No. 8 Texas A&M beats No. 9 Tennessee in two overtimes in SEC battle

His 1-yard run in second OT is decisive against turnover-prone Vols

The Associated Press
October 9, 2016 at 4:54AM
Texas A&M quarterback Trevor Knight (8) rushes for a touchdown as Tennessee defensive end Derek Barnett (9) defends during overtime in an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016, in College Station, Texas. Texas A&M won 45-38 in overtime. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Texas A&M quarterback Trevor Knight did his part, scoring from the 1 in the second overtime Saturday. Tennessee lost when it failed to answer. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

COLLEGE STATION, Texas

"It's great," defensive end Myles Garrett said. "We finally got over the hump, the little 5-0 hill that we've been facing every year."

Trevor Knight bulled in for a 1-yard touchdown in the second overtime, and Armani Watts intercepted Joshua Dobbs' pass on the next play — Tennessee's seventh turnover — to end the game.

"The big takeaway from this was we were able to withstand some things, not play great but make enough plays to win the game without some of our better players being 100 percent," coach Kevin Sumlin said.

Knight threw for 239 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 110 yards and three more scores.

The Volunteers (5-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) had rallied from double-digit deficits to win four of their last five games, including last week's last-play victory over Georgia. They trailed by 21 points in the third quarter Saturday thanks to six turnovers before tying it on Alvin Kamara's 18-yard touchdown reception with 41 seconds left.

"Proud of the resolve, but the turnovers didn't give us an opportunity," Tennessee coach Butch Jones said.

The seven turnovers were the most A&M had forced since 2005 and their five fumble recoveries were the most since 1997.

Texas A&M (6-0, 4-0) had a chance to win it in regulation, but Daniel LaCamera's 38-yard field goal attempt sailed wide left.

The Aggies could have put this one away with less than 2 minutes remaining, but freshman Trayveon Williams had the ball knocked from his hands and out of the back of the end zone just before he crossed the goal line on a 71-yard run. Williams finished with 217 yards rushing, a school record for a true freshman.

Texas A&M was facing third-and-2 when Knight dashed 62 yards for a touchdown that pushed the lead to 35-21 with about three minutes left. Kamara's 4-yard run about a minute later made it a one-score game.

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KRISTIE RIEKEN

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