Texas A&M football fans were clued in pretty early on that this was going to be a special year when the Aggies took down the Notre Dame Fighting Irish up in South Bend. However, even in that landmark win for Texas A&M, there was one thing that stood out— in a bad way— about this team.
Despite the seniority of the personnel on this team, the penalty problem was clearly the elephant in the room early on in this year. It's never really quite gone away, as the Aggies still are one of the most penalized teams in the nation right now, averaging 7.5 penalties per game.
That could be killer in a high-stakes matchup where the margins are so slim— but luckily for the Aggies, the Miami Hurricanes are one of the few teams in the country who averages more penalties per game than the Maroon and White.
Texas A&M may be bad with penalties, but the Miami Hurricanes are even worse
Texas A&M is 120th in the nation in penalties per game— and the Hurricanes are just below them at 125th in the country. While the actual number per game is not that far off— 7.5 for the Ags and 7.6 for the Canes— there's a twist here that should get Aggie fans excited.
The Aggies are far at avoiding penalties at home than they are on the road— under 7 penalties per game in Kyle Field while they average nearly 8.5 penalties per game in unfriendly stadiums. That alone should ease the minds of Aggie fans somewhat, but it gets even more interesting.
The Hurricanes, when on the road, average nearly 10 penalties per game, costing them over 80 yards per contest away from Hard Rock Stadium. That's with their road games taking place against the following teams: SMU, Florida State, Virginia Tech, and Pittsburgh. Doak was loud for that game, but nowhere near what they'll be looking at in Kyle Field.
The 12th Man will be a factor without a doubt here: simple procedure penalties can set the Canes back in a major way in this game, moving them from a 3rd and short to a 3rd and long in certain instances. With this advantage, the Aggies can start feeling pretty good about how the field tilting their way ever so slightly in this one.