Texas A&M football's defense fails in final moments against USC Trojans to fall in final game of year
Texas A&M football came into this game thinking they'd have the upper hand by mere virtue of availability, but a late-breaking injury report led to that perceived advantage dissipating instantly.
As it turned out, both teams would be equally kneecapped in that capacity— and the most impactful absence for the Aggies would not come on the offensive side, where they sustained so many injuries throughout the course of the year.
No, it would rather be the lack of their top cover man, Will Lee, that doomed the Aggies in the end. Even so, this is one they should have won.
The Ags led this game 24-7 before a massive comeback was sparked in the late stages of the game. All of a sudden, the USC offense was awoken behind the pass game, chiefly due to the connection between Jayden Maiava and Ja'Kobi Lane.
The tall and powerful receiver was able to outmatch young Dezz Ricks on big catch after big catch down the stretch of the game. You have to think that, had Lee been able to play, one or two of those may have gone differently— and with such close margins here, that could have been the difference in the game.
Marcel Reed played admirably— one of his two interceptions came on a dropped pass by Noah Thomas, and the other was just a spectacular play by the DB on a ball that most Aggie fans would be fine with him throwing every time. He led the offense down the field near the end of the game for what should have been the game-winning score.
Of course, it wasn't a game-winning score. In only 1:41, Maiava, Lane, and company scooted down the Allegiant Field turf and scored a TD with only 8 seconds to go. That put the Trojans up 4, and neither of the Aggies' next two plays availed anything.
This is a sour way to head into the offseason— not only the loss, but the way it happened. Bowl games are less predictive than ever with all of the complicating factors we see now, but it's still nice to go out with a win.
Texas A&M football finishes the year at 8-5, 5-3 in the SEC. Especially down the stretch, this season is defined by what could have been if the Ags had just finished— and in that way, this game was a perfect microcosm of the 2024 A&M season.