LSU and Texas A&M: Three Keys to Win

LSU and Texas A&M will surely feel the urgency on Saturday in a game that’s practically a must-win for both teams in terms of realistic expectations to make the playoffs. The Aggies’ standing in the college football world took more of a blow recently after a resounding loss at home to Kentucky. LSU’s loss wasn’t as bad optically, but its valiant effort obviously left the same effect on its record as Texas A&M’s. This is a significant game for Kiffin’s Tigers, considering the margin for error moving forward and the teams they have left on the schedule. The Tigers have three keys to come out the win.

We’ll start with the most obvious: LSU must contain Marcel Reed in the run game. Reed ran for 108 yards in a blowout that sent Brian Kelly packing last season. His 62 yards in 2024 don’t sound quite as impressive as his 2025 numbers, but he had three touchdowns in a momentum-changing effort in that game. The returning quarterback has been inconsistent at best this season, but his prior success against LSU could boost his confidence this weekend.

Fortunately for the home team, Blake Baker is better equipped to slow mobile quarterbacks down than he ever has been as LSU’s defensive coordinator. The personnel additions up front have strengthened this defense considerably. Baker’s unit ranks first in the nation in total defense and run defense. The defensive line is more athletic on the edge with Princewill Umanmielen and more stout in the middle with Deuce Geralds.

Rushing with lane integrity and preventing offensive linemen from getting to the second level will be key in limiting the big plays from Reed. We expect the Aggies to use him more as a runner in such a critical game. It looked as though the plan was to develop Reed as a pocket passer this year, but the results haven’t been ideal.

LSU has completely flipped the script as a running team this season. Thanks to a new starter, new offensive line, and new coaching staff, the Tigers have gone from one of the lowest-ranked teams in the country to a top-25 rushing offense. Conversely, the passing game has held the offense and team back to this point. To be fair, we expected some growing pains as the new pieces built chemistry. But at this point it’s fair to say that LSU is behind schedule.

The offensive line must improve, but success begins with Sam Leavitt. Leavitt wasn’t as consistently accurate as he needs to be, even before the Ole Miss game, when he faced more of a rush. He has the physical ability to make any throw the offense asks of him. But to take the next step, he must process faster, work through his progressions, and stay fundamentally sound after his first read. Leavitt has been fairly accurate when passing to his primary read but erratic when throwing to second or third options.

In a world where instant gratification supersedes rationale, we remind ourselves that it’s still early in the season. LSU’s last two successful quarterbacks, Joe Burrow and Jayden Daniels, didn’t truly become stars until their second year on campus. In Leavitt’s case, he has more experience than Burrow did in his first year at LSU and a better team of offensive minds on the staff than Daniels had. Although he’s a veteran, he can improve. He’ll need to, because Mike Elko and Texas A&M will do everything they can to force Leavitt to win the game from the pocket.

The LSU defense has been one of the best in the country to this point of the season, but the pass defense didn’t have its best day against Ole Miss. Of course, Trinidad Chambliss will likely make several solid defenses look bad this year. But there are still ways the Tiger secondary can improve and facets of the game it must excel in to limit Reed’s weapons.

Before we get into actual secondary play, let’s establish that we don’t expect as much soft coverage as LSU played against Ole Miss. The zone coverage was meant to keep defenders from turning their backs to Chambliss, but aggressive play proved more effective. But when in zone, this secondary can be more cognizant and proactive. At times, routes and spacing dictated closing in on receivers to match up rather than waiting and “covering grass.” Inexperience contributed to these lapses after Dashawn Spears left with an injury at the star position.

The secondary also needs to be more assignment-sound in run support. Stopping the run starts in the trenches, but cornerbacks can’t allow runners to get to the outside when they’re in position to stop them from doing so. Ideally, the defender will force the runner back inside even if he can’t make the tackle. LSU allowed multiple explosive runs last week by failing to play sound defense. Improving in this area can limit Reed and be the difference in the game for LSU and Texas A&M.

Main Photo: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images