Aggies take on their biggest SEC (forced) rival, South Carolina
Can Texas A&M make it 7 in a row against the Gamecocks? By: The Hammer
Beating Arkansas. Beating South Carolina. As Aggies, it is our birthright. A&M is 6-0 all-time against South Carolina. Cash that 7-0 check for me, please.
Kellen Mond is playing the best football of his career. The hogs up front are in the conversation of being the best offensive line in the country. Isaiah Spiller is having a breakout sophomore season behind that blocking. Agent 0 is showing why coaches were so pumped to land him as a recruit. The defense is holding their own and has shown flashes of breaking through to greatness. It’s coming together in College Station.
Photo: Rogelio V. Solis, AP Photo
The most important thing this team has is belief. They are playing their most confident football of the Jimbo Fisher era. The win over Florida gave the boys in Maroon the confidence to know they can hang with anyone in the country - and win. This is the most dangerous Aggie team since the Manziel era. And we have a much, much better defense than those years.
With that background of momentum, it’s time to do what we’ve done to two straight opponents: impose our will on an inferior team.
South Carolina has had a roller coaster year. They opened the year with a narrow loss to then #16 Tennessee (that loss looks worse as time has gone on), barely hung around against #3 Florida, then finally got in the win column with a beatdown of SEC doormat Vanderbilt. Then the real weirdness started. The SC secondary played a heck of a game and the Gamecocks pulled off a big win against #15 Auburn. They followed that solid win with a...total dud against LSU, losing 52-24 to an LSU team that at this point I think we can say is bad. Then the same Auburn team that USC beat, turned around and blew the doors off the Bayou Bengals last weekend 48-11.
2020 is weird.
So how are the Ags going to get this done? Where are the weak spots, the strengths?
This game to me is similar to the gameplan against Arkansas. The Gamecocks have talent in spots, but A&M has more talent across the board. SC feeds off of forcing turnovers and trying to control the clock. If you don’t turn the ball over, SC doesn’t have much hope. Auburn let the Gamecocks back in the game with 3 turnovers on the day, otherwise, the Tigers run away with that game. LSU had one interception but took care of the ball most of the night. LSU followed the “pound the rock, take smart shots, don’t turn the ball over'' gameplan that the Aggies followed to a T against Arkansas. It’s the same script again, and it’s that simple: play to your strengths by running behind an O-line that is more like a bulldozer, give Kellen time to take shots, and hold onto that ball, Petey.
On defense, it’s fairly simple as well. Key in on the run (RB Kevin Smith has gone over 100 yards in 3/5 games), get pressure on Collin Hill (this offensive line has given up 10 sacks in five games - they’re vulnerable), and force the Gamecocks to beat you through the air. Shi Smith is in the upper tier of SEC receivers and Collin Hill is decent at QB. But outside of Shi Smith, this WR corps has been drop prone and has yet to step up. Smith has 36 catches on the year, while the next closest is Nick Muse - with just 14. With the second-best rushing defense in the SEC and tied for 2nd in sacks with 14 on the year, this Aggie defense must be licking their chops for this matchup.
South Carolina can be a pesky team, as they’ve proven over the course of our storied SEC rivalry. I expect this game to take a similar track as their game against Florida game, and ours against Arkansas: The Gamecocks hang around for a while until talent and execution help the Ags pull away. Isaiah Spiller has another big night, keeping pace to be the best RB in the SEC. Kellen takes care of the ball like he’s done all year and has a great night through the air, while the defense plays lights out and tallies four sacks. The matchups are in our favor all over the field. Time to execute.
We’re going to walk out of Williams-Brice Stadium with another convincing win, keeping the path clear for the Aggies to make noise in 2020.
#7 Texas A&M 45
South Carolina 21
#BTHOSouthCarolina
