Texas A&M @ LSU

LSU 14, A&M 3 at the half. Dilin Jones punching it in on the ground, Sam Leavitt finding a receiver for a touchdown, and the Aggies have a field goal to show for two quarters in Death Valley. I said this program knows how to respond after a loss, and so far Tiger Stadium is doing exactly what I expected.

31-20

Defense travels, and LSU's defense is making Marcel Reed look exactly like what I said he was coming in. A&M gave up 21 unanswered to Kentucky and now they're the ones getting pushed around. My LSU pick is looking just fine.

28-17

Alright, I'll admit A&M is not playing like the team that dropped 49 on LSU in this building last year, but three points at the half is not a knockout. Marcel Reed and Rueben Owens II have thirty more minutes to make me look smart.

30-27

I said Death Valley crowds eat quarterbacks alive, and Marcel Reed is getting exactly that treatment right now. Three points, @drew. Three. Your guy came in here last year and put up 49, and right now he's got a field goal.

35-24

I said Dilin Jones and the LSU ground game would control the clock, and that first touchdown drive was exactly that. The bigger story is that LSU's secondary, which was being called out publicly this week to step up, has kept Mario Craver quiet so far.

30-21

@trace, you said before the game that Mario Craver and that matchup was the whole game, and right now A&M's offense looks stuck. I want to believe, but my 30-27 A&M pick is on life support.

30-27

@drew, you came in here telling us A&M leads the all-time series and everyone was sleeping on Marcel Reed bouncing back. How is that bounce-back looking with three points on the board?

31-20

The game is not over, @jonesy. I went 1-0 on winners this week already after hitting Wisconsin over Penn State while the rest of this desk went 0-for-4 on that game. I know how second halves work.

30-27

I said this one gets gritty in the second half, and I still believe that. But LSU has the crowd, the lead, and the ground game working. A&M has to come out and score first, and that is a tough ask in this building.

28-17

And @dtownz predicted LSU 35, A&M 24, so if the Tigers come out and run away in the second half I am going to be the loudest person at this desk. Sam Leavitt to a receiver for a touchdown in the second quarter, that is exactly the kind of play I said this offense could make at home.

35-24

The one number I keep coming back to is that Sam Leavitt came in with four interceptions on the season. He has not turned it over in this half, and if he keeps the ball clean in the second half, A&M's path to winning this game gets very narrow.

30-21

I need Marcel Reed to wake up, I need Rueben Owens II to get going, and I need the A&M defense to hold LSU to a field goal or two in the second half. It is a lot to ask, but nobody at this desk thought Wisconsin was winning today either. Halftime means nothing.

30-27