Comparing LSU and Texas A&M football's resumes: Why the Aggies have accomplished more so far than the Tigers
Texas A&M football's game against LSU this weekend is one of the most important of the year so far for both squads, as well as the SEC race. Coming into the game, the Aggies sit at 14th in the polls while the Bayou Bengals are up at 8th.
Given that both teams boast the same record, however, the question is raised of whether that order is correct. As a matter of fact, only four AP voters had the Aggies ahead of the Tigers at all, so that order represents something of an unofficial consensus.
But consensus doesn't make something right, of course. As I considered what both teams have accomplished so far, I decided to put a comparison together to examine that very thing.
Let's start by taking a look at LSU.
LSU football's 2024 resume
- Record: 6-1 (4-0 SEC)
- Best win: Ole Miss (no. 18, 5-2)
- Worst loss: USC (UR, 3-4)
Some other notable results include a 36-33 comeback win at South Carolina (spurred on by a QB injury for the Gamecocks), a 34-17 win over UCLA, and a 44-21 win over Nicholls.
In other words, they're being propped up in a big way by the Ole Miss win. A close look at most of their other results show them to be not all that impressive; UCLA is horrid, and they were tied at the half; Nicholls hung around for way too long; the refs had to give a huge assist to the Bayou Bengals to get them out of Columbia with a win.
Now, let's look at Texas A&M football's resume.
Texas A&M football's 2024 resume
- Record: 6-1 (4-0 SEC)
- Best win: Missouri (no. 21, 6-1)
- Worst loss: Notre Dame (no. 12, 6-1)
Other notable results include a 33-20 win over Florida in the Swamp as well as a 21-17 win over Arkansas, both when the Aggies were operating with a backup quarterback.
We can debate the quality of wins down the line, but it's tough to get around the biggest thing here: the Tigers have a way worse loss than the Aggies do, and the win that A&M had over Missouri was way more impressive than the win LSU had over Ole Miss. The Rebels and Tigers are ranked practically right next to each other, and A&M won by 31 compared to LSU winning by 3 in overtime.
I get the whole "poll inertia" thing, so I'm not crying injustice with regard to the process—I get that this kind of thing happens. But what I mean to demonstrate here is exactly that: the poll is not a resume ranking. If it was, there's really no argument for why the Ags should be lower.
Both teams have struggled with lesser competition at times (though the Aggies have a better excuse, given the QB injury). Both have a win over comparably-ranked teams, with A&M's being much more decisive, and the Aggies' loss looks a lot better than the Tigers' does right now.
Of course, all of this will get hashed out on the field this Saturday, so there's really no point in losing sleep over it. It does present an interesting case study, however.