# 2021 Texas A&M Aggies football team

The 2021 Texas A&M Aggies football team represented Texas A&M University in the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Aggies played their home games at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas, and competed in the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by fourth-year head coach Jimbo Fisher.
After finishing the regular season with an 8–4 record, the team accepted a bid to the Gator Bowl. On December 22, the Aggies withdrew from the bowl, after a COVID-19 outbreak left the team without enough players.

## Offseason
### 2021 NFL Draft

The following Aggies were selected in the 2021 NFL Draft.
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
| 3 | 66 | Kellen Mond | QB | Minnesota Vikings |
| 4 | 117 | Bobby Brown III | DT | Los Angeles Rams |
| 4 | 128 | Dan Moore | OT | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 4 | 140 | Buddy Johnson | ILB | Pittsburgh Steelers |

## Schedule

Texas A&M announced its 2021 football schedule on January 27, 2021. The 2021 schedule will consist of 7 home, 3 away, and 2 neutral games in the regular season.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 4 | 7:00 p.m. | Kent State* | No. 6 | Kyle FieldCollege Station, TX | ESPNU | W 41–10 | 97,339 |
| September 11 | 2:30 p.m. | vs. Colorado* | No. 5 | Empower Field at Mile HighDenver, CO | Fox | W 10–7 | 61,203 |
| September 18 | 11:00 a.m. | New Mexico* | No. 7 | Kyle FieldCollege Station, TX | SECN | W 34–0 | 84,748 |
| September 25 | 2:30 p.m. | vs. No. 16 Arkansas | No. 7 | AT&T StadiumArlington, TX (Southwest Classic) | CBS | L 10–20 | 57,992 |
| October 2 | 6:00 p.m. | Mississippi State | No. 15 | Kyle FieldCollege Station, TX | SECN | L 22–26 | 87,973 |
| October 9 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 1 Alabama | | Kyle FieldCollege Station, TX | CBS | W 41–38 | 106,815 |
| October 16 | 11:00 a.m. | at Missouri | No. 21 | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | SECN | W 35–14 | 48,139 |
| October 23 | 6:30 p.m. | South Carolina | No. 17 | Kyle FieldCollege Station, TX | SECN | W 44–14 | 103,889 |
| November 6 | 2:30 p.m. | No. 13 Auburn | No. 14 | Kyle FieldCollege Station, TX (SEC Nation) | CBS | W 20–3 | 109,835 |
| November 13 | 6:00 p.m. | at No. 15 Ole Miss | No. 11 | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS (College GameDay) | ESPN | L 19–29 | 64,425 |
| November 20 | 11:00 a.m. | Prairie View A&M* | No. 16 | Kyle FieldCollege Station, TX | ESPN+/SECN+ | W 52–3 | 98,251 |
| November 27 | 6:00 p.m. | at LSU | No. 15 | Tiger StadiumBaton Rouge, LA (rivalry) | ESPN | L 24–27 | 91,595 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from AP Poll (and CFP Rankings, after November 2) - Released prior to gameAll times are in Central time ||||||||

## Coaching staff

| Name | Position | Season at Texas A&M |
| Jimbo Fisher | Head coach | 4th |
| Darrell Dickey | Offensive coordinator and Quarterbacks coach | 4th |
| Tommie Robinson | Running backs coach | 2nd |
| James Coley | Tight ends coach | 2nd |
| Dameyune Craig | Wide receivers coach | 4th |
| Josh Henson | Offensive line coach | 3rd |
| Mike Elko | Defensive coordinator and safeties coach | 4th |
| T. J. Rushing | Defensive backs coach | 2nd |
| Terry Price | Defensive ends coach | 10th |
| Elijah Robinson | Defensive line coach | 4th |
| Tyler Santucci | Linebackers coach | 2nd |
| Jerry Schmidt | Strength and Conditioning Coach | 4th |

