SEC Preview: #13 Texas A&M and #22 LSU Face-Off in the Bayou
The last time Johnny Manziel and the Texas A&M Aggies went on the road to a hostile environment was last November when it defeated top ranked Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Can A&M do the same thing this weekend when it travels to Death Valley, one of the toughest places to play in the country, to battle LSU?
One of the most highly anticipated games of the year is finally here. This matchup might have lost a little luster after both teams suffered multiple loses, but a win would keep Texas A&M's BCS hopes alive. A win for LSU would push the Tigers to the #3 spot in the SEC West.
Johnny Manziel once again is a front runner for the Heisman. With the season he has had, he deserves to be. Manziel has thrown for 3,313 yards while completing 73% of his passes with 31 touchdowns. Everyone knows Manziel is also threat on his feet and once again he has proven to be by rushing for 611 yards on 110 attempts with eight rushing touchdowns.
The biggest question heading into this game is can the LSU defense slowdown Manziel and the high powered Texas A&M offense? The 2013 version does not seem like a typical shutdown defense The Tiger defense is giving up an average 353.7 yards per game, which is almost 60 more yards than it was giving up last season. If the Tiger defense can find a way to slay down Johnny Football, it maybe a long afternoon for the Aggies.
The Texas A&M defense comes into the game ranked last in the conference in yards given up a game and total yards given up so expect LSU to move the ball with relative ease.
Taking care of the ball and not having any turnovers will be a key in this one. In last year's game, LSU was able to pull off the 24-19 victory in College Station thanks to some costly turnovers by A&M late in the 4th quarter.
The game will feature arguably the three best wide receivers in the entire country. Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham from LSU and Mike Evans from Texas A&M. Evans is ranked 3rd in the country in receiving yards with 1,263 and has also has caught 12 touchdown passes. Landry and Beckham have proven to be one of the best receiver duos in the nation. Both of them have caught eight touchdowns and are averaging over 15 yards per catch. All three receivers can break loose at any point so expect all of them to be big contributors in the offensive game plan.
Every conference game A&M has played this year has been a shootout. This one should be no different as both teams can points on the board at will. Both teams have had two weeks to prepare for each other.and both are finally ready to go at it.
This game can be seen on CBS at 2:30 CT.