WATCH: Seth Small's family watches game-winning kick against Alabama
Texas A&M kicker Seth Small could never play another down of football, and he would still go down in Aggies’ lore as the hero that delivered when it mattered most.
Small on Saturday helped Texas A&M achieve what many thought was impossible for the Aggies, nailing a field goal as time expired to knock off No. 1 Alabama, 41-38. Among the many shocking storylines of the Aggies’ signature win was the fact that Nick Saban lost his first-ever game to a former assistant in Fisher, dropping to 24-1` on his career after Small’s field goal. Meanwhile, Alabama’s 100-game win streak against unranked opponents, which dated back to 2007, ended Saturday. And of course, perhaps the most shocking part, it was Texas A&M of all schools — the same Aggies that lost to both No. 13 Arkansas and unranked Mississippi State — that upended the Crimson Tide via Small’s clutch delivery.
Small was unfazed by the pressure when it mattered most, and for that, Aggies fans can only thank him. Small’s family, however, sure appeared to have felt the second-hand pressure. But they were the first ones to celebrate after he made it.
When Small lined up to kick the game-winner, a Texas A&M videographer, Cam Worthy, captured his family’s reaction and shared the emotional moment on Twitter. His family prayed prior to the kick, and they leapt over the railing onto the field after he nailed it.
It’s a night that Texas A&M won’t soon forget, and for good reason. The first half was all Aggies — Fisher’s unranked Texas A&M team hit the locker room for halftime with a 24-10 lead well before Small was needed in crunch time, a lead that in most cases would all but seal the fate of the game. But against the No. 1 Crimson Tide, Texas A&M was still not the favorite to win at halftime, even with a sizable lead.
Surely enough, Alabama did its best to prove why that was the case, setting up Small’s moment. The Crimson Tide put up a 14-point third quarter, then another 14-point fourth quarter, capped off by a seven-yard touchdown pass from Bryce Young to Jameson Williams and a two-point conversion, to give Texas A&M the ball back with a seven-point deficit and five minutes remaining.
Texas A&M made the most of its final possession, however, scoring a 25-yard touchdown pass from Zach Calzada to Ainias Smith; the ensuing extra point conversion made it a 38-38 ballgame, and Alabama was unable to score the go-ahead touchdown or field goal shortly thereafter. Instead, it was Texas A&M — and Small, the kicker — that managed to get just enough offense to set up a game-winning, 28-yard field goal that will go down in Texas A&M history.