Aggies make it two in a row with win over Colorado
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Jerrod Johnson threw three touchdown passes in the third quarter and Trent Hunter intercepted two passes in the fourth to lead Texas A&M to a 24-17 win over Colorado on Saturday at Kyle Field.
Johnson shook off a sluggish first half to complete 15 of 31 passes for 214 yards. Freshman Jeff Fuller caught two TD passes and the Aggies (4-5, 2-3 Big 12) won for the second time in six home games this season.
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Freshman quarterback Tyler Hansen rushed 16 times for 86 yards, but threw the two late interceptions for the Buffaloes (4-5, 1-4), who've lost five of their last six games.
Colorado held A&M to 76 yards in the first half and led 10-3 at the break.
Johnson went 4-for-4 on the Aggies' first drive of the second half, finishing it with a 32-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Tannehill. Later in the third quarter, Johnson threw a 59-yard touchdown pass to Fuller down the sideline to give A&M its first lead.
Cyrus Gray broke a 54-yard run on the Aggies' next possession. Gray started for leading rusher Mike Goodson, who sat out the second straight game with a sprained left knee.
Johnson threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Fuller on the last play of the third quarter. Fuller leads the Aggies with seven touchdown catches.
A&M defensive end Cyril Obiozor sacked Hansen on consecutive plays early in the fourth quarter. The Buffaloes gained only 75 yards on their first four possessions after halftime.
Hunter got his first interception with 8:11 left. But after an Aggies' punt, Colorado drove 98 yards in 11 plays and cut the deficit to 24-17 on Demetrius Sumler's 10-yard touchdown run with 2:59 remaining.
A&M punted again, but Hunter made a diving interception along the sideline with 2:29 left to put the game away.
Johnson averaged 361 passing yards and thrown six touchdown passes in the last three games, but he went 6-for-14 for 62 yards in the first half.
After Johnson fumbled on A&M's first series, Cody Hawkins, Colorado's other quarterback, took a lateral from running back Darrell Scott and found tight end Riar Geer down the sideline for a 23-yard gain. Three plays later, freshman Rodney Stewart scored on a 6-yard run to put the Buffaloes ahead.
Hansen replaced Hawkins for Colorado's fourth possession. Coach Dan Hawkins took off Hansen's redshirt three weeks ago and has been alternating Hansen and Hawkins.
Kicker Aric Goodman hit the upright on a 46-yard field-goal try, his seventh consecutive miss. Goodman slipped to 3-for-11 on field-goal tries this season.
A&M's Randy Bullock kicked a 39-yard field goal with 5:43 left in the first half.
On Colorado's next possession, Aggies' linebacker Von Miller was flagged for a horse-collar tackle on Stewart and the Buffaloes' leading rusher sat out the rest of the game with a sprained ankle.
Scott, Stewart's backup, then leapfrogged an A&M defender on a 42-yard run, the Buffaloes' longest play from scrimmage this season. But A&M cornerback Jordan Pugh intercepted Hawkins in the end zone with 2:40 left in the half.
After an A&M punt, freshman Jameson Davis, who handles kickoffs, booted a 30-yard field goal with 3 seconds left.