Texas A&M star RB Le'Veon Moss returned vs. Miami, then limped to the locker room, leaving the Aggies' playoff run and Cotton Bowl hopes on edge.
Texas A&M finally got the good news it had been waiting on for two months ... and then watched it twist into a massive question mark in real time.
After two weeks to heal up following the rivalry loss to Texas, the Aggies entered Saturday's College Football Playoff first-round showdown against Miami at Kyle Field as healthy as they've been since October.
That included the long-anticipated return of starting running back Le'Veon Moss, who had missed the final six regular-season games with a lower-body injury suffered in the Oct. 11 win over Florida.
But in the third quarter, with A&M trailing 3-0 in a defensive rock fight, the entire building held its breath.
On a third-down carry that moved the chains, Moss was tackled, limped off, removed his helmet and quickly disappeared into the medical tent before heading to the locker room for further evaluation.
The immediate fear on the Aggies' sideline was obvious: had Moss re-aggravated the same lower-body issue that already cost him most of the season, the latest in a brutal stretch that included a torn ACL and MCL last year?
Before exiting, Moss logged seven carries for 15 yards and one reception for five, hardly the stat line Aggies fans imagined when they saw No. 8 back in the huddle for one of the biggest games in program history.
Even so, his season resume still jumps with 70 carries for 389 yards and six touchdowns in just six games, leaving him third on the team in rushing and tied with quarterback Marcel Reed for the team lead in rushing scores.
With Moss in the locker room, A&M was forced to lean on Rueben Owens II to grind out tough yards against Miami's physical front while Reed tried to navigate a playoff-level pass rush in a low-scoring slugfest.
Head coach Mike Elko had been coy all week about Moss’'status, saying the Aggies were in "wait-and-see mode." Now, that same phrase defines the rest of A&M's postseason outlook.
If the Aggies can survive Miami and advance to the Cotton Bowl to face Ohio State, Moss' health instantly becomes one of the biggest storylines in the CFP, and a potential swing factor in whether this suddenly surging program can keep its breakthrough season alive.