Don’t Mond if we do: Aggies are 2020 Orange Bowl Champs
It’s 9:00 AM CT as I write this and I’m still jacked up. I’m ready for the boys in Maroon and White to strap’em up again, right now. And a quick side note: not to brag, but The Hammer picked this one 41-24. He’s been locked in on picks all season.
NOW: how about a roller coaster? Nothing like Aggie Football to make you as excited as can be and frustrated as all get out within a 3-4 hour span. And I hit all those emotions last night, especially when UNC QB Sam Howell started torching our secondary with their SECOND STRING. But this isn’t a time to nitpick. The dadgum Ags just won the Orange Bowl. We finished the year 9-1 with an all-SEC schedule, ripped off 8-straight wins, 7 of which were by double digits, and beat the same North Carolina team (by the same amount of points!) that got Notre Dame into the playoffs over us. This team was fun to watch all season, and you could see the talent and culture change that Jimbo has brought to the program play out on the field. This group now occupies rarified Aggie air as one of the best A&M teams in our history.
The biggest thing I will remember about this team can be summed up in one word, a word that is part of the Jimbo creed: grit. Aggie teams of old folded under pressure, often spectacularly when the weight of the moment and history would make them crumble. But not this team. Time and again they got punched right in the mouth - and instead of folding like an accordion, they responded. The most recent punch in the mouth was from the Playoff Committee excluding the Ags for Notre Fraud. Instead of sulking and mailing it in for the Orange Bowl, this team buckled down, had zero opt-outs, and decided to make a statement and finish the year with a bang.
Some in the media, including us, thought that A&M would steamroll UNC who was playing without four of their top players who decided to opt-out. But UNC didn’t flinch, and they came out swinging. This was a dog fight to the end - and it looked like the Tar Heels might just knock off Jimbo and co. after Sam Howell threw a 75-yard rocket to WR Josh Downs with 13:51 left in the 4th quarter to go up 27-20. But just as they’ve done all year, with their backs against the wall, the Ags didn’t panic and threw their own haymakers. The defense put the clamps down and did not allow another point the entire 4th quarter, coming up with timely big plays like McKinley Jackson and Jeremiah Martin’s sack of Sam Howell on 3rd and 12 in a tie ball game with 5:45 to go in the 4th. The offense also woke up and ripped off 21-unanswered points to finish the Heels. That’s all grit.
The early defensive stops were huge. Andre White Jr.’s pick on the first possession, which set up Isaiah Spiller’s TD to put the Aggies up 7-0, was a big moment early in the game. The A&M defense also bent but didn’t break on the next two possessions, holding North Carolina to field goals instead of touchdowns, which would come up big later as A&M had to fight for points before eventually pulling away. The overall defensive performance was bend but don’t break, and looking at the stat sheet, it’s pretty impressive. Holding a prolific UNC offense (albeit down tons of production) to 324 total yards, just 90 yards rushing, and under 30 points is a solid outing. Watching it live, it seemed worse because of the big chunk plays that the Tar Heels were getting (passing TDs of 28 and 75 yards), but the Aggie defense held up well, especially when you consider that they were missing starting linebacker Aaron Hansford and top cornerback Myles Jones. Four sacks, nine tackles-for-loss, and one INT. A solid night at the office.
Photo: ESPN…Kellen left it all on the field again. What he’s meant to A&M Football was exemplified in his postgame embrace with Jimbo.
There are many, many individual performances we can highlight, but a few did stand out: Kellen Mond, Orange Bowl MVP Devon Achane, Isaiah Spiller, Ainias Smith, Buddy Johnson and Andre White Jr. Kellen, believe in him or not, is now the leader of one of the best teams in Aggie history and should rightly be given a lion’s share of the credit for the turnaround of this program. From where he began, in one of the worst losses in Aggie history in the Rose Bowl to UCLA, to where he ended, with an Orange Bowl win and guaranteed top 5 finish, he should go down as one of the best Aggie’s to ever do it. From Rose Bowl defeat to Orange Bowl elite, he walked right through the fire surrounding him and registered his best season to date. And the kid is the epitome of an Aggie - just watch the way he carries himself and how his coaches and teammates speak about him. Thank you, 11.
Devon Achane is the smallest sleeping giant we’ve ever seen, and he announced his arrival last night in Miami. 140-yards and two TDs in relief of the injured Isaiah Spiller to win Orange Bowl MVP? That’ll do. And Spiller, who exudes toughness and grit, still managed two rushing TDs before getting hurt. This duo will be the best backfield in the country heading into 2021. Ainias Smith always shows up, and it was no different last night. The dude is just a baller. And Buddy and Andre White Jr. led the defense, combining for 18 total tackles and 1.5 sacks.
This was a huge win for Texas A&M. It’s a vindication of where Jimbo Fisher has this program in year 3. This team has set the foundation. Now, with another likely top 10 recruiting class, it’s time for the Aggies to take off in year 4.
Gig’em.
#BTHOOFFSEASON
P.S. Here’s some extra fun from this memorable Miami night:
