A&M wins ‘ugly’
Fisher’s displeasure bubbles over as he grabs player’s facemask following an on-field scuffle
ARLINGTON — Safety Donovan Wilson wasn’t around for the end of two of Texas A&M’s first four games this season because of ejections for targeting. The Aggies are thrilled he hung around for Saturday’s conclusion against Arkansas.
Wilson’s interception late in the fourth quarter sealed a disjointed 24-17 A&M victory over the Razorbacks at AT&T Stadium, a game in which the Aggies were favored by three touchdowns.
“We probably played our worst football game of the year by far,” an annoyed A&M coach Jimbo Fisher said. “Our intelligence level, how to play and how to expect to win and play from ahead and do things that champions do and good football teams do, we’ve got to grow in it.”
Fisher experienced his own mental lapse — one the coach was catching heat for this weekend on social media. Cameras caught Fisher grabbing linebacker Tyrel Dodson’s facemask and jerking it back and forth after an on-field tussle between the teams late in the third quarter.
“I don’t want you out there fighting,” Fisher said afterward of what he was angry about with Dodson, a team leader. “Make the play, shut your mouth and go on.”
Fisher said Dodson was “pushing and shoving” with the Razorbacks when he needed to focus on the tasks at hand.
“He is a great player, and emotions (are) in football,” Fisher said. “But you’ve got to play intelligently. … That’s a guy we count on for everything — making calls, doing everything. That guy is critical.”
Fisher added of his facemask grab: “That’s all I was trying to make a point to him.”
Wilson’s interception vital
Dodson wasn’t part of postgame interviews but later posted to Twitter that Fisher “did the right thing.”
“I let my emotions get the best of me at that certain moment,” Dodson wrote. He added later in the post, “He’ll have my back no matter what.”
No one Saturday had the Aggies’ backs more than Wilson, a resilient senior who’s in a fifth year following a season-ending injury in the 2017 opener. The Aggies led 24-17 and were hanging on by a thread when Wilson hauled in an errant Ty Storey pass on the A&M 26-yard line with 1:11 left.
“Nobody practices harder and plays harder than ‘Dono’ every day, day in and day out, on our football team,” said Fisher, adding of Wilson’s two prior ejections, “(but) you’ve got to stay in the game, because he’s vital for us.”
Wilson’s ejections occurred in the season opener during a rout of Northwestern State and last week in a loss to top-ranked Alabama.
“Maybe he could have made that play in those games,” Fisher said.
A&M (3-2, 1-1 SEC) and Arkansas (1-4, 0-2) have new coaches — the Razorbacks hired an A&M graduate and former SMU coach in Chad Morris to try to right their ship — but one thing stayed constant in the SEC West series: A narrow A&M victory.
The Aggies have won all seven of the teams’ meetings since joining the SEC in 2012, with the last five victories coming in AT&T Stadium, including three of those in overtime. The neutral-site game is contracted between the schools through 2024, and Saturday’s attendance of 55,383 was easily the lowest since the series moved to the home of the Dallas Cowboys.
About half the fans were still settling into their seats when A&M freshman Jashaun Corbin offered the game’s most electrifying highlight with a 100-yard return for a touchdown on the opening kick.
“We’ve been working on that hard,” Fisher said. “You can see his talent level. We have to get him on the field and get him playing.”
Williams runs for 152 yards
Corbin’s time at running back will continue to be limited, however, if junior Trayveon Williams keeps turning in showings like on Saturday. Williams’ 152 rushing yards were nearly three times as many as the Razorbacks had combined, and A&M outgained Arkansas 377-248 in total yardage, despite an overall lackluster showing by Aggies quarterback Kellen Mond.
The Aggies defense held the Razorbacks to 55 rushing yards. A&M is allowing opponents 85 rushing yards per game, placing it in the top 10 nationally in rushing defense. The Aggies built a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter and then eased up too much for Fisher’s liking.
“You’ve got to take the air out (of opponents),” he said.
Morris was proud of his team for fighting back after falling behind.
“You took a huge punch on the first play of the game,” he said.