## Game summaries
### Kent State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Golden Flashes | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| No. 6 Aggies | 10 | 0 | 17 | 14 | 41 |
at Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
* Date: September 4
* Game time: 7:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Temperature: 95 °F (35 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: S 3 MPH
* Game attendance: 97,339
* Referee: Marc Curles
* TV announcers (ESPNU): Dave Neal (play-by-play), Tom Ramsey (analyst) and Andraya Carter (sideline)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | KENT | TAMU |
| First downs | 19 | 29 |
| Total yards | 336 | 595 |
| Rushing yards | 226 | 303 |
| Passing yards | 110 | 292 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 5 |
| Time of possession | 24:50 | 35:10 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Kent State | Passing | Dustin Crum | 12/26, 89 yards, 2 INT |
| Kent State | Rushing | Xavier Williams | 8 rushes, 73 yards |
| Kent State | Receiving | Keshunn Abram | 3 receptions, 24 yards |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Haynes King | 21/33, 292 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | De’Von Achane | 12 rushes, 124 yards, 2 TD |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Ainias Smith | 8 receptions, 100 yards, 2 TD |

### Colorado

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 5 Aggies | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| Buffaloes | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Empower Field at Mile High, Denver, Colorado
* Date: September 11
* Game time: 2:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Temperature: 92 °F (33 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: NE 9 MPH
* Game attendance: 61,203
* Referee: Matt Loeffler
* TV announcers (Fox): Joe Davis (play-by-play) and Brock Huard (analyst)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | TAMU | COLO |
| First downs | 14 | 14 |
| Total yards | 288 | 260 |
| Rushing yards | 97 | 171 |
| Passing yards | 191 | 89 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 31:20 | 28:34 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 18/38, 183 yards, TD |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | De’Von Achane | 9 rushes, 50 yards |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Jalen Wydermyer | 4 receptions, 66 yards |
| Colorado | Passing | Brendon Lewis | 13/25, 89 yards, INT |
| Colorado | Rushing | Brendon Lewis | 9 rushes, 76 yards |
| Colorado | Receiving | Daniel Arias | 3 receptions, 37 yards |
Starting quarterback Haynes King suffered a leg injury in the 1st quarter and was replaced by Zach Calzada. On the Monday following the game, head coach Jimbo Fisher said King had a leg fracture and would be out indefinitely.

### New Mexico

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Lobos | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. 7 Aggies | 14 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 34 |
at Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
* Date: September 28
* Game time: 11:00 a.m.
* Game weather: Temperature: 85 °F (29 °C) • Weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 84,748
* Referee: Wayne Winkler
* TV announcers (SECN): Taylor Zarzour (play-by-play), Matt Stinchcomb (analyst) and Alyssa Lang (sideline)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | UNM | TAMU |
| First downs | 9 | 22 |
| Total yards | 122 | 429 |
| Rushing yards | 89 | 154 |
| Passing yards | 33 | 275 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 29:01 | 30:59 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| New Mexico | Passing | Terry Wilson | 10/23, 33 yards, INT |
| New Mexico | Rushing | Aaron Dumas | 10 rushes, 49 yards |
| New Mexico | Receiving | Mannie Logan-Greene | 3 receptions, 16 yards |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 19/33, 275 yards, 3 TD, INT |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | Isaiah Spiller | 15 rushes, 117 yards, TD |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Demond Dumas | 2 receptions, 100 yards, TD |

### No. 16 Arkansas

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 7 Aggies | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| No. 16 Razorbacks | 10 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 20 |
at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
* Date: September 25
* Game time: 2:30 p.m.
* Game weather: None (retractable roof closed)
* Game attendance: 57,992
* Referee: Steve Marlowe
* TV announcers (CBS): Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Gary Danielson (analyst) and Jamie Erdahl (sideline)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | TAMU | ARK |
| First downs | 15 | 20 |
| Total yards | 272 | 443 |
| Rushing yards | 121 | 197 |
| Passing yards | 151 | 246 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 29:10 | 30:50 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 20/36, 151 yards, INT |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | Isaiah Spiller | 12 rushes, 95 yards, TD |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Ainias Smith | 2 receptions, 35 yards |
| Arkansas | Passing | KJ Jefferson | 7/15, 212 yards, 2 TD |
| Arkansas | Rushing | Trelon Smith | 17 rushes, 82 yards |
| Arkansas | Receiving | Treylon Burks | 6 receptions, 167 yards, TD |

