Florida football hosts the Texas A&M Aggies in the Swamp and CBS Sports believes this is Week 3’s most interesting game in the SEC.
Both teams are coming off of blowout victories against FCS opponents and you can bet that each squad will be fired up and ready to go come Saturday.
The Gators and Aggies are each 1-1, both losing their Week 1 contests at home. Florida lost to the Miami Hurricanes while Texas A&M lost to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
CBS sports writer Brandon Marcello ranked the most interesting SEC games of the week as well as picking the spread in each game.
Here is what he came up with.
Most interesting SEC game of the week
Texas A&M at Florida sits at the top of Marcello’s rankings of the most interesting SEC games of Week 3.
Here is what he said about the Gators.
“Billy Napier is already on the hottest seat in the country, but he was provided a ray of hope last week when freshman quarterback DJ Lagway sizzled in The Swamp for his debut as a starter,” Marcello wrote.
“However, Napier said he may side with senior Graham Mertz if he’s cleared from concussion protocol. Playing both quarterbacks vs. the Aggies seems like a good way to mess up a good thing. Why complicate matters? Nothing comes easy for the Gator faithful, it seems.”
CBS Sports picks Gators spread (+4) vs Aggies
Marcello emphasizes that Florida will have more success on offense if Lagway logs most of the snaps.
“Florida’s offense got a much-needed spark in Lagway’s debut last week, but if Graham Mertz returns from concussion protocol, Napier seems intent on starting the senior over the freshman,” Marcello wrote. “Might that be a mistake? Lagway set a school record for a true freshman with 456 passing yards in the 45-7 win against FCS Samford. Napier said he will use both quarterbacks if Mertz is available.”
Marcello continued, “Texas A&M got its running backs going last week, rushing for 333 yards, the most for the Aggies since 2018, but the rushing defense has been subpar (189 yards per game). Can Conner Weigman outduel Florida’s quarterbacks? Not if Lagway plays most of the snaps.”
Coming up for the Gators
Florida will play at home in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium against Texas A&M on Saturday, Sept. 14. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ABC.
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