College Football
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Texas A&M 33, Northwestern 22
When: 12:00 PM ET, Saturday, December 31, 2011
Where: Reliant Stadium, Houston, Texas
Temperature: Dome
Head Official: Matt Loeffler
Attendance: 68395

Ryan Tannehill passed for 329 yards and a touchdown in his final college game to lift Texas A&M to a 33-22 victory over Northwestern on Saturday in the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas in Houston.

Jeff Fuller caught seven passes for 119 yards and a score and Ben Malena rushed for 77 yards and a pair of touchdowns for the Aggies (7-6), who were playing their final game as a member of the Big 12 before moving to the SEC next season.

Northwestern has not won a bowl game since the 1949 Rose Bowl. The Wildcats have lost nine bowl games in a row overall, matching the NCAA record.

Playing under interim coach Tim DeRuyter with new coach Kevin Sumlin watching from the press box, Texas A&M sent pressure at Northwestern all afternoon, sacking the quarterback tandem of Dan Persa and Kain Colter eight times.

The Aggies made their move in the second quarter, scoring three times in the final 7:58 to go into the locker room with a 20-7 edge. Tannehill and Fuller hooked up for the highlight play of that stretch, a 26-yard touchdown that made it 17-7.

The Wildcats (6-7) made it interesting in the fourth quarter, with Persa driving the team up the field and Colter finishing off two drives to pull it to 30-22.

Needing a first down to seal the win, Tannehill hoisted a 20-yard pass to Fuller down the left sideline. The senior wide receiver raised up and made a fingertip catch over the back of the defender to put the Aggies in the red zone and allow them to set up a clinching field goal.
Top Game Performances
Rushing
Texas A&M   Northwestern
Ben Malena Player Kain Colter
23 Attempts 17
77 Yards 65
3.4 Avg Yards 3.8
2 Touchdowns 1
0 Long 0
Receiving
Texas A&M   Northwestern
Jeff Fuller Player Demetrius Fields
7 Receptions 7
119 Yards 73
17.0 Avg Yards 10.4
1 Touchdowns 0
0 Long 0
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Texas A&M 409 80 329 3 4 0 8.0 2
Northwestern 278 52 226 3 0 1 1.0 2