Texas A&M Aggies vs. USC Trojans: What the Stats Say

The Texas A&M Aggies are doing what many of us would like to do after a rough stretch: head out to Las Vegas to try and turn it around.

On Friday night, the Aggies will wrap up Year 1 of the Mike Elko era as they face the USC Trojans in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl. These two teams haven't met in almost 50 years, and after similarly- tough late-season performances, they'll both want to end the season on a high note.

So, for the final time this season, let's look at the numbers.

The Trojans may have stumbled to a 6-6 record in their first year in the Big Ten, but it's hard to say that their offense was the problem. USC averages 440.3 total yards (second in Big Ten), 291.7 passing yards (first), 148.7 rushing yards (10th) and 29.8 points (fifth). Lincoln Riley has a reputation as an offensive guru, and the numbers this season back it up.

However, this is a bowl game, and in today's college football landscape, that means there's going to be some key players missing. The Trojans got hit especially hard on offense, with quarterback Miller Moss (who was benched late in the season but started most of it), and starting wide receivers Kyron Hudson, Duce Robinson and Zachariah Branch all entering the transfer portal. Leading rusher Woody Marks has also opted out to focus on the NFL Draft.

Defense, on the other hand, has been more of a struggle for USC. The Trojans allow an average of 371.6 total yards (14th in Big Ten), 231.2 passing yards (13th), 140.4 rushing yards (13th) and 23.5 points (11th) per game. The defense has improved compared to what it was over the past couple of years, but that's not really saying much.

The Aggies don't really stand out from a statistical perspective, except for the fact that they rank second in the SEC with 199.5 rushing yards per game. The real challenge for A&M in this game will be playing without three key defensive linemen in Nic Scorton, Shemar Stuart, and Shemar Turner, all of whom declared for the NFL Draft.

The Aggies and Trojans will kick off from Allegiant Stadium at 9:30 p.m. CT on Friday night.

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