### Mississippi State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 10 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 26 |
| No. 15 Aggies | 7 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 22 |
at Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
* Date: October 2
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 87,973
* Referee: Lee Hedrick
* TV announcers (SECN): Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (analyst) and Cole Cubelic (sideline)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | MSST | TAMU |
| First downs | 27 | 15 |
| Total yards | 438 | 297 |
| Rushing yards | 30 | 162 |
| Passing yards | 408 | 135 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 35:06 | 24:54 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Mississippi State | Passing | Will Rogers | 46/59, 408 yards, 3 TD |
| Mississippi State | Rushing | Dillon Johnson | 6 rushes, 19 yards |
| Mississippi State | Receiving | Makai Polk | 13 receptions, 126 yards, 2 TD |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 12/20, 135 yards, TD, INT |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | Isaiah Spiller | 16 rushes, 100 yards |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Jalen Preston | 2 receptions, 49 yards |

### No. 1 Alabama

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 1 Crimson Tide | 7 | 3 | 14 | 14 | 38 |
| Aggies | 17 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 41 |
at Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
* Date: October 9
* Game time: 7:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 106,815
* Referee: Jason Autrey
* TV announcers (CBS): Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Gary Danielson (analyst) and Jamie Erdahl (sideline)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | ALA | TAMU |
| First downs | 25 | 24 |
| Total yards | 522 | 379 |
| Rushing yards | 153 | 94 |
| Passing yards | 369 | 285 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 33:39 | 26:21 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Alabama | Passing | Bryce Young | 28/48, 369 yards, 3 TD, INT |
| Alabama | Rushing | Brian Robinson Jr. | 24 rushes, 147 yards |
| Alabama | Receiving | Jameson Williams | 10 receptions, 146 yards, 2 TD |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 21/31, 285 yards, 3 TD, INT |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | Isaiah Spiller | 17 rushes, 46 yards, TD |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Ainias Smith | 6 receptions, 85 yards, 2 TD |
Texas A&M defeated Alabama for the first time since November 10, 2012. This marked the first time Nick Saban had lost to a former assistant coach; prior to this his record was 24–0 against former assistant coaches. This was Alabama's first loss to an unranked opponent since 2007, where they lost to Louisiana-Monroe. The 100-game win streak against unranked opponents by Alabama was also snapped by Texas A&M. It is also the first time an AP No. 1 team lost to an unranked team since 2008, when USC was defeated by Oregon State.

### At Missouri

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 21 Aggies | 21 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 35 |
| Tigers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
at Faurot Field, Columbia, Missouri
* Date: October 16
* Game time: 11:00 a.m.
* Game weather: Temperature: 56 °F (13 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: NW 13 MPH
* Game attendance: 48,139
* Referee: Ken Williamson
* TV announcers (SECN): Taylor Zarzour (play-by-play) and Matt Stinchcomb (analyst)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | TAMU | MIZ |
| First downs | 29 | 19 |
| Total yards | 431 | 328 |
| Rushing yards | 283 | 98 |
| Passing yards | 148 | 230 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 29:57 | 30:03 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 13/25, 148 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | Isaiah Spiller | 20 rushes, 168 yards 1 TD |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Ainias Smith | 3 receptions, 34 yards 2 TD |
| Missouri | Passing | Connor Bazelak | 29/43, 230 yards, 2 INT |
| Missouri | Rushing | Tyler Badie | 22 rushes 68 yards 1 TD |
| Missouri | Receiving | Tauskie Dove | 5 receptions, 65 yards |

### South Carolina

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Gamecocks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
| No. 17 Aggies | 14 | 17 | 10 | 3 | 44 |
at Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
* Date: October 23
* Game time: 6:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 103,889
* Referee: Steve Marlowe
* TV announcers (SECN): Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (analyst) and Cole Cubelic (sideline)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | SC | TAMU |
| First downs | 14 | 26 |
| Total yards | 185 | 477 |
| Rushing yards | 71 | 290 |
| Passing yards | 114 | 187 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 24:30 | 35:30 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| South Carolina | Passing | Jason Brown | 8/14, 84 yards, TD, 2 INT |
| South Carolina | Rushing | ZaQuandre White | 8 rushes, 59 yards |
| South Carolina | Receiving | Josh Vann | 2 receptions, 32 yards |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 12/24, 187 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | De’Von Achane | 20 rushes, 154 yards, TD |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Jalen Wydermyer | 4 receptions, 75 yards, 2 TD |

