Earle Bruce donned a suit and fedora to shake his sullen image and the OSU defense, sporting red shoes, seemed to pick up on the coach’s moxie.

Ohio State intercepted five Aggie passes and returned two of them for scores to help the Big Ten collect a win in its first Cotton Bowl appearance. Linebacker Chris Spielman pilfered two interceptions, returned one for a touchdown in the third period, posted 11 tackles and won the game’s defensive MVP award.

Quarterback Jim Karsatos scored on a three-yard keeper to give the Buckeyes a 7-6 halftime lead and running back Vince Workman added an eight-yard TD run in the third quarter for a 21-6 lead. Texas A&M closed to within 21-12 early in the final period, but linebacker Michael Kee’s 49-yard interception return for a touchdown sealed the game.

OSU finished the campaign with a 10-3 record and was rated No. 6 in the final UPI poll. This was the final bowl game for Bruce, who went 5-3 in the postseason. He was fired the following season and Ohio State would not go bowling in either of the next two seasons.