Game Day: quarter-by-quarter breakdown

Source: The Eagle, Bryan, TexasNov.迷你倉 03--FIRST QUARTERKaser getting early work: After a three-and-out on their opening drive brought out Drew Kaser, Texas A&M punted again two drives later on its final first-quarter possession. It was the first time the Aggies have punted twice in the first quarter since its opener against Rice, when they also went three-and-out on their first possession.Miners dig at Aggies early: For the season, A&M averages 14 points in the first quarter while UTEP has posted six points in the opening period. Saturday's strange opening quarter ended with the Aggies up 9-7. A&M has led after the opening quarter in every game since Rice was up 14-7 in the season opener. Of those leads in A&M's other seven games, Saturday night was the smallest one.SECOND QUARTERUTEP Miners falling down, falling down: On the final three plays of a 5-play, 67-yards touchdown drive by the Aggies, the Miners' defenders simply couldn't stay on their feet. Ben Malena barrelled his way through the UTEP defense, breaking four tackles, leaving defenders in his wake. On the ensuing play, UTEP sophomore Demarcus Kizzie randomly fell to the turf, leaving A&M receiver Malcome Kennedy wide open down the right sideline to take the Aggies to the 2. The drive ended with Miners defenders diving at Tra Carson as he punched it in up the middle to put A&M up 15-7.Broken connection: In the first half, quarterback Johnny Manziel and receiver Mike Evans couldn't hook up. Manziel targeted Evans six times but the two were unable to hook up -- the first attempt was an overthrow by Manziel and the second was just inches past Evans' fingertips, as UTEP played solid coverage. The two connected just once for one of the most exciting 1-yard passes you'll see -- Manziel ran backward about 11 yards to evade the pass rush, dodging and juking defenders before sprinting to the right sideline and rocketing a pass to Evans. The performance was unusual because the Miners did not defend Evans any differently than most teams have this season -- a cornerback matched up in man coverage and a safety shaded him over the top.The big momentum swing: A&M cornerback De'Vante Harris' interception sparked the Aggies and began their march to separate themselves frmini storagem the Miners. Harris picked off UTEP backup quarterback Blaire Sullivan and the offense took care of the rest. Building off their previous possession, A&M receiver Kennedy again got the best of Kizzie, hauling in back-to-back catches of 17 and 15 yards to put A&M ahead 22-7.THIRD QUARTERJohnny's flair for the dramatic: Manziel put an exclamation point on the Aggies' first drive of the half with a 49-yard touchdown run that saw him weave his way through the UTEP defense. The score gave him five for the game -- three passing and two rushing. It was the ninth time that he has scored five or more touchdowns in his 22-game college career.Return of record-setting Evans: After an unimpressive first half, Manziel wasted no time involving his his top receiver in the offense. Manziel hit Evans on passes of 16 and 3 yards for his first completions of the half, and later found him for a 26-yard score. Evans' touchdown gave him 12 for the season -- tied with Jeff Fuller's single season from 2010.Hill's extended look: Freshman Kenny Hill replaced Manziel with A&M up 50-7 and orchestrated a touchdown drive of his own. Hill opened the drive with a 6-yard run, and followed with completions of 7, 38 and 4 yards. He then ran again for 7 yards and a first down. Trey Williams took care of the rest, running it in from the 14. Hill finished 5 of 6 for 57 yards and ran three times for 22 yards.FOURTH QUARTERRandom number change: Kicker/punter Jay Mattox changed his jersey number from 47 to 53 with 10:27 to go in game.Injury doesn't phase Kaser: Punter Drew Kaser injured his leg earlier in the game on an extra-point hold and was evaluated by the training staff. The next time he was on the field, he booted a 42-yard punt and showed no effects from the injury.Fourth quarter shutout: A&M scored 21 and 27 points in the second and third quarters, respectively, to increase its lead to 57-7. The score would stay that way though as neither team scored in the final period. The Aggies held the Miners scoreless after their first-quarter touchdown run from freshman Aaron Jones that gave them a brief lead.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 The Eagle (Bryan, Texas) Visit The Eagle (Bryan, Texas) at .theeagle.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