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LSU vs. Texas A&M fearless prediction and game preview.
LSU vs. Texas A&M Broadcast
Date: Saturday, November 30
Game Time: 7:00 ET
Live Stream: fuboTV (click to watch for free)
Venue: Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, LA
Network: ESPN
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Texas A&M (7-4) vs. LSU (11-0) Game Preview
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Why Texas A&M Will Win
QB Kellen Mond, your table is ready.
As good as LSU might be – whether or not it’s No. 2 in the CFP rankings or in the to spot – it’s having problems defensively.
Who have the top five defenses in college football? Ohio State, Clemson, Utah, Michigan and Georgia. Four of those teams are deep in the College Football Playoff discussion, and the other is a not-that-bad team that’s probably going to finish up in the top 15 overall.
By the way, Minnesota is tenth in the nation in total D. Where is LSU?
43rd.
It’s been able to make up for the issues with its unstoppable offense, but it’s also been playing with fire.
Mond might have thrown six touchdown passes in last year’s epic 74-72 win over the Tigers, but he wasn’t exactly on – it was the only time all season long he failed to connect on half of his throws.
This year he’s been a bit erratic, he hasn’t been huge in the bigger games, and he hasn’t had the season the team needed out of him against one of the nation’s most brutal schedules.
This is the game to make up for it.
The Aggies are going bowling, they have nothing to lose, and they can just let it rip after putting up a nice fight in a 19-13 loss at Georgia. Considering the rain throughout the first half, Mond was solid.
LSU’s secondary has allowed 200 yard or more seven times, gave up over 400 passing yards to Tua Tagovailoa and Sam Ehlinger, and now it’s Mond’s turn to come up with a signature game.
On the other side, the A&M secondary has been brilliant over the second half of the year – it hasn’t allowed a quarterback to hit half of his passes over the last five games.
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Why LSU Will Win
Clyde Edwards-Helaire.
It’s Joe Burrow’s Heisman to lose, but it’s a 5-9, 209-pound pinball of a running back who’s been the closer.
It took just six carries or Edwards-Helaire to go 188 yards with three touchdowns last week against Arkansas to make it four straight 100-yard games, and now he has to be a difference-maker to at least make the A&M defense worry about the ground game.
The Aggies have been great against the run lately, but they had their problems against the teams that committed to the ground game – Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Auburn. That’s where Edwards-Helaire comes in.
Burrow will be Burrow. He’s been able to produce against the Florida secondary, the Alabama defense, and everyone else thrown at him – he’ll hit his normal share of big plays this week. But when the team has needed to put games away with a few grinding moments to move the chains, it’s been Edwards-Helaire.
What’s Going To Happen
Yeah, good … luck.
How are we supposed to enjoy whatever is about to happen in Baton Rouge after the last game these two played?
The 74-72, seven-overtime thing that went on the last time these two played was a hoot, but this time around it’s even more important.
LSU can go from the nation’s absolute No. 1 team to out of the College Football Playoff if it loses this week and then gets dropped by Georgia in the SEC Championship.
On the other side, A&M is already bowl eligible, but after already having to play Clemson, Alabama, Georgia, and Auburn – and losing all four games – this would be the signature win in the Jimbo Fisher era.
Yes, even more than what happened last year.
But LSU’s defense will answer the call with one of its better performances, considering the circumstances.
Don’t be surprised if being dropped to No. 2 by the College Football Playoff committee lights a wee bit of a fire under a team that doesn’t exactly have a problem with motivation.
Burrow and the Tiger O will be fine, but they’ll have to battle to put the game away late – A&M’s style and pace will be a problem. The slightly-maligned D will rock against the run, and the secondary won’t let Mond do anything too special.
It’ll be fun. Just not seven-overtime fun.
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LSU vs. Texas A&M Prediction, Line
LSU 41, Texas A&M 27
Bet on this with BetMGM, or for latest line
LSU -17, o/u: 62.5
Live Stream: fuboTV (click to watch for free)
ATS Confidence out of 5: 2
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Must See Rating: 4.5
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Predicting The Rest of the Season
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