Manziel leads Texas A&M to rout of Mississippi St.

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STARKVILLE, Miss. — Several hours before Texas A&M's 38-13 whitewashing of Mississippi State in its all-white uniforms, Aggies running back Ben Malena strolled through a door of Davis Wade Stadium and stopped short at the sight inside.

"I thought we had walked into another team's locker room," Malena said.

Sleek black uniforms were laid out for the players in a program sporting maroon since the 1920s.

"There was screaming and yelling like we had just won a game," A&M defensive end Damontre Moore said of the wardrobe surprise.

No. 15 Mississippi State (7-2, 3-2 Southeastern Conference) had played up its wearing of all white, in tribute to the "Snow Bowl" — a Bulldogs overtime victory over the Aggies in the 2000 Independence Bowl. So No. 16 A&M (7-2, 4-2) chose to have a little fun of its own, and the result was a clash in black and white between two teams typically donning maroon.

"They created an energy I hadn't seen from this team in a while," Aggies center Pat Lewis said of the Adidas outfits that included black helmets with an outline of the state of Texas.

In black, maroon or white, A&M's energy to start games has been exceptional under first-year coach Kevin Sumlin. The Aggies blasted to a 24-0 first-half lead, including scoring a touchdown on their first possession for the sixth consecutive game.

"To be successful on the road and to start the way we have the last couple of weeks, the confidence level has to be high," Sumlin said. "It's a tribute to the seniors who've really pushed this team."

Tough test up next

A week earlier, A&M roared to a 21-0 first-quarter lead at Auburn in a 63-21 victory. The Aggies have won their first two contests of a three-game SEC road swing by a combined 67 points. Top-ranked Alabama is up next Saturday in A&M's first visit to Tuscaloosa.

STARKVILLE, MS - NOVEMBER 03: Johnny Manziel #2 of the Texas A&M Aggies leaps into the endzone during a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Wade Davis Stadium on November 3, 2012 in Starkville, Mississippi. less STARKVILLE, MS - NOVEMBER 03: Johnny Manziel #2 of the Texas A&M Aggies leaps into the endzone during a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Wade Davis Stadium on November 3, 2012 in Starkville, ... more Photo: Stacy Revere, Getty Images Photo: Stacy Revere, Getty Images Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Manziel leads Texas A&M to rout of Mississippi St. 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

"The more you win, the bigger the games get," Sumlin said. "Consistency in preparation is the key for us, and we'll approach this week just like we've done every other week."

Aggies quarterback Johnny Manziel continued making his case as a Heisman Trophy candidate with 440 total yards, 130 more than the entire Mississippi State squad thanks to another strong effort by the A&M defense. Manziel rushed for a game-high 129 yards and completed 30 of 36 passes for 311 yards.

The Aggies piled up 693 yards of offense in a school-record eighth consecutive game with at least 400 yards.

Despite the high passing numbers, A&M's five touchdowns came on the ground, including 37- and 8-yard sprints by Manziel, 22- and 1-yard scores by Christine Michael, and a 1-yard leap by Malena.

The Aggies are 5-0 away from Kyle Field this season, and the Bulldogs were the highest-ranked foe A&M has defeated on the road since 2006 — a 12-7 victory over No. 11 Texas in Austin.

New look suits Sumlin

About that sleek, all-black ensemble?

"It was a good look for us today," said Sumlin, who added recruits probably enjoyed the scenery change as well. "It gave us a little energy, and I know that didn't hurt at all."