College GameDay Podcast picks LSU to beat Texas A&M

No. 3 Texas A&M, the last unbeaten team in the Southeastern Conference, will put its unblemished 7-0 record on the line this weekend against No. 20 LSU in Baton Rouge.

The two programs have played every season since 2011, beginning in the 2011 Cotton Bowl and carrying into Texas A&M’s transition into the SEC (2012-onward). In that frame, LSU has won 10 of the 14 matchups. A&M however won last season’s game 38-23 in College Station.

Ahead of the ranked matchup, ESPN College GameDay‘s Rece Davis and Pete Thamel made their prediction for the winner on the latest edition of the ‘College GameDay Podcast‘. Both Davis and Thamel are rolling with the Tigers to defend home turf and earn their first victory over a top-three ranked opponent under head coach Brian Kelly.

“I’m gonna take LSU,” Thamel said. “I’ve just got a feeling that this team and Garrett Nussmeier, pushed to the brink, is going to respond in a positive way. This would include finding away to combo together a couple of scoring drives. So I’m going to take the Tigers.”

Davis and Thamel are in agreement on LSU victory over Texas A&M

With matchups against A&M, No. 4 Alabama and No. 13 Oklahoma remaining on their schedule, winning out is likely the only way that LSU could clinch their first CFP berth since 2019.

“I’m right there with you,” Davis responded. “I think A&M is really good and think they have, all due respect to Indiana‘s win over Oregon and Alabama‘s win over Georgia, the best win of the season. They won at Notre Dame. I think they’re one of the 5-6 best teams in the country, so certainly the Aggies have proven they can go on the road against a good team and win. Notre Dame is better than LSU, but LSU is a good team. But I’m gonna go LSU. Desperation. Have to have it.”

Points are usually put up in bunches when these two programs meet. Most famously, No. 22 Texas A&M held off No. 7 LSU 74-72 in a 2018 7OT classic, which led to the sport changing its overtime rules. In the 14 games played between the two programs since 2011, the winner has scored at least 30 points in seven games.

Kick-off for this weekend’s top-25 matchup in Baton Rouge is scheduled for 7:30 PM ET. The game can be seen on ABC.