Mickey Welsh
Alabama quarterback Blake Sims (6) gets by Texas A&M defenders Deshazor Everett (29), Armani Watts (23) and Otaro Alaka (49) for a touchdown in the second quarter of an NCAA college football game in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Saturday, Oct. 18, 2014. (AP Photo/The Montgomery Advertiser, Mickey Welsh)
By AUBREY BLOOM aubrey.bloom@theeagle.com
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- A defensive play inside their own 5-yard line on the game's opening drive was about as close as the 21st-ranked Aggies came to scoring Saturday against Alabama.
On third-and-goal, Alabama quarterback Blake Sims threw a pass that hit Texas A&M cornerback Deshazor Everett in the hands, but Everett couldn't hold on with nothing but the field between him and the end zone 96 yards away.
Alabama settled for a field goal to take an early 3-0 lead, and for the Aggies, it was all downhill after that.
That was the only Crimson Tide drive in the first half that didn't end in a touchdown.
After the game, and 56 more Alabama points, A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin stood in front of the media looking for answers.
"That performance was unacceptable and embarrassing," he said. "Alabama had a lot to do with that, but we've got to get back to work and look at and examine where we are right now and how we can get better and improve our level of performance."
It was a three-pronged breakdown for the Aggies. Their once-powerful offense managed just eight first downs. The defense, which in recent weeks looked like it might be improving, allowed a struggling Alabama offense to roll up 59 points and 602 yards. Even the special teams unit had problems.
"Things that we came into the game knowing that we had to do, we couldn't get done including stopping the run and not giving up big plays over the top," Sumlin said. "And then we couldn't move the ball offensively. We really didn't generate too much until the end from a special teams standpoint, so in all three phases they were superior."
Even units once considered strong have faltered over the Aggies' three-game losing streak. The offensive line that was supposed to be among the nation's best allowed six sacks against Alabama, and A&M's ability to run the ball behind it continued its decline.
"It's frustrating right now," Sumlin said of A&M's run game. "We've got to look at what we're doing. I think we tried to be a little bit more creative today in the run game. The addition of Cam Clear more as an extra blocker in line or moving around, obviously that didn't help either, even from a protection standpoint. We've got to go take a look at where we are. That's our job as coaches."
For quarterback Kenny Hill, it's been a quick fall from the Heisman Trophy talk and praise that went his way after a record-setting debut. He finished 17-of-26 passing for only 138 yards and was also left searching for how to explain A&M's struggles.
"I don't know," he said. "You don't put up any points ... there's not much going your way, so I can't really tell you what the one thing was."
Things weren't any better on the other side of the ball. Alabama averaged 6.6 yards per carry and 8.7 yards per pass attempt for an average of 7.5 yards every time it snapped the ball. To A&M senior linebacker Justin Bass, the problems on the defense weren't complicated.
"It's simple," he said. "Just tackling. You can't play defense if you can't tackle. It's as simple as that. No matter what you call, no matter what you do, if you don't tackle, you aren't going to win games."
Even after A&M took physical beatings in the two previous losses to Ole Miss and Mississippi State, Sumlin says he didn't see Saturday's performance coming.
"I thought we were prepared," he said. "I thought we did a lot of things during the week to try to create energy level. That's probably why you see me the way I am right now. I liked our week of practice. I liked our week of preparation. I thought we had energy in pregame warmup and to start the game. Obviously the performance was extremely poor."
http://www.aggiesports.com/football...cle_f0384ff7-4820-5c07-8e2c-56cc83685390.html
