Can Jimbo become the Tiger King?
It’s time for sweet revenge. By: The Hammer
Operator won’t you put me on through I gotta send my hate down to Baton Rouge. This is TJB’s updated lyrics to the New Grass Revival’s classic song, “Callin’ Baton Rouge.” And yes, Garth Brooks covered that song but the original is better. Despite this rivalry being forced on both programs, I am starting to finally come around on it. I still don’t have near the level of hatred for LSU that I do for the arrogant Big 12 school down the road, but LSU fans are insufferable.
Jimbo’s alter ego.
I respect the Bayou Bengals football program. They have been fun to watch for a long time, dating back to the Nick Saban days in the early 2000s. They are known for playing hard nosed, defensive football and always have tons of great players who go on to play in the NFL. Coach O and Joe Burrow completely flipped the script for LSU last year, rocketing the program back into the limelight and into the 21st century offensively. This is a new era for LSU. Gone are the “three yards and a cloud of dust” days.
Their offense was unstoppable last year, while their defense struggled at first before finding its footing down the stretch en route to a 15-0 National Championship. But they lost everyone from last year's team. Five players went in the first round of the NFL draft, many others were drafted later and they suffered a few high profile opt outs like Ja’Marr Chase. LSU has not been consistent or good this year and now is the time to solidify this rivalry game.
LSU had beaten A&M every year since joining the SEC until the incredible 7-overtime thriller in 2018. LSU fans still whine about losing that game and it looked like the rivalry finally may have some legs. A&M had won a game and LSU was pissed. They took out that anger on the Aggies last year to the tune of a 50-7 beatdown in Death Valley. Now it’s our turn to whoop up on them and make this a true rivalry game. If we beat LSU this year, and do it convincingly, the rivalry is on.
Jimbo and the Aggies are not slowing down, and the LSU faithful will be livid if they lose two of the last three games. They will finally see A&M as a legitimate threat to their perceived greatness and place among SEC West royalty. I’m hoping not only for a A&M win, but a big one. Run the score up on these chumps. They did it to us last year and we have to respond. We are playing way better than them this year and it would be oh so sweet to pound these fools into the Kyle Field turf.
The formerly vaunted LSU defense is currently sitting at second to last in the SEC in total defense. Bo Pelini has not been able to figure anything out on that side of the ball this year and the Aggies should have a big day. The LSU pass defense is dead last in the SEC right now giving up 335.8 yards per game, so look for Jimbo to try to attack down field. Keep in mind, those passing numbers don’t even include Alabama or Florida as those games were canceled/postponed for LSU. If those games are played, their stats would be much worse.
The Aggies don’t have a go to down field threat, but since everyone has been able to beat the Tiger’s secondary, I’m sure we can figure it out. Hell, Missouri threw the pigskin all over the place with a freshman quarterback against LSU. I expect Wydermyer to have a good game and think Ainias Smith can be a gamebreaker. Although Smith is not a traditional wide receiver or deep ball threat, he is the Aggies best big play threat. Chase Lane has also shown the speed to run away from defenders in the open field. I know Kellen will be ready to end his career against LSU on a high note and will be sharp. The secondary can be exploited.
On the ground game, the LSU defense is better. They allow 136 rush yards per game, good enough for 6th in the SEC. I’m not worried though, A&M has run on everyone except Alabama and that game got away from the Aggies quickly, forcing us into throwing situations. I see no reason a rested Isaiah Spiller and Devon Achane can’t run on this Tiger front.
Photo: Logan Riely, Texas A&M Athletics
On the other side of the ball, A&M is ranked first in the SEC in total defense (as highlighted in our last post), and the LSU offense has been very inconsistent. True freshman TJ Finley has not seen a defensive front as good as A&M, and if we can put pressure on him, he’ll make mistakes. I’m counting on the Aggie front seven to stop the run and get pressure on Finley all night. Force Finley to beat us through the air, and we’ll walk away with an easy win. I don’t think he is ready to do that, especially with how good our secondary has looked as of late. The Aggie back end is also boosted by the return of safety Demani Richardson, who missed a couple of games due to COVID-19.
The only reason LSU hung around and beat Arkansas last week is because they were able to run the ball against a depleted Razorback defensive line and control the ball. They dominated time of possession, holding the ball for over 40 minutes. This enabled Finley to play with limited pressure and take what the defense gave him because they ran the ball well. I trust Elko to formulate a good game plan that forces Finley into uncomfortable situations and makes him beat us.
LSU has been good throwing the ball all year, averaging 327 yards per game through the air. But a lot of that was with Myles Brennan and I don’t think he’ll be suited up on Saturday. They have weapons on the outside as always so I could see them getting a few big plays, just not enough to keep pace with A&M. I also see Finley having a few turnovers.
I’m getting jacked up just thinking about this game. It’s our time. There is way too much on the line for a let down. Plus, we owe the Bayou Bengals an ass whooping. I want to shut their fans up and let them know we have arrived.
Texas A&M: 38
LSU: 17
#BTHOLSU
