COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Texas A&M’s goal this season was to return to national prominence for the first time in years.
Cyrus Gray and the 18th-ranked Aggies have done that, picking up their fifth straight win with a 9-6 victory over No. 9 Nebraska at Kyle Field on Saturday night.
“The consequences of winning are the expectations get higher,” Aggies coach Mike Sherman said. “We jumped over another hurdle and have taken another step. We still have another step to take.”
Gray ran for a career high-tying 137 yards and Randy Bullock kicked the go-ahead field goal with about three minutes left for the Aggies. Gray added a career-high 65 yards receiving during his fifth consecutive 100-yard rushing game.
Gray is the first Texas A&M running back since 1990 to have five straight 100-yard rushing games and has 396 yards rushing in three games since running back Christine Michael broke his leg.
Sherman was asked to describe Gray’s performance.
“I would say extraordinary,” he said. “With his catches and his runs and picking the holes. If he didn’t play the game he did, we wouldn’t have been able to kick the field goals.
“Nothing he ever does surprises me. I’m not shocked looking at his stats.”
The loss kept Nebraska (9-2, 5-2 Big 12) from clinching the Big 12 North title. The Cornhuskers have another opportunity to do it in their regular-season finale Friday against Colorado in Lincoln.
Nebraska coach Bo Pelini reminded his team of that after the Aggies beat the Huskers.
“The game’s irrelevant,” Pelini said he told his team. “At the end, we still control our destiny.”
The game was tied 6-6 when the Aggies (8-3, 5-2) took the lead on Bullock’s 19-yard field goal. The Huskers were plagued by turnovers all night and Texas A&M’s go-ahead drive was no exception. The drive was kept alive by a roughing the passer penalty against Nebraska on third-and-11 at the Huskers’ 49.
The Aggies had third-and-goal at the Nebraska 2 and Gray was stopped for no gain to bring on Bullock.
Nebraska quarterback Taylor Martinez missed the last five minutes of the first quarter and the entire second quarter after injuring his right ankle. He returned for the third quarter and played the rest of the game despite looking hobbled. He was flagged for intentional grounding on first down on Nebraska’s last drive and was sacked on third down.
His desperation heave on fourth down was incomplete, and the record crowd of 90,079 stormed the field after the game as the Aggies trickled to their locker room through a sea of maroon.