### No. 13 Auburn

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 13 Tigers | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| No. 14 Aggies | 3 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 20 |
at Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
* Date: November 6
* Game time: 2:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Temperature: 69 °F (21 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: N 6 MPH
* Game attendance: 109,835
* Referee: James Carter
* TV announcers (CBS): Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Gary Danielson (analyst) and Jamie Erdahl (sideline)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | AUB | TAMU |
| First downs | 17 | 18 |
| Total yards | 226 | 409 |
| Rushing yards | 73 | 217 |
| Passing yards | 153 | 192 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 29:56 | 30:00 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Auburn | Passing | Bo Nix | 20/41, 153 yards, INT |
| Auburn | Rushing | Tank Bigsby | 15 rushes, 69 yards |
| Auburn | Receiving | John Samuel Shenker | 4 receptions, 50 yards |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 15/29, 192 yards |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | Isaiah Spiller | 21 rushes, 112 yards |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Caleb Chapman | 3 receptions, 77 yards |

### At No. 15 Ole Miss

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 11 Aggies | 0 | 0 | 10 | 9 | 19 |
| No. 15 Rebels | 10 | 5 | 0 | 14 | 29 |
at Vaught–Hemingway Stadium, Oxford, Mississippi
* Date: November 13
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Temperature: 46 °F (8 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: NW 6 MPH
* Game attendance: 64,425
* Referee: David Smith
* TV announcers (ESPN): Chris Fowler (play-by-play), Kirk Herbstreit (color), Holly Rowe (sideline)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | TAMU | MISS |
| First downs | 19 | 32 |
| Total yards | 378 | 504 |
| Rushing yards | 141 | 257 |
| Passing yards | 237 | 247 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 29:50 | 30:10 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 24/42, 237 yards, 2 INT |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | De’Von Achane | 12 rushes, 110 yards, 2 TD |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Ainias Smith | 5 receptions, 77 yards |
| Ole Miss | Passing | Matt Corral | 24/37, 247 yards, TD |
| Ole Miss | Rushing | Jerrion Ealy | 24 rushes, 152 yards |
| Ole Miss | Receiving | Jahcour Pearson | 5 receptions, 69 yards |

### Prairie View A&M

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| No. 16 Aggies | 21 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 52 |
at Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
* Date: November 20
* Game time: 11:00 a.m.
* Game weather: Fog
* Game attendance: 98,251
* Referee: Steve Marlowe
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Mike Corey (play-by-play) and Dave Steckel (analyst)
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | PV | TAMU |
| First downs | 9 | 24 |
| Total yards | 154 | 447 |
| Rushing yards | 147 | 279 |
| Passing yards | 7 | 168 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 29:35 | 30:25 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Prairie View A&M | Passing | Trazon Connley | 1/7, 5 yards |
| Prairie View A&M | Rushing | Jaden Stewart | 24 rushes, 100 yards |
| Prairie View A&M | Receiving | Bernard Goodwater | 1 reception, 5 yards |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 10/14, 150 yards, 2 TD |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | Isaiah Spiller | 9 rushes, 70 yards, TD |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | Moose Muhammad III | 5 receptions, 77 yards, 2 TD |

### At LSU

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 15 Aggies | 0 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 24 |
| Tigers | 3 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 27 |
at Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
* Date: November 27
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* TV announcers (ESPN): Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (analyst) and Cole Cubelic (sideline)
Statistics
| Statistics | TAMU | LSU |
| First downs | 16 | 22 |
| Total yards | 296 | 412 |
| Rushing yards | 54 | 106 |
| Passing yards | 242 | 306 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 27:40 | 32:20 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Texas A&M | Passing | Zach Calzada | 20/35, 242 yards, 3 TD |
| Texas A&M | Rushing | De’Von Achane | 12 rushes, 49 yards |
| Texas A&M | Receiving | De’Von Achane | 5 receptions, 72 yards |
| LSU | Passing | Max Johnson | 22/38, 306 yards, 3 TD |
| LSU | Rushing | Tyrion Davis-Price | 19 rushes, 84 yards |
| LSU | Receiving | Jaray Jenkins | 8 receptions, 169 yards, 2 TD |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
| AP | 6 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 15 | RV | 21 | 17 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 16 | 14 | 24 | 23 | RV |
| Coaches | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 13 | RV | 18 | 17 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 16 | 14 | 23 | 23 | 25 |
| CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 14 | 11 | 16 | 15 | 25 | 25 | Not released |