And Justice For All.

BOXSCORE
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
| Coastal Carolina | 0 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
| Texas A&M | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
ScoringSummary
| Q | Team | Time | Play | Coastal Carolina | Texas A&M |
| 2nd | Coastal Carolina | 9:36 | Justice Spear, 1 Yd Run | 7 | 0 |
| 2nd | Texas A&M | 6:24 | Charlie Wall, 51 Yd FG | 7 | 3 |
| 2nd | Coastal Carolina | 6:06 | Justice Spear, 84 Yd Run | 14 | 3 |
| 2nd | Coastal Carolina | 1:09 | Gene Marable, 34 Yd FG | 17 | 3 |
| 2nd | Texas A&M | 0:38 | Sam Session, 24 Yd Pass From Cooper Rossi | 17 | 10 |
| 4th | Coastal Carolina | 6:20Justice Spear, 14 Yd Run | 24 | 10 |
| 4th | Texas A&M | 3:22 | Cliff Adams, 12 Yd Pass From Cooper Rossi | 24 | 17 |
Coastal Carolina
Passing_Stats
| Fredrick Meredith | 22/31, 134 Yds |
Rushing_Stats
| Justice Spear | 23 Att, 252 Yds, 3 TD |
| Fredrick Meredith | 6 Att, 49 Yds |
| David Agudosi | 5 Att, 14 Yds |
| Duke Kryspin | 1 Att, 3 Yds |
| Jalen Rawls | 1 Att, 1 Yd |
Receiving_Stats
| David Agudosi | 8 Rec, 39 Yds |
| Denard Cruise | 5 Rec, 49 Yds |
| Tyler Hagg | 4 Rec, 24 Yds |
| Justice Spear | 2 Rec, 7 Yds |
| Jamal Stephen | 1 Rec, 1 Yd |
| Tavares Tinker | 1 Rec, 6 Yds |
| David Goedeke | 1 Rec, 8 Yds |
Defensive_Stats
| LB Manu Filimoeatu | 8 Tkl, 3 TFL, 3.5 Sacks |
| CB Mike Momah | 8 Tkl, TFL, INT |
| DE Alfonso Smith | 5 Tkl, 5 TFL, 2 Sacks |
| MLB Anthony Atogwe | 3 Tkl, TFL |
| DT Jermaine Uzomah | 3 Tkl, 3 TFL, 2.5 Sacks |
| DE Ramon Queiro | Tkl, TFL, Sack |
Texas A&M
Passing_Stats
| Cooper Rossi | 21/25, 333 Yds, 2 TD, INT |
Rushing_Stats
| Cooper Rossi | 10 Att, -70 Yds |
| Ben McCloud | 4 Att, 9 Yds |
| Nick Morales | 1 Att, -2 Yds |
| LaMarcus Sweet | 1 Att, 2 Yds |
| Fetu East | 1 Att, 1 Yd |
Receiving_Stats
| Nate Raji | 6 Rec, 96 Yds |
| Carmelo Tongue | 4 Rec, 56 Yds |
| Hayden Perkins | 3 Rec, 39 Yds |
| LaMarcus Sweet | 3 Rec, 57 Yds |
| Cliff Adams | 2 Rec, 51 Yds, TD |
| Sam Session | 1 Rec, 24 Yds, TD |
| Ben McCloud | 1 Rec, 1 Yd |
| Victor Best | 1 Rec, 9 Yds |
Defensive_Stats
| MLB Antoine Prater | 16 Tkl, TFL |
| SS Anthony Paulo | 9 Tkl |
| LB Garrison Keur | 8 Tkl, TFL |
| DE Javier Hardman | 4 Tkl, TFL, Sack |
Los Angeles, CA. - All season long, Coach Kade Vaughn called Justice Spear the “unsung hero” of the Chanticleers’ run. After a National Championship record 252 rushing yards vaulted him to the top of both the Coastal Carolina and ACC single season rushing record, that label no longer applies.
“I didn’t mind it — less attention, more room to eat,” Spear laughed afterward when asked if he ever felt overlooked despite finishing second nationally in rushing this season.
Spear was exactly the kind of tone-setter Coastal needed in a defensive, grind-it-out battle against a Texas A&M defense built to erase explosive plays.
