Auburn tries to avoid a letdown game after its thrilling (and kind of gross) 35-31 victory over Ole Miss last week as it hosts Texas A&M in a rematch of one of 2013’s best SEC games. Auburn QB Nick Marshall is likely licking his chops at the prospect of facing a soft A&M defense, with struggles in both the secondary (allowing a horrific 162.83 QB rating in SEC play) and run support (86th in the nation at 177 yards per game allowed, plus 15 TDs) often dooming the Aggies’ hopes regardless of what they do on offense.
How to watch Texas A&M at Auburn: Game guide, TV/streaming, odds
Auburn looks to stay in position to make the College Football Playoff, while slumping Texas A&M is looking for answers with Kyle Allen at QB.
Texas A&M has handed the reins to freshman Kyle Allen after Kenny Hill was benched for poor play then suspended for two games (this being the second) for violating team rules. Allen had a miserable first outing against Louisiana-Monroe, and he's not likely to encounter easier opposition from the third-ranked Tigers.
How to watch, listen, and stream
Game time: 3:30 ET (2:30 local)
TV: CBS, with Carter Blackburn and Aaron Taylor in the booth, and Jamie Erdahl on the sidelines.
Radio: Texas A&M affiliates; Auburn affiliates (and XM 84 for the Auburn call)
Online streaming: SEC Live at CBSSports.com
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The numbers
Rankings and records: Auburn is the highest-ranked one-loss team at 7-1 (4-1) and No. 3 in the College Football Playoff rankings. Texas A&M’s bowl-eligible at 6-3 but only 2-3 in the SEC and out of the Top 25 rankings.
Vegas: Auburn is a 22-point favorite, way up from the opening at 14.5 points. That’s probably not good news for the Aggies. The over/under has held steady at 66 points.
Weather forecast: Some clouds but no rain, low 60s at kickoff and dipping closer to 50 by the final whistle as the sun sets.
Two things at stake
Auburn’s basically in the CFP until it loses, but as a one-loss team there’s no foreseeable margin for error from here on out (especially against a slumping Aggie squad). Style points are generally overrated, and here it holds steady; Auburn just needs to win out.
For Texas A&M, a win rights the ship in a big way after four (or five, depending on how you feel about that overtime win over Arkansas) straight disappointing showings. Kevin Sumlin’s guys need to recapture their mojo on both sides of the ball, and if the quarterback situation gets locked up for the rest of the year, so much the better.
One big matchup
If Texas A&M wants any chance at pulling the upset, it’ll need a huge game from WR Speedy Noil, and that means either moving Noil around the slots or testing his chances against dominant boundary CB Jonathon Mincy, a senior who leads the team in passes broken up (eight) and excels in deep coverage. Don’t expect to neutralize Mincy just by not throwing at him, though; he’s got 4.5 tackles-for-loss, including 1.5 sacks on the year, and his 45 tackles are fourth-best on the entire Tiger defense.
Further reading
Read College and Magnollia for fun Auburn times, Good Bull Hunting for Texas A&M mirth and merriment and Team Speed Kills for the whole SEC package.
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