Alex Miller
Texas A&M cornerback Will Lee III saw the interception coming.
The receiver Lee was guarding in the second quarter of A&M's 52-10 win over McNeese State on Saturday at Kyle Field was running a mesh route over the middle. Lee ended up seeing Cowboy quarterback Kamden Sixkiller throw the ball, so he broke off his coverage to make a play. McNeese receiver Jessie Campbell dropped the pass, which fell into Lee's arms.
It was A&M's first forced turnover of the season, and Lee's first as an Aggie.
"It just so luckily got tipped and I was in the area, so it was just amazing to get my first pick here," said Lee, who transferred from Kansas State.
A&M linebacker Taurean York said after last weekend's loss to Notre Dame that the Aggies' No. 1 key to victory was win the turnover margin. A&M atoned for their shortcomings against the Irish, in which they lost the turnover battle 2-0, by getting a pair of interceptions. Both picks came in the second quarter and were turned into 10 points by the A&M offense.
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"It's just what we emphasized through practice all week, we need to start working on turning the ball over, attacking the ball when it's in the air," Lee said. "I just feel like starting with practice on Monday we just focused in on that and it relayed into the game."
Lee returned his interception four yards to the McNeese 35. The short field set up a quick six-play touchdown drive for the Aggies as quarterback Conner Weigman's 15-yard touchdown pass to Noah Thomas extended their lead to 28-0 with 10:32 left in the half.
Later in the second quarter, A&M linebacker Solomon DeShields hit Sixkiller as he threw and the wobbled pass fell into the arms of A&M safety Marcus Ratcliffe. A 12-yard return to the McNeese 40-yard line helped lead to a 42-yard field goal from kicker Randy Bond, who extended A&M's lead to 38-0 with just 44 seconds before the half.
"I think we were opportunistic," A&M head coach Mike Elko said. "We talk a lot about the turnover battle and winning the turnover battle and we were able to do that today. I think pressure created both of them, which is always a good thing too. Both of those kids did a nice job getting their hands on a tipped ball and we got some good returns on it. It was good to see."
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