Marcel Reed passed for 268 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score to lead Texas A&M to a 38-3 victory over New Mexico State on Saturday night in College Station, Texas.
The 15th-ranked Aggies (8-2) bounced back after a bye week that followed their first Southeastern Conference loss to South Carolina. New Mexico State (2-8) dropped its third in a row and suffered its eighth loss in its past nine games.
Reed’s performance was a welcome sight for Texas A&M, which was hoping to see needed improvement in its passing game after a season-ending knee injury to starting running back Le’Veon Moss.
So much of A&M’s offense came from Moss, who accounted for 906 yards from scrimmage. The Aggies entered the game ranked 113th in the nation in passing offense.
Reed completed 20 of 31 passes and threw one interception. But he set the tone early with a 16-yard touchdown pass in the back of the end zone to Noah Thomas on Texas A&M’s opening drive.
On the Aggies’ next possession, backup running back Amari Daniels broke loose for a 71-yard touchdown.
Daniels finished with 84 yards on five carries. Texas A&M totaled 209 rushing yards and outgained New Mexico State 565-214 in total yards.
EJ Smith also ran for 60 yards on 15 carries and Reed gained 41 yards on four attempts, including his 5-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, in the victory.
Texas A&M’s defense didn’t force a turnover, but held New Mexico State quarterbacks Santino Marucci and Brandon Nunez to a combined 7-of-23 passing for 92 yards. Seth McGowan was one of the few bright spots for New Mexico State, rushing for 75 yards on 14 carries.
Texas A&M will next try to stay on course to a potential SEC Championship Game if it can win its last two games against Auburn on the road and No. 3 Texas at home. New Mexico State will finish its season with games at Middle Tennessee and against UTEP at home.
–Field Level Media