Road Woes Grow: Texas A&M Aggies Drop Ninth Consecutive Away Game vs. Ole Miss Rebels

The Aggies haven't won a road game since Oct. 16 of the 2021 season.

Another week, another loss. 

Road loss, that is. 

How often have Texas A&M fans heard "defeated on the road" in the Jimbo Fisher era? Right now, the streak is at nine games following a 38-35 loss against No. 10 Ole Miss at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford Saturday afternoon.

Was it close? Sure. Did the Aggies rally back after being down 14-0 in the first quarter? Certainly. 

Will fans care knowing another four-loss — if not more — is at hand? 

Not at all, and moral victories only go so far. 

“We wasn’t able to get the job done and it hurts,” said senior receiver Ainias Smith postgame. “That’s how I was feeling. I was feeling hurt. It was tough, just being able to see us getting so close and not able to come through.”

It would be one thing if the defeat on the Grove was a spur-of-the-moment defeat. Too bad it's become a common theme since 2021 in College Station. 

A&M's last road win was against Missouri back on Oct. 16, two seasons ago. And most games have been one-possession close calls, but no one is interested in listening to what should have been done instead of what was. 

And yes, give some credit to the surging Aggies' offense, which finally found a rhythm after a lackluster performance against Alabama and Tennessee. Give praise to Shemar Turner, who turned what should have been a scoring drive for the Rebels (8-1, 5-1 SEC) one for the Aggies with a blocked field goal. 

Max Johnson produced, connecting with Jahdae Walker for over 100 yards and Jake Johnson for a touchdown. The offensive line allowed pressure to a potent Rebels' front seven, but Pete Golding's squad could only muster up one sack and tackle for loss. 

“I give that to our coaches,” Smith said of the necessary adjustments. “They came out on edge and that low-key motivated us to go ahead and get ready to go out and go through a brick wall for them. I feel like, together, we relied as a team.”

Texas A&M quarterback Max Johnson throws a pass at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium against Ole Miss / Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports

Injuries aren't an excuse, but the Aggies had several to put them behind the sticks before kickoff. Defensively, A&M (5-4, 3-3) relied on Sam McCall and Jayvon Thomas in coverage with Duece Harmon and Tyreek Chappell out. Evan Stewart went through warmups, but a lower-body injury left him sideline. 

One can use it as a crutch. The Aggies didn't, even if Jaxson Dart connected twice through the air to make it 20-7. 

“We had a freshman coming in. I thought he gave his all, but being in that situation in a big game like this and being thrown in as a freshman, that’s a tough job for him," said linebacker Edgerrin Cooper of Thomas' performance. "I feel like he gave it his all.”

If fans only took notice of the second half, the version Lane Kiffin envisioned of A&M took the field. The Aggies outscored (21-18) and outgained (323-219) the Rebels, not allowing a Johnson red-zone interception to derail the end goal.

The Aggies bent, but didn't break. Quinshon Judkins' two-late rushing touchdown gave Ole Miss a three-point lead, but Johnson fought back to extend the game into overtime. Randy Bond took the field and watched as his 47-yard field goal was deflected in the air, falling short like A&M's comeback.

“I don’t want nobody to throw no shots at Randy,” Smith said. “He’s an amazing person and he’s a great player for us and he does his job very well. He comes to work every day and he’s definitely a grinder.”

Bond's kick would have shown the Aggies could prevail, but did it have to be that way? More aggressive play-calling in the first half likely would have added another score. Take away Johnson's pick, and perhaps Bond is trotting out for a game-winner?

Better yet, maybe Smith's hauls in the touchdown to begin the third quarter and A&M is up by four after Judkins' one-yard score late? 

Minor mistakes led to major results. The Aggies should clinch a bowl bid within the next two weeks with games against Mississippi State and Abilene Chrisitan. 

A road win? Only LSU stands on the schedule, and the Aggies would love to avoid hitting double-digits. 

But can anyone expect anything these days in College Station?