3 Takeaways From Texas A&M's Dominant Win Over Missouri Tigers

The only thing that was getting upset this weekend in Columbia was the Missouri Tigers fanbase.

The No. 3 Texas A&M Aggies were able to stay perfect in the 2025 season with a strong 38-17 routing of the No. 19 Missouri Tigers Saturday night in Columbia, a game that saw highlights on both sides of the ball, a common sight in Aggie contests this season.

Rueben Owens ran the ball for 102 yards and a touchdown, KC Concepcion caught four balls for 84 yards and a touchdown, and Marcel Reed put together another multi-touchdown night without any turnovers, further adding to his potential Heisman Trophy resume.

The Notebook: Takeaways From Columbia

As the Maroon and White clinched their third win of the season over a "Tiger" team, here are a few of the biggest takeaways from A&M's win over Missouri.

Texas A&M Aggies wide receiver Mario Craver (1) runs with the ball against the Missouri Tigers. — Nov 8, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Texas A&M Aggies wide receiver Mario Craver (1) runs with the ball against Missouri Tigers cornerback Toriano Pride Jr. (2) during the second half at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Run Defense, Penalty Woes Strike Again

While the Aggies are still undefeated and without a doubt one of the best teams in the nation right now, it seems that some issues that plagued the team at the beginning of the season are coming back later in the year to bug them again.

Facing off against the conference's top rusher in Ahmad Hardy, the Maroon and White knew they would be in for a challenge on the ground, but what they probably didn't expect was for Missouri's other halfback, Jamal Roberts, to also show up and show out. He out-rushed Hardy 110-109, with the team combining for 207 rushing yards.

Penalties were also an issue again for the Elko squad, with eight flags getting thrown on the Aggies for 65 yards. One penalty in particular was an offsides call on Will Lee during a Missouri field goal attempt that brought them closer to the line to gain. Missouri would turn the ball over on downs but moves like that could without a doubt cost the Aggies in the future, especially against Texas and beyond.

Another penalty put Missouri into the red zone early in the second half, and resulted in a touchdown run on a direct snap to Roberts, a further example as to truly how costly penalties are, especially in the SEC.

Offense Picks Up the Slack Against Elite Defense

The Texas A&M offense hasn't struggled much this year, but when they have, the defense has showed up to save the day. Tonight's game was really the offense's turn to play hero.

Yes, the defense only allowed 17 points, but Missouri kept shooting themselves in the foot and were simply unable to get the ball rolling outside of the running game. Most other teams would have taken full advantage and racked up points quick, fast, and in a hurry, but Missouri just could not.

Coming into the game boasting the SEC's best defense, the Tigers put up little fight against the A&M offense, which combined for 464 yards of total offense on the night. This was led by the 243 yards of rushing that, in addition to Owens' team-loading 102, also consisted of 24 from EJ Smith, who picked up his second rushing touchdown of the year in the first half.

Marcel Reed completed 20 of 29 pass attempts for 221 yards and two touchdowns, added 29 rushing yards, and even completed nine consecutive passes at one point in the game.

Brooks' Career Night

There were two plays in particular that shifted momentum in favor of the Aggies in Columbia, and they both involved junior defensive back Dalton Brooks.

Late in the second quarter, A&M linebacker Daymion Sanford welcomed Missouri quarterback Matt Zollers to the SEC with a massive hit, causing the ball to fly out of Zollers' hands and right into Brooks'.

Brooks had been blitzing on the play and was just looping around the right side of the pocket when the ball popped loose and right into his possession, allowing him to return the ball to the Missouri two-yard line and setting up the scoring run from EJ Smith.

The second play involved some trickery from the brain of Mike Elko. Midway through the third quarter after the team seemingly was ready to punt the ball away following a three-and-out, a fake play was called, which resulted in Brooks going back to his high school days at Shiner High School and scampering 48 yards all the way to the Tigers' 18-yard line.

This later resulted in three points going the Ags' way thanks to a Randy Bond field goal.

Now 9-0 and still at least top three in the nation, the Aggies return home to Kyle Field next Saturday as they take on the South Carolina Gamecocks at 11:00 AM.