Texas A&M football looks to keep playoff hopes alive against Auburn

Texas A&M football is hoping to keep its slim playoff hopes alive on Saturday against Auburn. Will the Aggies topple the Tigers?

Since the transition to the Big 12, Texas A&M has been just average in the SEC. The Aggies had a massive amount of success in 2012 with Johnny Manziel leading the way. Since then, Texas A&M has not seen a Ten win regular season. Even if that isn’t possible this year, they are back in national headlines as being an elite team in 2020.

Four year starting quarterback Kellen Mond has lead the way, throwing for 1,573 yards and 16 touchdowns. Over his career, the Achilles heel for the IMG alum has been turnovers. Over the past three seasons, Mond had thrown 24 interceptions. That number has dwindled dramatically this season as his two interceptions is near the least among starting quarterbacks in the SEC.

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Isaiah Miller has been a nice surprise out of the backfield and Ainias Smith is the best receiving back in the conference. The Aggies have had multiple receivers step up in Chase Lane and Calep Chapman.

Defensively, Texas A&M does not have a standout player, but has a plethora of really good athletes that makes up for one of the better defenses in the country. The Aggies give up just 22.4 points per game and forced just 10 turnovers in seven games. However, they get in the backfield and do it often.

The Aggie defense has recorded 44 tackles for loss and 18 sacks, which are both elite numbers. The Aggies won’t give up a lot of deep plays and suffocate the running game as teams only average 87.1 rushing yards per game.

For Auburn, they are trying everything in their power to forget about the Iron Bowl beatdown to Alabama. Quarterback Bo Nix did not play well and Devonta Smith did whatever he wanted to against Auburn’s secondary.

The Auburn offense is led by freshman running back Tank Bigsby as he has broken out during his first season with 566 yards and five touchdowns. The wide outs for the Tigers are headlined by two very different, but unique players.

The veteran 6-3 Seth Williams returns and has lead the team in receiving yards. The world track speed star Anthony Schwartz has been more featured in the offense and nearly matches Williams, with 566 yards and three touchdowns.

Aggie fans got to see this up close and in person last year as Schwartz would take an end around and was not touched the rest of the way.

Defensively, they are led by linebackers Zakoby McClain and and Colby Wooden. McClain leads the team in tackles with 77 and Wooden is the Tigers TFL and sacks leader with eight and 2.5, respectively. This is a unit that has not been good this year and gives up more than they get in rushing and passing yards.

Here’s how to watch the game between the Aggies and the Tigers:

Date: Saturday, Dec. 5
Time: 12 p.m. ET
Location: Auburn, Ala.
Venue: Jordan Hare Stadium
TV: ESPN
Live stream: ESPN+

Keys to Victory

For Texas A&M, there have been very few things to worry about in this season. A key for this game however, is forcing turnovers. Mentioned beforehand, the Aggies have only forced ten on the season and Nix averages a little under one per game.

The Aggies also aren’t the best at limiting penalties as they average 60.4 penalty yards per game. Keep that to a minimum and forcing Nix turnovers will be crucial. Get to him early and this game could very well turn into a blowout.

Although Texas A&M has talent out wide, they also have nothing close to a Devonta Smith. Lead by Smoke Monday, this secondary needs to play much better. Mond will not throw for a lot of yards, but is deadly when in rhythm. His consistency and limited turnovers is what makes him so good. If Monday and the secondary pull off a few of these on Saturday, things could get interesting in Auburn.

Predictions

Over the course of the past six seasons, Texas A&M has been known for getting a lot of attention after a good September. Normally, around the middle of October is when they start to crumble and finish with 8-5 seasons (four in the last six seasons). However, that is not looking like the case as this team wins with consistency on offense and an elite run defense.

Auburn has talent, but has not been used properly, especially this season. Malzahn is on the fence and the fanbase has not been satisfied with the results this year. This game won’t help his case as the Aggies roll past Auburn and need some help to get into the CFP.

Final Score: Texas A&M 34, Auburn 20