While Cleeland had an excellent second half, i think a lot of credit needs to go to the O line. They showed up in the second half and gave Cleeland the extra time he needed to throw strikes.

How did we come out so flat on both sides of the ball? Too much joy? Does this buttress the argument that 2s and 3s at QB need PT? I'm guessing we also miss the veteran leadership from the Ivies.

It seemed like the team was filled with nerves and butterflies. Thankfully, halftime they had a chance to catch their breath and regain composure. The offensive line definitely improved in the second half. During the final drive, I turned to my son and said, that the last play appeared to be in slow motion, but in a good way

So much better on the line of scrimmage in the second half. Resilient bunch of guys.

"So do we still remain at #6?"
I have noticed that a victory, no matter how close or the quality of the opponent, is rarely a reason for a team dropping in the ratings. I suspect that most of the voters only look at the scores. The only other factor is what a team below them in the rating pulls off a big upset over a strong FBS team. That might put them ahead of the Aggies.

Post-game comments from Plough:

“I told our guys at halftime that I don’t have a 21-point play on the chart, so let’s just go out and try to make a play and then try to get a score and do it one step at a time,” said third-year Aggie head coach Tim Plough.

“This is the magic of Aggie Pride. We kept our composure and came back against a very good Portland State team. I always say you have to win all your home games and then try to steal a weird one on the road.”

Regarding the safety:

“I don’t know if that gave us a spark, but it did give us two points, so our mentality was let’s go get seven more points.”

About Treynor Cleeland:

“We’ve always known he was special, even if he still has a lot to learn, but he showed great poise in the second half.”

“It was a great lesson for him and will give him something to build on.”

https://www.thewaryone.com/p/fourth-quarter-heroics-lift-aggies?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33b11bf8-826e-4523-9edb-7974f5c725ba_6100x4067.jpeg&open=false