tied by Bethel Johnson in 2002.

Baylor did not score in the fourth quarter, but the lead was enough to give them the win, 41-21. Baylor Head Coach Art Briles, who is in his first season with the Bears, ran to the Baylor student section after the game and tossed his hat into the stands in celebration.

"I think [the win] gives us some credibility as a football program," Briles said. "If they have got Texas in their name, we need to beat them, that is just the way it is. It is not going to change. It will be the same way in 2020."

With the loss A&M falls to 4-7 overall and 2-5 in the Big 12. The Aggies are in last place of the Big 12 South heading into the season-ending game against archrival Texas. The loss also ended the Aggies' hopes of becoming bowl eligible.