While others were wondering about style points or if Texas A&M really looked like the No. 5 team in the College Football Playoff rankings, coach Jimbo Fisher had a different thought.
The 20-7 win Saturday over LSU represented real progress, he said, because of what it represented and how it was achieved over Fisher’s two previous seasons at A&M.
“I don’t know if we win that game before, I really don’t,” Fisher said Monday at his weekly news conference. “We struggled in some areas, but we still fought. The defense rose up and just kept going higher and higher. The offense just kept plugging along, doing what they could. The special teams stayed in it.
“You have to learn to do that. … Nobody’s pointing fingers. Nobody is saying you didn’t do your job.”
A&M (6-1) will learn how the CFP selection committee viewed its win and body of work on Tuesday, when the second playoff rankings are unveiled on ESPN. Ahead lies a road game Saturday at Auburn (5-3), which might be the Aggies’ biggest test remaining in the regular season as they hope for someone ahead of them to stumble.
To win, A&M will probably need a better offensive effort than the one against LSU.
Or not.
Fisher noted that part of A&M’s growth has been delivering what was needed. Against Vanderbilt and LSU, the offense failed to deliver. Against Florida and Arkansas, the offense delivered 41 and 42 points when the defense uncharacteristically stumbled.
“Our defense did that for the offense. The offense has done it for the defense at times,” Fisher said. “That’s why they’re a tight-knit group of guys.”
Senior linebacker Buddy Johnson, whose interception return for a touchdown sealed the victory against LSU, agreed things might have been different in the recent past.
“Most definitely,” the Skyline product said. “This team has been doing a great job playing as one, clicking together with each other.”
For all the team unity, Fisher did note that the offense has to be better.
A&M had just 267 yards of total offense and was 2 of 16 on third down, and senior quarterback Kellen Mond went 11 of 34 for 105 yards against an LSU defense that been torched at times against the pass.
“He’ll make adjustments and move on just like he has all year,” Fisher said. “He’s been playing really, really good football, but we’ve got to play better around him, too.”
Mond was even sacked, ending a streak of five games by an offensive line that struggled at times.
“Kellen got hit way too many times. He was slow to get up three times and that was just not OK with any of us,” center Ryan McCollum said. “Coach Fisher put the ball in our hands and started trying to run the ball and run the clock out.
“We’ve got to get in here [Monday] and fix it.”
McCollum couldn’t pinpoint a cause but said the Aggies’ 21-day layoff because of positive COVID-19 tests and contact tracing wasn’t a factor.
Fisher said the breakdowns went beyond his quarterback and said everything was correctable.
“The effort was there. The tenacity was there,” Fisher said. “The execution just wasn’t there. You get a hair off and start doing different things.”
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The Link LonkDecember 01, 2020 at 08:46AM
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Forget the style points, Jimbo Fisher says win over LSU represents real progress for Texas A&M - The Dallas Morning News
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