Texas A&M visits Auburn on Saturday in Auburn, Ala. Here are your three keys to an Aggie victory.
By Matt Zemek
The Texas A&M Aggies are right where they want to be: in the mix for a College Football Playoff berth and, if they don’t make it, a substantial consolation prize known as a New Year’s Six bowl game.
Texas A&M will play a high-profile bowl game against a really good team. The Aggies are firmly in the top 10 and trying to crack the top four. They can’t control what happens among Notre Dame, Clemson, Ohio State, and Alabama, but they can control their own games and stay in the playoff chase. This weekend, the Aggies face one of their tougher tests in the latter half of the 2020 season, a road trip to Auburn to face the Jekyll-and-Hyde Tigers.
Is this the Auburn team which face-planted against South Carolina and was utterly outclassed by Alabama, or is this the Auburn team which beat LSU by 37 points and dominated the second half against Tennessee? Auburn is predictably unpredictable and regularly volatile. It’s how Auburn rolls. The Auburn-Texas A&M series has mirrored Auburn’s existence in recent years, with this game usually being won by the road team, not the home team. A&M has the better squad heading into Jordan-Hare Stadium, but Jimbo Fisher’s team has to go out and prove it.
1 – Win the battle up front
The A&M offensive line was not able to blow LSU off the ball. The Aggies’ rushing game was contained, and when that happens, Kellen Mond is not in the best position to succeed. Isaiah Spiller busted loose for a 52-yard run. On his other 26 carries against LSU, he was penned in by the Tigers. A&M collected just 267 yards, and Mond never found a rhythm as a passer. Every A&M offensive lineman needs to take that LSU game personally, and play mad against Auburn. The Aggies need to be nasty, they need to be authoritative, and they need to grab this game by the throat in the first half so that Auburn is knocked back on its heels, its confidence shaken.
2 – Force someone other than Seth Williams to make plays for Auburn
Seth Williams dropped a touchdown pass this past weekend against Alabama, but he is still – by far – Auburn’s best receiving threat. He is Bo Nix’s security blanket and preferred option on most Auburn passing plays. LSU didn’t give A&M an elite downfield threat, and that’s a big part of why the Aggies were able to gig the Tigers. Seth Williams of Auburn could be a problem, however. He needs to be respected and attacked accordingly by A&M defensive coordinator Mike Elko.
3 – Don’t let Bo Nix scramble
Gus Malzahn’s run-pass options put quarterback Bo Nix in situations where he can run for first downs. LSU quarterback T.J. Finley – who physically resembles former LSU signal-caller Rohan Davey – is not a fast runner. LSU lacked the dual-threat dimension which could get A&M’s defense off balance. Nix, while not a good passer, is a capable runner. A&M doesn’t want Nix to beat the Aggies at all, but especially not on the ground. Force Nix to win this game with his arm, not his legs.
Saturday‘s game kicks off at 11:00 AM CT (12:00 PM ET). You can watch this Texas A&M football game on the ESPN Network.
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