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Starkville, Miss. • Johnny Manziel threw for 311 yards and ran for 129 yards and two touchdowns to lead No. 16 Texas A&M to a 38-13 victory over No. 17 Mississippi State on Saturday.
Manziel, a redshirt freshman, completed 30 of 36 passes. He ran for a 37-yard touchdown in the second quarter that helped the Aggies build a 31-0 lead by early in the second half.
The Southeastern Conference's leading rusher added an 8-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Texas A&M (7-2, 4-2 SEC) has won all five of its road games this season. Christine Michael ran for 50 yards and two touchdowns. Ryan Swope caught nine passes for 121 yards, and Mike Evans caught nine for 97 yards.
The Aggies' quick-tempo offense ran 97 plays and gained 693 yards. Mississippi State had just 310 yards.
Tyler Russell completed 19 of 30 passes for 212 yards, with one touchdown and one interception for Mississippi State (7-2, 3-2), which has lost two in a row.
Mississippi State's defense had been one of the best in the SEC this season, especially in the secondary, but was blitzed early and often by the Aggies' unpredictable offense.
Manziel completed mostly short passes in the first half, but he hit on a few long ones. When the Bulldogs dropped too far back into pass coverage, the speedy freshman gained yards with his feet like his long scamper that pushed the Aggies' lead to 21-0 in the second quarter.
By halftime, Manziel had completed 18 of 22 passes for 164 yards, and the Aggies had a 24-0 lead.