In what has been a wild year around the conference, host of That SEC Podcast Michael Bratton expects the chaos to continue on Saturday night as Texas A&M hosts Texas as a 5.5-point underdog. On Friday's edition of TexAgs Live, SEC Mike previews the contest at Kyle Field.
Key notes from Michael Bratton interview
- Sorry for being late. I was trying to be like Billy Liucci, who usually shows up casually late.
- I am picking Texas A&M to win, and it has a lot to do with the 12th Man and Kyle Field. That could be the difference in the game. I know Texas played at Michigan, but it was an early game. Michigan is notorious for having a large crowd, but no one respects it as a home-field advantage.
- Texas has not seen anything like this environment. They can afford to lose this game and still make the College Football Playoff. Texas A&M has to win this game. Winning this game probably won't be enough, and they'll have to win again in Atlanta.
- Texas is the better team on paper. I can think of at least a dozen games this year in which the better team on paper has gone into a road night environment and lost. This has been a wild and insane year. It seems like the team with the most motivation keeps finding ways to win. I think Texas A&M will win by 3-7 points.
- A&M has to put pressure on Quinn Ewers. I respect him as a passer, but if you can get to any quarterback, you will affect his confidence and accuracy. That's why these home games at night are such an advantage. The best example recently was Georgia going on the road to Oxford, about the 13th best home environment in the SEC. Georgia's offensive line got whipped. A&M has to get after Ewers and not allow him to get into a rhythm. A high-scoring game favors Texas.
- I was stunned that A&M came back from down 21-0 last weekend on the road. I may be discrediting the A&M offense a bit, but I'm not sure they have the weapons to keep up with Texas if this game gets into the thirties.
- A&M must be able to ruin the ball to limit Texas' possessions. Texas' defense is the best unit in the football game, and A&M has to have success against that unit. It may take short fields or turnovers. A&M has to find a way to get into the high twenties to win this game.
- If Marcel Reed is outplaying Ewers, how long does it take to put Arch Manning in? Reed might be the most underrated quarterback in the SEC. He has been a game-breaker. Many do not respect his passing ability. He is an underrated passer. I feel confident about my Aggies pick if Reed has a better day than Ewers.
- Georgia is not the team of old. In the last couple of years, they looked like the national title favorite. That is not this Georgia team. The weapons on the outside and running backs do not scare you. Carson Beck looks amazing at times and clueless at times. I have never seen a quarterback regress within the same system quite like he has at times this year.
- I would assume the Aggies would be 7-10 point underdogs against Georgia in Atlanta. It's not inconceivable that A&M wins that football game. Two games stand out to me with Georgia, Tennessee and Texas games. Beyond that, calling them average is too harsh, but they are not an elite force. People see the logo and Kirby Smart and assume.
- Clemson and South Carolina is another game with implications. Both teams are still in the running. Clemson is the top team on the bubble, so to speak. If South Carolina wins that game, it would be hard to keep them out. They would end the season with six consecutive victories, three of which were over teams in the top 25.
- Tennessee has to beat Vanderbilt to attend the College Football Playoff, so I expect the worst.
- A week ago, I would have said Alabama would crush Auburn. Last week, I said that Alabama may as well fire Kalen DeBoer if they lose to Oklahoma. I am not crazy enough to think they actually will. If he goes 8-4 and loses to Auburn at home, giving all this momentum to Hugh Freeze, he would be a dead man walking.
- Tennessee is in the conversation regarding upward trajectory in the SEC because of its strong NIL. Josh Huepel has proven he is in a different class than the previous Tennessee head coaches. Tennessee is a defense and running program right now. They could be a force if they could get the offense going with Nico Iamaleava.
- I am not sold on Billy Napier, but I love DJ Lagway. He might be good enough to overcome his head coach, and he has been for the last couple of weeks.
- I would have put Ole Miss in this upward trajectory conversation if they hadn't lost to Florida. I don't know if Lane Kiffin ever recovers from losing three games with this roster. How can you ask these people to give all this money for these results with that roster and schedule? He came up short with all of that.
- Florida was calling for Lane Kiffin to be their head coach. Paul Finebaum would send me videos of their fans chanting his name behind him. They were all in on Kiffin, yet Napier secured his job by beating him. I can't imagine how satisfying that must have been for Billy Napier.
