63rd meeting easily the most important of Texas A&M's series with LSU

In many ways, Texas A&M and LSU are football antitheses.

From style of play, area of strength and even uniforms, they’ll be as different as black-and-white when they square off at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Kyle Field.

But that’s where the dissimilarities end. In ways, the antitheses are replaced by “and these.” As in, A&M and LSU are similar in these ways, and these and these, and…

The No. 14 Aggies (6-1, 4-0) and No. 8 Tigers (6-1, 3-0)  enter the most important game ever played in the series with first place in the Southeastern Conference race on the line.

Obviously, they share identical season records. They’re the only unbeaten teams in SEC play. They’re both riding six-game winning streaks after frustrating season-opening losses.

“(We’re) eerily similar in some ways,” said Texas A&M coach Mike Elko, who once served as Notre Dame defensive coordinator under now-LSU head coach Brian Kelly. “Both had a big stage in the opener. Both played a really close game all the way down to the fourth quarter and didn’t make the plays at the end that they needed to at the end to be successful.

“Probably in some ways, both got kind of written off a little bit. Just went to work to get better. Improved every week. Continued true to their process. Believed in who they were.  All the sudden, you pick your head up, and here you are.”

Here they are.

Though work will still remain to be done, they’re on the brink of getting an inside track to Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game. They both can greatly enhance their College Football Playoff resume with a win.

That’s especially impressive because — as Elko alluded to — they might have been dismissed to some degree after A&M fell to Notre Dame and LSU lost to USC to start their seasons.

Coach Kelly said little could be learned from their early losses because both steadily improved.

“Those openers are the same,” he said. “What did LSU look like in game one vs. right now? It’s very similar. They’re (A&M) a different team, really. They look different from game one to right now.

“You glean a couple of things here and there, but it’s a body of work you’re looking for and, in particular, what do they look like the last few weeks?”

In the last two weeks, A&M has defeated Missouri, 41-10, and Mississippi State, 34-24. In that same span, LSU has beaten Ole Miss, 29-26, in overtime and Arkansas, 34-10.

Much of the focus in those games has been on quarterback play. That’s where the similarities end.

LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier has surged and is playing at an All-SEC level.

Meanwhile, A&M’s Conner Weigman, who missed three games with an injured shoulder, has been inconsistent. He was brilliant against Missouri but erratic in the win over Mississippi State, in which he threw two interceptions.

Zoe Kelton, TexAgs

While LSU has allowed just two sacks all year, Texas A&M’s pass rush has amassed 14 sacks in four SEC games. All-SEC candidate Nic Scourton has 3.5 of those.

LSU’s offense relies heavily on its passing game. Nussmeier, who has thrown an SEC-high 18 touchdown passes, directs a unit that is ranked second in the SEC in passing offense. They have an excellent group of receivers led by Kyren Lacy, who has 36 catches for 512 yards and six touchdowns.

"They have a clearly established No. 1 (Lacy),” Elko said. “But they also have three other people, including a tight end (Mason Taylor), who can flat-out beat you if you don’t pay them the appropriate attention, too.”

In contrast, A&M depends more on its running game, which is ranked second in the SEC. Junior running back Le’Veon Moss has excelled behind an improved offensive line to rush for 674 yards, which is the second-highest total in the SEC.

Kelly pointed out LSU has strengthened its run defense since linebacker Whit Weeks was inserted into the starting lineup in Week 3. Last week, the Tigers held Arkansas to 38 rushing yards but allowed 181 rushing yards to Ole Miss.

“(They have a) really good offensive line, a really good running game.” Kelly said of A&M. "The back (Moss) is sturdy and physical. We’ve got to be who we are the last few weeks. If we do that, we feel like this is going to be a heck of a game.”

A&M could say the same about facing Nussmeier with its pass defense. The Aggies shut down Missouri’s vaunted passing game but were rather mediocre vs. Mississippi State.

That’s just an example of how these teams are similar…but different.