Texas A&M vs LSU Preview
A night game in Death Valley awaits the Aggies as they close out the 2021 season. By: The Hammer
Andre White Jr takes down Max Johnson last year in the Aggies 20-7 win. Photo by Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports
The Aggies travel to Death Valley tomorrow to take on LSU in Coach O’s final game as coach. LSU also happens to be 5-6, meaning they need to win this game to make a bowl game. Although this game won’t get much national attention due to the poor season LSU has had, make no mistake this is a big game for both teams.
These teams don’t like each other. This rivalry isn’t as heated as the A&M and Texas one or the LSU and Alabama one, but the hate is there. The LSU players and coaches want to beat A&M, and they’ll be up for this game simply because of that. Add on that they need to win in order to make a bowl game, and it’s Coach O’s last game, you have a recipe for a team that’s going to play hard as hell. Oh and by the way, it is a night game in Death Valley, arguably the hardest venue to play in the country.
From A&M’s perspective, there is a ton on the line as well. First and foremost, the Aggies have not won in Baton Rouge since joining the SEC. We have won two of the last three meetings with LSU, but both were at home. Beating the Tigers in Death Valley would be another feather in Jimbo’s cap, and a necessary step to building a championship level program. A win will secure a very good bowl game, likely on New Years Day, and the potential for a 10 win season. And that matters. Going 10-3 in the SEC West when your starting quarterback gets hurt in week 2 means something.
I know that isn't what most fans were hoping for preseason, and it’s easy to get caught up in the minutiae week to week, but if you zoom out and look at the big picture, a 10-3 season means something. So yeah, the Aggies want this game. The players, coaches and fans really want to beat LSU.
Photo via LSU Sports
It would be pretty embarrassing to lose here. LSU is depleted. They fired their coach. Most of their impact players are hurt (Stingley, Ricks, Boutte, Gaye, Burns, etc). That team is hanging on by a thread. Give them a ton of credit for continuing to play hard, as they took Alabama and Arkansas to the brink in recent weeks, narrowly losing both games. But they should not be able to beat Texas A&M with their current roster and coaching staff. Texas A&M is the better team and program right now, so we need to go show it on Saturday night.
I feel good about this game for a few reasons. First, everything I just laid out is stuff the players and coaches already know. They understand how important this game is for this season, and the program moving forward. They will be ready to play. When it comes to the actual matchup, I could see this one playing out similar to last season. LSU is very limited right now, especially offensively. I referenced the Arkansas and Alabama games as evidence the Tigers are playing hard, and they are, but still only scored 13 and 14 points in those games respectively, and our defense is better than both those teams.
I don’t see the LSU offensive line being able to block our front seven, and the weapons on the outside don’t scare me. I’m confident we can hold LSU to 14 points or less, so the key here will be the offense. LSU’s defense has been playing quite well as of late, giving up a total of 50 points in their last 3 games. Daronte Jones has this unit playing hard and it seems like once Ed O fully gave Jones the reins on this defense, they have figured a few things out.
We’ve seen A&M’s offense struggle mightily when the run game can’t get going, and that is my biggest worry here. Alabama rushed for 6 total yards while Arkansas managed 141 rushing yards. I think we can win this game with an output similar to the Razorbacks on the ground, but I’d feel much better if we could get closer to 200. Just the reality of where this offense is. The passing game has been inconsistent all year, so assuming Calzada has a great game with a beat up receiving corps, is not one I would put my money on. Calzada is capable, and the receivers have talent even with the injuries, but we haven’t been able to count on a strong aerial attack all year long.
LSU is going to sell out to stop the run just like Ole Miss did, so we have got to be able to block better up front and handle the heat they bring. I trust our pass protection in this game, but Jimbo will need to call a good game. Thankfully A&M should not fall behind quickly in this game, so Jimbo should stick with the run game more than he did in Oxford, but there needs to be holes for the tailbacks to find.
In terms of the passing game, I’m hoping Moose Muhammad gets some more run on the outiside. In the two games he has seen considerable snaps, he’s filled up the stat sheet. I realize those numbers were put up against New Mexico and Prairie View, but I think it's clear he has solid chemistry with Calzada, and he catches the damn ball, something the receivers have had trouble with all year. Jimbo said both Caleb Chapman and Ainias Smith will play despite getting injured against Prairie View, which is great news but I’m interested to see how healthy they are. Either way, I hope we see a lot of Moose here. The kid can play.
All that said, this game comes down the trenches. Nothing new here. If A&M can run the ball and stop LSU’s run game, we win with ease. If we struggle to run the ball and it becomes a battle between Calzada vs Johnson, this will be a four quarter rock fight, and defensive plays could decide the outcome, just like the Ole Miss game or the LSU game a year ago when Buddy Johnson took an interception back to the house. Given how dominant our defense is, I’m going with A&M but this has the potential to be very uncomfortable for Aggie fans. At the end of the night, it’s going to feel great sending off Ed O with a loss and watching LSU sit at home during bowl season while Jimbo continues to steal recruits out of their backyard. Gig em damn Aggies!
Texas A&M 20
LSU 10
