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Tannehill's six TD passes helps Texas A&M rout Baylor

Oct 15, 2011 - 9:29 PM College Station, TX (Sports Network) - Ryan Tannehill threw for 415 yards and a career-high six touchdowns, as No. 21 Texas A&M earned a 55-28 victory over No. 20 Baylor.

Ryan Swope caught 11 passes for 206 yards and a school record four touchdowns for the Aggies (4-2, 2-1 Big 12).

Christine Michael added to the potent attack, rushing for 105 yards and a score on 21 carries, while Uzoma Nwachukwu caught four passes for 94 yards and a touchdown.

Robert Griffin III completed 28-of-40 passes for 430 yards, three touchdowns and an interception for the Bears (4-2, 1-2).

Terrance Williams caught eight passes for 146 yards and a touchdown.

The game marked the final meeting between these two teams as Big 12 opponents. The Aggies, headed to the SEC next season, insured the final conference tilt would be a memorable one, racking up a season-high 681 total yards of offense.

"That's just the nature of the game these days," said Tannehill. "Offenses are so high-powered. We have confidence in our defense but we feel we should score every time we touch the ball, no matter what team we are playing."

The Bears trailed 34-28 following Terrance Ganaway's four-yard touchdown in the third quarter, but the Aggies scored 21 answered points to emphatically close out the 108th edition of the Battle of the Brazos.

On the ensuing possession, Swope reeled in his fourth touchdown pass of the contest -- a 68-yarder -- for a 41-28 lead.

Griffin then took Baylor to the Texas A&M four-yard line, but his pass to Jordan Najvar on fourth down fell incomplete. Tannehill continued his big-play onslaught, hitting Nwachukwu for a 47-yard touchdown minutes later for a 48-28 advantage.

The Aggies defense continued to set the table, as Dustin Harris intercepted Griffin on the Bears' next play from scrimmage. Michael capitalized with a four-yard touchdown run to seal the final margin.

Texas A&M, which has taken 19 of 21 games from Baylor since 1990, surely finished stronger than it started.

Tannehill took the Aggies into Bears territory on the team's first possession, but was intercepted at the 27-yard line by lineman Tevin Elliott.

Baylor capitalized, taking a 7-0 lead on Griffin's six-yard touchdown pass to Kendall Wright.

Randy Bullock's 35-yard field goal made it a 7-3 game and early in the second quarter, Baylor again found itself inside the Texas A&M 10-yard line. This time, the drive stalled, as Caleb Russell sacked Griffin and 3rd-and-goal and Aaron Jones was wide on a 30-yard field goal attempt.

"When you're in the red zone you have to put points on the board, and every offense knows that," said Griffin. "We'll continue to grow as a team to make sure that doesn't happen."

The Aggies capitalized as Tannehill found Swope for a 68-yard touchdown on 3rd-and-9. But Griffin promptly answered, hitting Williams for a 77-yard scoring strike on the Bears' next play from scrimmage, making it a 14-10 game.

Undaunted, Texas A&M scored 14 unanswered points to close half.

A 73-yard scoring drive was aided by consecutive 15-yard Baylor penalties -- personal foul, face mask -- before Michael willed the Aggies into the end zone. He reeled off a 16-yard run, then turned a shovel pass into a seven-yard touchdown, deftly eluding tacklers on both plays.

After a Baylor punt, Tannehill found Swope again, this time for an eight-yard touchdown, giving the Aggies a 24-14 lead at the break.

Swope carried the momentum out of the tunnel, reeling in a five-yard touchdown pass on the Aggies' opening drive of the third quarter to make it a 31-14 game.

Griffin then hit Tevin Reese for a 43-yard touchdown to keep the Bears close before Bullock was good from 47 yards, making it a 34-21 contest.

Game Notes

The last Texas A&M quarterback to throw six touchdowns in a game was current Houston Texans head coach Gary Kubiak versus Rice in 1981...Swope's 206 receiving yards marked a career-high...Baylor is 0-12-1 at College Station since 1984.