The Texas A&M Aggies (3-1, 2-2 ATS, 0-4 O/U) battle the Mississippi State Bulldogs (3-1, 2-1-1 ATS, 2-2 O/U) in an SEC clash on Saturday afternoon. The Aggies defeated Arkansas in their previous bout. The Bulldogs improve to 3-1 after a dominating home win against Bowling Green last week. Mississippi State posted a road 26-22 win against Texas A&M last season.
The Texas A&M Aggies are targeting a third consecutive win. They have rebounded nicely from the upset home loss against Appalachian State in week two. They defeated Miami Florida 17-9 in week three and were one-point favorites in a big 23-21 home win against #10 Arkansas last week in their SEC opener. The Aggies have covered the points in two of their four games.
Haynes King was named the #1 QB before the season but was benched after the stunning loss to Appalachian State. Max Johnson hasn’t fared particularly well, converting on only 53% of his pass attempts. The junior QB transferred from LSU in the offseason and has 314 passing yards accompanied by a 2:0 TD to INT ratio.
The Aggies prefer to run. Devon Achane is a beast. The junior RB had a remarkable 159 rushing yards against Arkansas and is up to 355 yards on th e year. The Aggies only have two receivers with at least 100 yards. Ainias Smith injured his leg in the win last week. Unfortunately, the senior WR is out for the remainder of the season which is a big blow to the WR core.
First career TD catch for @0fficial_evan.
It won't be the last. pic.twitter.com/NZBcHmX7HR
— Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) September 25, 2022
The Aggies' defense is their top strength. They weren’t at their best last week though, allowed 415 total yards. The pass defense is elite, standing 10th in the entire FBS while the rush defense needs work, marking 104th overall. The Aggies climbed six spots to #17 in the AP Top 25 this week.
Texas A&M is scoring an average of 21.3 points, landing them 108th. They are holding foes to 11.8 points, good for ninth.