No. 10 Texas A&M finished Arizona State with the defense, not the box-score yardage. Two fourth-quarter defensive touchdowns - a 55-yard interception return by Marco Jones and a 45-yard pick-six by Julio Humphrey - turned a one-score game into a 48-20 win Saturday at Kyle Field, the Aggies' athletics site reported, in front of 107,523 fans.
Texas A&M improved to 2-0. The Associated Press, in a game story carried by CBS Sports, noted that Arizona State outgained the Aggies for stretches and that Sun Devils coach Kenny Dillingham dismissed the yardage gap afterward: "Stats are for losers." Official A&M totals listed 271 yards of offense (163 passing, 108 rushing) against Arizona State's mistake-filled finish.
Fourth quarter in sequence
Marcel Reed's 33-yard touchdown pass to Mario Craver on the second play of the fourth made it 31-20, per the AP and Texas A&M. After a Sun Devils recovery of a muffed situation near midfield, T.J. Searcy hit quarterback Cutter Boley as he threw; Jones, a 261-pound defensive end, caught the tip and rumbled 55 yards for a score.
"Time slowed down and I was like I'm going to go get it," Jones told the AP.
Humphrey's 45-yard interception return later capped the 48-20 final, the Aggies reported. Texas A&M said it was the program's first game with two pick-sixes since Sept. 25, 1999, against Southern Miss. The defense forced four turnovers overall and held Arizona State to 115 rushing yards, with safety Marcus Ratcliffe leading the team with seven tackles.
Offense enough, not pretty
Reed completed 15 of 25 passes for 163 yards and three touchdowns with one interception, according to Texas A&M. Isaiah Horton caught touchdown passes of 4 and 13 yards after transferring from Alabama. Rueben Owens II scored on a 2-yard run after an early muffed punt. Coach Mike Elko told the AP the Aggies "played ugly" at times but "did the winning things right."
