All aboard the Texas-Texas A&M hype train as both teams continue rollicking toward epic Thanksgiving collision
Longhorns, Aggies both 7-1 and favored to win next three games before epic clash on Nov. 30 at Kyle Field
Maybe we’ve seen too many Dr Pepper commercials this season. Who cares? All aboard the hype train!
Texas and Texas A&M are on a collision course for the greatest regular-season finales we’ve seen in ages, aren’t they?
Both teams still must play three more games before the big finale on Nov. 30 at Kyle Field. Both the Longhorns and Aggies have intriguing quarterback storylines. And both have serious coaches looking to establish championship longevity at their respective locations.
Wait, it’s not even Halloween yet!? OK, everybody off the hype train.
But remember your seat locations!
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Fifth-ranked Texas (7-1, 3-1 SEC) is coming off Saturday’s 27-24 win over 25th-ranked Vanderbilt in Nashville. Yet that was upstaged on the national scene by No. 14 A&M (7-1, 5-0) knocking off No. 8 LSU 38-23 under the lights in College Station.
After the game, A&M coach Mike Elko fired some shots at former coach Jimbo Fisher. Every Aggie everywhere probably stuck their thumb in the air and shouted, “Gig ’em!”
After all, no self-respecting Aggie would put their Horns Down, would they?
“This is a real program,” Elko said. “It’s not fake. It’s not a politician running this program, talking fast and BS-ing everybody. This is a real program. For all the recruits out there, this is a real place.”
It sure felt like a nightmare when Notre Dame went into Kyle Field in the season opener and knocked off A&M 23-13. After that game, a video was posted showing ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit and Chris Fowler ragging the Aggies and mentioning that Kyle Field really wasn’t that intimidating.
Fast forward to Saturday night when Herbstreit said on the ABC broadcast that “this place is unhinged” as the Aggies romped to a win after a quarterback change. Elko subbed Marcel Reed in for the struggling Connor Weigman to light a spark, and the whole place caught on fire.
Reed’s zone-read keepers and speed through the LSU defense left no doubt that he should be the A&M’s signal-caller going forward.
A&M’s toughest game among its next three is probably this week at South Carolina. ESPN’s matchup predictor gives the Aggies a 54% chance of winning — not great but not bad, either.
A&M should have no problem getting through New Mexico State (99% chance of winning, per ESPN) and Auburn (63.7%). That puts the Aggies at 10-1 by Thanksgiving.
The Longhorns are off this week and likely could use it. Receiver Isaiah Bond and safety Andrew Mukuba did not travel to Nashville due to injuries.
“Look, we are very excited. I’m not gonna lie to you,” Texas linebacker David Gbenda said of the upcoming off week. “We’ve been battling hard at practice. (Vanderbilt) was very good, but we’re excited for and we’re ready to get back to work and recuperate this week.”
Texas is huge favorites to win its next three games, two of which are at home. ESPN’s matchup predictor believes Texas has a 90.6% chance to beat Florida on Nov. 9 and a 94.5% to beat Kentucky on Nov. 23. The road trip to Arkansas is lower at 80.3% but that’s largely because the game is in Fayetteville, a crowd that stunned the Horns into submission in 2021.
As of now, ESPN has Texas with an 70% chance to beat A&M, but that will likely change as the game inches closer.
For now, both teams’ fans should just keep working. Keep your Horns up. Keep swinging those 12th Man towels.
So far, so good for Nov. 30.
