SEC Mike expects A&M to 'be in control' at Jordan-Hare on Saturday

It's Week 13 of the college football season, and No. 15 Texas A&M and Auburn will square off on The Plains. Host of That SEC Podcast, Michael Bratton, joined Friday's edition of TexAgs Live to discuss the matchup and other battles around the conference. 

Key notes from Michael Bratton interview

• Cousin Shane may have been drinking when he picked the Aggies to lose this weekend. Auburn is one of the worst teams in the conference this year. If they gave out a worst Coach of the Year award, Hugh Freeze would be running away with it. They have a good running back in Jarquez Hunter that they don't utilize. They have a good defense. 
   
• I believe Texas A&M can lose this game and still make it to Atlanta. That's obviously not the message in College Station. I have it as a touchdown game, with Auburn scoring a late touchdown. Texas A&M will be in control of the game. They are one of the better teams in the conference.
   
• People say Jordan-Hare Stadium is one of the toughest places to play. It is so tough that California and Arkansas went in there and won. Hugh Freeze has won one conference game at home in two years in his tenure. It is probably the most overrated home-field advantage in the entire conference. 
   
• They are bad mainly because of their offense. They scored seven points against Vanderbilt, and defense is not their strong suit. Hugh Freeze is the problem. His offense is not cutting edge like it was ten years ago. He can't get the ball to his playmakers in conference games. 
   
• Payton Thorne turns the ball over left and right. To his credit, he has cleaned that up recently. He will turn it over on Saturday night against Texas A&M's defense. 
   
• It doesn't help when a coach calls out the quarterback, running back, receivers and offensive line in public. Imagine what he says behind closed doors. I have no love for Hugh Freeze.
   
• Believe it or not, I am not panicking for LSU. The recruiting stuff is devastating because we are so close to signing day. This LSU team is more of what I thought they would be this year. Their 6-1 record was fool's gold. I was foolish to pick them to beat Texas A&M. 
   
• LSU suckered me in. I picked them to finish ninth in the conference in the preseason. They hired well on the defensive side of the ball in the offseason. The players matter a lot more than the coaches. They had to step back with all the talent they lost on offense. Losing three in a row at LSU is unacceptable. I think they are about to lose their fourth. I'll take Vanderbilt to beat them tomorrow.
   
• I didn't understand how LSU would not take a step back. Last year, I had LSU as the national champion. Their offense lived up to that. How they lost three games with that offense is beyond me. It will never be as good on one side of the ball again for them. 
   
• LSU just lost a five-star quarterback. They better hope and pray that Garrett Nussmeier returns, even though he looks broken right now. The one good thing about losing Bryce Underwood‍ is that they wanted to move on from their offensive coordinator, Joe Sloan, but he was the main recruiter of Underwood. Year after year, LSU is just blowing up both sides of the football. That doesn't give you much confidence in Brian Kelly. 
   
• Florida has a shot to beat Ole Miss. I think Ole Miss is the best team in the conference right now. The score I predicted is 42-17, with Ole Miss winning. That is more about Ole Miss than it is about Florida. A storyline that isn't getting talked about enough is Lane Kiffin saying he doesn't want to go to the SEC Championship. You have two more games before you should even discuss a game that you have never even been to. He is looking ahead and politicking. He is in full campaign mode for the College Football Playoff. He needs to let his team do the talking. If Florida can start fast and keep the crowd in the game, that is the recipe for success. Ole Miss has won on the road. They destroyed South Carolina. Florida took advantage of LSU spiraling.
   
• Texas A&M may have the toughest game this week out of the SEC contenders. That says more about this week's slate than anything else. I am confident that Texas A&M will beat Auburn. A hostile environment at night is when these teams seemingly go down. 
   
• I think Missouri will lose this week, which would be bad for Texas A&M. Their season went out the window last week when they lost that game, even though that was the best they had looked all year. It took way too long to get there.
   
• Texas usually isn't playing anyone with a pulse, which is true again this weekend. However, all Kentucky does is get up for big games. This will be their fourth game this year against a top-seven opponent. They beat Ole Miss on the road, took Georgia down to the wire and had opportunities to beat Tennessee. What are the odds that Texas is looking ahead to Texas A&M? That is a real possibility. I am picking Texas by a wide margin, but it would not stun me if they lose. Kentucky has a hell of a defense. 
   
• I would rank Brian Kelly, Hugh Freeze, and Billy Napier at No. 1, 2, and 3 in my hot seat rankings, respectively. If things continue to trend downward for these three coaches, they will be fired next year. All of Billy Napier's goodwill will be gone if he gets destroyed by Lane Kiffin on Saturday. 
   
• I am not sure Brent Venables survives, either. I'm not sure he is on the hottest seat. Mark Stoops at Kentucky is interesting, too. He has a $44 million dollar buyout. He and his athletic director hate each other. The athletic director doesn't want to pay him a dollar. Mark Stoops isn't going to retire and walk away from that buyout money.