Traditionally, thirteen is supposed to be an unlucky number. Traditionally, Texas A&M plays an important conference rivalry game on Thanksgiving day or at least during that weekend. In recent years the designated rival has been LSU, but the rivalry has been one-sided in LSU's favor (8-2). Kevin Sumlin went 0-6 against them. Jimbo is 2-2 including an awesome multiple-overtime win (74-72) in his first season.
This year's installment of the "rivalry game" will feature LSU (9-2) at A&M (4-7), with the ESPN coverage at 6:00 PM Saturday. At this stage A&M looks like a rundown 1962 Chevy Impala heading for a reinforced concrete wall at max velocity of 24 mph. Can the Chevy bust through the wall or not?
The Tigers are favored by 9.5 or 10.0 points (depending on your source), but LSU has escaped with some close wins this season, and isn't the powerhouse that stomped the Aggies (50-7) in 2019. The Aggies had their hands full scoring 20 points against UMass, so the College Football News prediction (LSU wins 26-21) seems unrealistic to me.
Update 11:26 PM Saturday: For much of the 2022 season, Texas A&M has performed poorly due to player injuries and inexperience, and coaching incompetence. When LSU rolled into town ranked 5th in the playoff standings, there was no obvious reason to expect anything other than another thumping by a superior SEC West team.
A&M took an early 7-0 lead instead, and wasn't ever behind on the scoreboard afterward. The rundown Chevy found plenty of extra speed, crashed through the wall, and ended the season with a 38-23 win before a large home crowd. I'm sure much will be written this week about how this small miracle occurred. I'll consider this A&M's bowl game in a 5-7 season, and appreciate the victory.
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