Quinn Ewers passed for 218 yards and a touchdown and No. 3 Texas rode a dominant defensive performance to a berth in the Southeastern Conference championship game, beating No. 20 Texas A&M 17-7 on Saturday night in College Station, Texas.
Quintrevion Wisner rushed for a career-high 186 yards on 33 carries and the Longhorns (11-1, 7-1 SEC) held the Aggies (8-4, 5-3) to 244 total yards of offense to earn a meeting with No. 7 Georgia in the conference title game next Saturday in Atlanta. Texas has won five straight games since a 30-15 home loss to the Bulldogs on Oct. 19.
Marcel Reed passed for just 146 yards but added a team-high 56 rushing yards for Texas A&M, which got its only points from its defense in the first meeting since 2011 between the long-time rivals.
Texas was poised to increase its 17-0 halftime lead, but Ewers’ pass was tipped and Will Lee III intercepted it and ripped off a 93-yard return for a touchdown that pulled the Aggies within 10 with 5:42 remaining in the third quarter.
Ewers drove the Longhorns into scoring position on the ensuing possession, but Cashius Howell knocked the ball loose from him, with the Aggies’ Taurean York recovering the fumble at the Texas A&M 11, keeping the score 17-7 after three quarters.
In the fourth, Jahdae Walker blocked a Texas punt, giving the Aggies the ball at the Longhorns 19. But later, on fourth-and-goal from the Texas 1, Amari Daniels was stopped for a 3-yard loss with 4:36 remaining.
On Texas’ second possession, Ewers drove the Longhorns to the Aggies 15, and on fourth-and-2, Arch Manning replaced him and ran for a touchdown that gave Texas a 7-0 lead.
The Longhorns increased their lead to 14-0 when Ewers threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Jaydon Blue with 8:25 to go in the first half.
Bert Auburn kicked a 28-yard field goal before missing a 48-yarder as time expired in the second quarter, leaving Texas with a 17-0 lead at the break.
–Field Level Media