The Aggies loaded up to contain the Chanticleers’ downfield passing attack, daring sophomore QB Fredrick Meredith to win with patience. Despite taking several deep shots to Denard Cruise, none connected, and Coastal was held to a season-low 134 passing yards. But Meredith stayed composed.
“I got into trouble earlier this season trying to take what I wanted, not what they gave me,” the quarterback said. “I wasn’t about to lose us the game trying to show off.”
After Coastal’s opening drive stalled on a dropped 4th-and-2 pass by Tavares Tinker, the defense quickly flipped momentum — a sack pushed A&M out of field goal range and forced a punt.
From there, Coastal engineered a 16-play march capped by Spear’s 1-yard dive over the pile on 4th-and-goal. A&M responded with a field goal, but the Chanticleers struck again moments later — this time with thunder.
After another near miss on a deep ball, the Aggies finally bit, abandoning their two-high safety look for a lighter box. Spear made them pay, bursting through a gaping crease for an 84-yard touchdown that electrified the stadium and made it 14–3 Coastal.
“You saw the threat of that deep ball and you could tell it scared the Aggies,” said ESPN’s Jordan Palmer on the broadcast. “They dropped the safeties, played light up front — and Spear had all the daylight in the world.”
A Mike Momah interception later set up a field goal to extend the lead to 17–3, but A&M clawed back before halftime behind WR Sam Session, who reeled in a one-handed grab and sprinted to the end zone to make it 17–10 at the break.
The third quarter belonged to the defenses until Spear capped his night with his third touchdown, a 14-yard cutback run to make it 24–10 early in the fourth.
It looked over after back-to-back sacks by LB Manu Filimoeatu pinned A&M deep at their own 4-yard line, but Aggies QB Cooper Rossi had other ideas. Facing 3rd-and-23, he fired a 39-yard strike to Cliff Adams, then found Nate Raji for 43 more before hitting Adams again for a 12-yard score that cut the lead to 24–17 with 3:22 left.
Coach Billy Napier trusted his defense, kicking deep instead of attempting an onside — but his offense would never touch the ball again.
Behind a steady diet of Spear runs, Coastal bled the clock to midfield. Facing 4th-and-4 from their own 49, Vaughn kept the offense on the field.
“They had momentum and timeouts — I wasn’t about to let them get another miracle bomb and send this thing to overtime,” Vaughn said postgame.
Meredith rolled right, baited the linebackers to step up, and rifled a dart to Cruise on a crossing route. Ball game.
The decision left Napier facing harsh scrutiny afterward, particularly for giving RB Ben McCloud — a 1,677-yard, 33-touchdown rusher — just four carries all night.
“They’ve got the best rushing defense in football,” Napier said tersely. “We felt we had a better opportunity to attack between the numbers.”
When a reporter pressed him on whether sticking with the run might’ve slowed Coastal’s relentless nine-sack pass rush, Napier snapped:
“You want to coach next time?” he barked before moving to the next question.
For Vaughn, the win cements his place among college football’s elite — two national titles in five years, silencing critics who once dismissed his 2028 championship as a portal-fueled fluke.
On ESPN’s postgame set, Vaughn was asked about the future, with several key underclassmen draft-eligible.
“I’ll never fault a guy for doing what’s best for his family,” Vaughn said. “We’ve done as good a job as anyone in recruiting — whoever’s back, we expect to be right here again next year.”
When Kirk Herbstreit pressed him on whether Meredith might return after a “lackluster” passing performance, Vaughn’s answer was pure Kade Vaughn.
“You say lackluster — I say championship. He played smart, took what was there, made no mistakes. What more do you want than mistake-free football and a win?
I don’t know what Fred’s gonna do, but any GM watching — the kid’s legit. Judge him by the body of work, not one game.”
As confetti rained and the teal and black flags waved high, Coastal Carolina — once the underdog darling of the sport — stood tall again as a dynasty in full bloom.
Spear soaring over the defense for the first of his three touchdown in a record setting Championship performance.
Despite nine sacks, the Aggies were right in it after Nate Raji made a spectacular leaping grab over Mike Momah to set up a late touchdown and pull the Aggies within a touchdown.
Cooper Rossi had a strong outing for the Aggies, but after absorbing 9 sacks you have to wonder what the contest could have held if A&M kept their QB up right, or ran the ball at all.