Wallace takes highroad while Aggies talk trash
By: Alex Dodd September 2, 2019

Top ranked Clemson and No. 12 Texas A&M played an instant classic in 2018 with the Tigers edging the Aggies 28-26 in Kyle Field.

Players from both teams have taken a personal stake in this year’s contest. A&M starting left guard Jared Hocker and wide receiver Jhamon Ausbon sounded off to members of the media holding nothing back.

“I like being the underdog, we always have something to prove and I’m looking forward to the opportunity,” said Hocker. “Yes, there will be an upset.”

Ausbon proved even more brazen in his comments to the media Monday. Not only did he claim the Aggies would win the junior essentially guaranteed a victory.

“I have never thought about losing a game this season and I can honestly say I’ve never done that before,” said Ausbon. “We saw last year how we let certain games slip and those were some great teams we played, kudos to them but we aren’t coming out with a loss.”

Usually when a team gears up to play the number one team in the nation you don’t hear a lot of trash talk but Texas A&M is anything but quiet in advance of Saturday’s game.

Clemson safety K’Von Wallace took the high road when asked about the Aggie comments later in the day on Monday. His focus, as well as the Tigers, is on preparing for the game, not predicting the outcome of the game.

“No, no comment,” Wallace said. “All we can do is focus on what we can control and perform well, that is all we can do.”

While Wallace steered away from the comments, he is taking this game personally. In 2018 Kellen Mond finished the game 23-for-40 for 430 YDS and three touchdowns. There were multiple tipped balls in the game, four of which belonged to Wallace, including a ball he let slip through his arms on the final play for Texas A&M before they failed a two-point conversion.

He doesn’t need any extra motivation then his units performance a year ago, while hearing a little trash talk from College Station won’t hurt, has driven him all offseason. Do not forget that Wallace forced the Quartney Davis fumble that kept the Tigers ahead 28-20 with two minutes remaining before giving up the score that allowed A&M to go for two with an opportunity to tie.

“If anything, it’s a personal thing because I feel like personally I left a lot out there,” Wallace said. “I want to redeem myself this game, but the intensity is the same and it’s the biggest game of the year because it’s the next one.”

No. 1 Clemson and the twelfth-ranked Aggies kick off at 3:30 pm on Saturday in Memorial Stadium.

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