A&M trying to forget 77-0 loss

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- To lose is one thing. To lose 77-0 is quite another.

Texas A&M has had a year to absorb that shocking outcome at Oklahoma against the then-No. 1 Sooners. There was humiliation among Aggie fans, sympathy from Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops and withering criticism that the Sooners ran up the score.

"I don't know how much value there is in rehashing those things," A&M coach Dennis Franchione said. "Those things are in your memory bank, and you draw from there, and you don't erase them. But for us to talk about them is a waste of time."

Much has changed for A&M since that cold November afternoon at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

The Aggies (6-2, 4-1 Big 12) have rebounded in a big way, becoming bowl eligible for the first time since 2001 and reclaiming some of the respect that eroded following their first losing season since 1982.

But now they find themselves recovering from a loss that hurt almost as much, an overtime defeat at Baylor last week that took much of the sizzle out of their rematch against No. 2 Oklahoma on Saturday night. The Sooners (8-0, 5-0), again on the fast track to the Big 12 title and the national championship game, will almost certainly have little pity for the reeling Aggies.

"You could say Baylor hurt worse," A&M offensive tackle Geoff Hangartner said, "because we're actually in contention and we're tied for first place. But in both cases, you have to move past it and move on."

Oklahoma linebacker Lance Mitchell didn't seem too surprised the Aggies stumbled against the Bears.

"My reaction?," Mitchell said. "Probably they were thinking about us too much."

How does a proud program recover from such a public debacle?

Oklahoma rolled up 639 yards of offense; A&M had 54. The Aggies had more penalty yards (63) than offensive yards (54) and more punts (12) than first downs (3), none in the second half. They didn't even cross their own 40 all game.

The score was 77-0 by the end of the third quarter. In the fourth, the Sooners' reserves ran plays into the heart of the line -- Oklahoma's offensive line all but fell to the ground -- to keep the clock running and the score from getting even more out of hand.

More than a few Oklahoma fans began to chant for the Sooners to shoot for 100. Had Stoops been less compassionate, Oklahoma probably could have done it.

"I don't think they ran the score up," A&M defensive coordinator Carl Torbush said. "It was just a nightmare. I was glad it was over with. It was an embarrassing ballgame."

It was the worst loss in the Aggies' 108-year football program. The margin of victory set a Big 12 record and the Sooners tied another conference mark for points scored.

The flight back to College Station was excruciatingly quiet, the anguish written on the faces of the players and coaches.

"I didn't go to school that week," A&M guard Aldo De La Garza said. "It was a tough deal."

The Aggies used that loss, one of three to close that miserable 2003 season, as a rallying point during grueling spring and summer practices. By fall, that game in Norman seemed like a lifetime ago.

A&M opened the season with a 20-point loss at Utah, then won six straight to move up to No. 16 in the AP poll before the defeat at Baylor dropped the team six spots.

But with Oklahoma on its way into College Station this week, the Aggies have understandably grown irritated with questions about last year.

"I'm not going to talk about last year," safety Jaxson Appel said.

The Sooners have been careful not to gloat, realizing A&M hardly needs any more motivation for this game.

"Who wouldn't remember the game?," Oklahoma safety Brodney Pool said. "If I got beaten pretty bad like that, I would remember it, too."

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