Texas A&M Football vs. LSU Prediction, Odds, Spread and Over/Under for College Football Week 13

Texas A&M football travels to Baton Rouge this week for the final game of their regular season, taking on the LSU Tigers. This promises to be a huge challenge for the Aggies in several respects: the Maroon and White are down to their third string quarterback, Jaylen Henderson, who will be making his first road start; this is possibly the best offense the Aggies have yet faced; and the Tigers will be looking for revenge following an upset loss in College Station last year. Let’s see what the oddsmakers think of this game.

Texas A&M Football vs. LSU Odds, Spread and Total

Looks like Vegas has the Tigers as a solid favorite here. This makes sense, for many of the factors I just mentioned. However, as I wrote when the game time was announced, home conference games for LSU are much more formidable when they are played in the evening. The Tigers have hosted a grand total of 3 home conference games in the early window in the past five years; they are 1-2 in those games, with the only win being by seven points over a bad Florida team. I’d feel bullish on the Aggies covering here, at the very least.

Texas A&M Football vs. LSU How to Watch

Date: November 25, 2023
Game Time: 12 PM ET/11 AM CT
Venue: Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, LA
How to Watch: ESPN or streaming
Texas A&M Record: 7-4
LSU Record: 8-3

Texas A&M Football vs. LSU Key Players to Watch

Here’s who to keep your eye on for each team:

LSU

Jayden Daniels: Whenever the team you’re facing has a Heisman candidate on their roster, they’ll show up in the “players to watch” section here. Daniels has put together a statistically eye-popping season but has been unable to get his team over the hump in several important games, including only scoring 17 against FSU and losses at Alabama and Ole Miss. Will those performances be enough to drag him down? We’ll see.

Harold Perkins: The preseason #4 player in the country per ESPN has been a disappointment for the Tigers this year on a unit that is statistically one of the worst in the country. He is down in total tackles, sacks, and TFLs this year and hasn’t been too much of a factor in most games given how poorly the defense has played overall. Texas A&M football laid the blueprint for neutralizing his effectiveness in their game last year—can they do it again? If any single player for the Tigers will be seeking retribution against the Aggies, it would be Perk.

Malik Nabers: Nabers is having a huge year. After being a guy last year who most people would have regarded as good-not-great, he’s really broken out. He’s averaging over 100 yards and one touchdown per game receiving. The Aggie defensive backfield will have their hands full dealing with him and his running buddy, Brian Thomas.

Texas A&M

Jaylen Henderson: How far can the magic go? Henderson had a great first game against Mississippi State and showed better touch on his passes against ACU in what looked to be a work-out-the-kinks game, but visiting LSU is a different beast. The good thing is that LSU’s defense—despite the far superior athletes—is not that much better than ACU’s, and far worse than State’s.

Moose Muhammad: For two years in a row, #7 in maroon has had a huge game against the Tigers. After a big game last week, I think he’s got some designs on making it three years in a row. Moose wowed us all with his acrobatics at Kyle this past Saturday—let’s hope he has some similar highlight plays in this one.

Deuce Harmon: Deuce has stayed the course for several years in College Station and has emerged as a really solid corner. However, against LSU, he will often be matched up against some tall, lanky receivers, and as a guy of slighter stature, the Tigers may try to pick on his matchup. He’s shown the ability to cover bigger guys without a problem in the past, though, so I have confidence that he’s up to this challenge.

Texas A&M Football vs. LSU: Prediction and Pick

This is such a tough one. My optimistic brain is screaming about the matchup advantages the Aggies have; how LSU has performed against similar defenses to that of Texas A&M football; that the team will be putting on a show for Coach Robinson. But it’s hard to look at this offense for the Tigers and think that they won’t reach that freeze point against the Aggies that Miami, Bama, and Ole Miss all have in the passing game, breaking things wide open. The Tigers are more experienced in shootouts than are the Aggies, so unless A&M can get out to a big early lead and play from ahead most of the game, I feel like the Tigers can easily sucker them into a barn-burner—which will doubtless favor the Bayou Bengals. For that reason, I’m going to have to go with the Tigers in a close one—let’s say 38-35.