Texas A&M vs. Texas Tech: 5 Things We Learned from the Aggies' Win Against Tech

The rivalry between Texas A&M and Texas Tech came to a close tonight with their showdown in Lubbock. Next season, the Aggies will be off to the SEC while the Red Raiders fight with their Big 12 brethren to make the conference stronger.

Prior to the game, there were some shenanigans that are disappointing, but they had no effect on the Aggies performance.

Texas A&M locked in a fierce battle with their rivals and came out with a 45-40 victory. It was a solid win for a team that has suffered a couple of heart-breaking losses in the last couple of weeks. Their season seemed to hang on the brink.

Did this win pull them back and put them on track? That's yet to be seen and we'll learn even more next week.

What did we learn this week, though?

There are a few thoughts that sprang to mind as I watched this battle in the Lone Star State.

The 2nd Half Isn't Their Half

Yeah, we kind of knew this already. Over the last two weeks, the Aggies have had comfortable leads over No. 6 Oklahoma State and No. 10 Arkansas going into each game's halftime. In both games, their opponents came back in the second half to win.

Those were Top 10 teams, though. While Texas Tech could make a strong statement for being in the Top 25, they currently are not and definitely are not in the upper tier of that group. Perhaps the second-half curse only pertained to highly ranked teams.

Well, yes and no.

The Red Raiders couldn't pull off the upset, so the "curse" really didn't hold. However, Tech did stage something of a comeback and were a failed onside kick away from potentially burning the Aggies for the third straight week.

There were two very big differences this week. First, A&M's lead at the half (31-20) wasn't that substantial. Second, they were only out-scored 20-14 in the second half.

Still, when you're out-paced three straight times in the second half, you've got to be a little nervous going forward about playing four solid quarters.

The Defense Still Needs Work

Let's be fair a moment. Texas A&M did hold the Red Raiders below their season average for offensive yards coming into the game...by two yards.

Coming into Saturday's showdown, Texas Tech was averaging 525 yards of offense per game. Texas A&M gave up 523 yards.

I know...big whoop.

However, the Red Raiders put up those yards against the likes of Texas State, New Mexico, Nevada and Kansas. In other words, not exactly top-notch defenses. Certainly not top-ranked teams.

The Aggies allowed Seth Doege to pass for 389 yards and three touchdowns, including the 20-yard strike to Alex Torres that narrowed the lead to just five points.

They also allowed Eric Stephens to run for 102 yards and average 4.6 yards per haul.

Directly ahead of the Aggies is a date with upstart Baylor and their prolific offense. They still have No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 20 Kansas State and No. 11 Texas to navigate later in the season.

Their defense had better start stepping up or there will be a ton of pressure placed on the offense to win some awfully big games.

There's Spark in Them Special Teams

Special teams play hasn't entirely been a strong point this season. They came into the week dead last in the conference in PAT kicking and were tied for last in opponent's field goal percentages.

In the rest of the ST stats, they're largely in the middle of the pack, with the exception of opponent kick returns, where they led the conference.

They weren't terrible, they just weren't that great, either.

That may not have changed a whole lot, but special teams came up with at least one very big play against Texas Tech and provided a little extra strength and confidence in the units.

With 4:33 left in the third quarter, the Aggies blocked a 50-yard field goal attempt, and Terrence Fredrick scooped it up and carried it 63 yards for a touchdown.

While it wasn't necessarily the deciding play of the game, it was certainly one of them. That play helped open the score back up to 38-23 after Tech had closed the gap to just eight points.

Uzoma Nwachukwu Should Never Have to Be Spoken, but He Will Be in the Future

I get tongue-tied just looking at the name. I tried to pronounce it and had to spend a good hour pulling the knots out of my linguistic organ.

All jokes aside, though, Nwachukwu completes this offense.

Ryan Tannehill gets much deserved love for his contributions to this offense. His passing numbers aren't always stellar, but his dual-threat ability make him a tough cookie to cut down.

Cyrus Gray is a slick little speedster that doubles as a workhorse. Saturday, he put up 115 yards on 21 carries and scored a touchdown.

Those two are a rough duo to contain, but by themselves there would be something missing.

Nwachukwu represents not only a cool name, but a receiving threat that forces defenses to stay honest against the pass. Saturday night, he hauled in four passes for 76 yards and the longest was a dazzling 40-yard grab—the longest for the team on the day.

Certainly, he's not alone. He's not even the leading receiver on the team. Ryan Swope and Jeff Fuller had both caught nine more passes than Nwachukwu coming into the game and both had parts to play in this contest.

However, Uzoma adds incredible depth to the receiver corps and has showcased his ability to be a big target for Tannehill.

This year, he's a solid third receiver. Look for him to continue to be a big part of the offense and for that part to grow in the future.

The Aggies Need a Statement Win

It's been an eventful 2011 season already. After a 2-0 start, they faltered twice against highly-ranked opponents. Yet, they've held onto a spot in the rankings.

Not many teams can even approach the Top 25 with two losses on their record. Chalk that up to the quality of the teams the Aggies have lost to.

As thrilling and important as this win was against their in-state rival, it won't do a ton to win over confidence by pollsters. After all, the Red Raiders weren't ranked.

Yes, they had a perfect 4-0 record, and that's impressive. It also won't go entirely overlooked. However, there's a reason they weren't ranked, even with a perfect record. They hadn't proven that their record was worth the ranking yet.

In effect, losing to a ranked team by only five points helps them more than the victory helps the Aggies in the eyes of the pollsters. Now they need a statement win to climb that ladder before they have to travel to Norman to take on Oklahoma.

Baylor provides that opportunity. The Bears may not be the ultimate prize, but they're a ranked team. The Aggies need a win there to prove they can beat rated opponents before the BCS standings come out.

Iowa State and Missouri—while decent enough in their own rights—aren't going to win over anyone. They're the other two teams that stand between Texas A&M and their showdown with the Sooners.

Of course, a victory over the conference leader and BCS contender would be the ultimate goal. That's a ways away, though. They need something truly positive to boost their confidence and prove to the nay-sayers that this team is for real.

Then they need to take good care of business against the "lesser" opponents to drive that statement home.