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A helpful reminder: One game does not a great team make. But if the 2013 Cotton Bowl and the season that preceded it is an indication of what Texas A&M can do, then the SEC West is about to get a lot better. If anyone in the division can actually stand that.
The scope of the annihilation that took place Friday night in Jerry Jones' Death Star is hard to wrap up in a few words. The Aggies dropped 633 yards on Oklahoma and scored six touchdowns while punting four times. They set a Cotton Bowl record for offense. They became the most prolific offense in the history of the SEC (though that's not game-adjusted). And Johnny Manziel, who won the Heisman while guiding A&M to a historically good season, set the bowl record for rushing yards by a quarterback.
Meanwhile, while they didn't completely shut down the Sooners, the A&M defense did a pretty good job of containing them. Oklahoma gained 401 yards in the game, but was limited to just 4.83 yards a play, down from the season average of 6.58. Oklahoma rushed for just 3.6 yards a carry. It's long play of the night -- pass or run -- covered 19 yards.
But back to Manziel for a moment, because he's been the story for this team all year. He ran for 13.5 yards per carry, gaining 229 yards on 17 attempts. He was 22-of-34 passing for 287 yards. Manziel had four total touchdowns against one interception, the only turnover of the night for Texas A&M. And he's a freshman -- though as a redshirt freshman, he could go pro after next season if he chooses to.
That's a problem for another day, though. Texas A&M took one last shot at an old foe Friday night; however, if the Aggies want to end up with an even bigger postseason prize next year, they'll need to turn their attention back to the opponents who will decide their future. Because one game, even a game like Friday's, doesn't define a team. But if a team strings together enough performances like that, they end up standing alone at the end of the season as champions. And during the Cotton Bowl, the Aggies looked like a team getting ready to make a run.