We’re entering the final stretch of the college football regular season. Most Power 4 conference teams have either 2 or 3 games remaining before (hopefully) earning a bowl berth or College Football Playoff spot.
When the regular season ends, award season begins. This afternoon, the Joe Moore Award — given to the most outstanding offensive line unit in the country — revealed its 10 semifinalists. Two SEC teams (Texas A&M and Vanderbilt) made the list, along with Cincinnati, Duke, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Oregon and Utah.
Neither Texas A&M nor Vanderbilt have won the Joe Moore Award before. The only semifinalist schools that have won the Joe Moore Award are Iowa (2016) and Michigan (2021, 2022).
There’s more to offensive line play than rushing yards, but a strong ground attack is usually the result of great offensive line play. The Aggies rank 6th amongst the semifinalists in rushing yards per game (204.9). The Commodores, with 185.2 rushing yards per game, slot in the No. 8 spot. Utah leads the semifinalist teams in rushing yards per game (267.1).
Texas A&M ran for 243 yards (6.2 yards per carry) and 3 touchdowns in its 38-17 victory over Missouri last weekend. Vanderbilt also poured in 3 rushing touchdowns in its overtime triumph against Auburn in Week 11. The Aggies and Commodores will try to perform even better when they battle South Carolina and Kentucky, respectively, in Week 12.
