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Texas A&M Football: LSU Statistical Postmortem

By Graham Harmon

Nov 26, 2022; College Station, Texas, USA; A view of the fans and students as they rush the field to celebrate after the Texas A&M Aggies victory over the LSU Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 26, 2022; College Station, Texas, USA; A view of the fans and students as they rush the field to celebrate after the Texas A&M Aggies victory over the LSU Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 26, 2022; College Station, Texas, USA; A view of the fans and students as they rush the field to celebrate after the Texas A&M Aggies victory over the LSU Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 26, 2022; College Station, Texas, USA; A view of the fans and students as they rush the field to celebrate after the Texas A&M Aggies victory over the LSU Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /

So much finally came together for this Texas A&M football team in their final game of the season, culminating in a huge win over top-5 LSU.  The offense sustained drives with key big plays sprinkled in and the defense got big stops when they were needed, feeding off the energy that the 12th Man provided.

Devon Achane played out of his mind in what was possibly his final game in the Maroon & White, putting forth a heroic effort to bring this one home for the Aggies.  Let’s start off by taking a look at his numbers:

  • 38 carries for 215 yards
  • 5.7 YPC
  • 2 TDs
  • Long of 29

This came against what had been one of the top rush defenses in the conference.  They had allowed Arkansas only 60% of their average YPC; Ole Miss only 57%; FSU only 64%; and Alabama only 82%.  Thanks almost entirely to Achane’s contribution (though Amari Daniels shone as well when he spelled Devon late in the 3rd quarter), the Aggies gained 118% of their average YPC for the game—that’s 135.31% of what LSU averages allowing (my calculations).

The passing numbers, while a bit more understated overall, were still among the best this Texas A&M football team have put up all year.

  • 155 yards on 12 completions
  • 8.6 YPA: Best against a P5 team this year
  • 66.7% Completion: Best overall this year
  • 175.67 Rating: Best overall this year
  • 2 TDs, 0 INTs

LSU was less ferocious defensively against the pass than they were the run, but still were no slouches, allowing Arkansas only 63% of their average YPA (albeit without KJ Jefferson); Tennessee only 84%; Alabama only 80%; and Mississippi State only 80%.  Behind the work of Conner Weigman, Evan Stewart, and Moose Muhammad, the Aggies hit 127.79% of their average YPA against the Tigers, good for 124% of what LSU averages allowing through the air.

Let’s take a look at some of the more advanced statistics.

The first thing that jumps out to me is the opponent-adjusted points per play number of 0.539 that the Aggies recorded: not mind-bogglingly high by any stretch, but by far the highest mark this Texas A&M football team has reached this season (note: the calculation used to arrive at number does not include the points scored on Demani Richardson’s scoop-and-score).  The second-highest? 0.411 against Ole Miss.

The Aggies also recorded a 51% success rate against the Bayou Bengals, per collegefootballdata.com—their highest of the year and the highest LSU has allowed to any opponent this season.  That number was good for 129% of LSU’s average allowed, the best mark A&M has put up all season against any opponent.  This shows how well they were able to keep on pace and sustain drives throughout the game against a defense that too often puts teams behind the chains.  Impressive stuff.