Johnny Manziel didn’t sugarcoat Texas A&M’s latest stumble.
After the Aggies dropped a second straight SEC game Saturday night to LSU, the former Texas A&M quarterback blasted the program on social media, warning, “Better do some soul searching or you’re going to be the bitch of the SEC this year boys,” Manziel wrote.
The timing of the message matched the mood around College Station. Texas A&M is 2-2 after entering the season off an 11-1 regular season last year, and the losses have not exactly been nail-biters.
Last week, Kentucky’s Kenny Minchey had all day in the pocket in College Station, throwing for 252 yards on 14-of-18 passing. Kentucky and LSU each ran for more than 150 yards against an A&M defense that has struggled up front, with the two teams combining for five rushing touchdowns.
The problems weren’t limited to the run defense on Saturday night. Marcel Reed had a rough outing against LSU, completing just 10 of 26 passes for 106 yards with no touchdowns and one interception. He averaged 4.6 yards per attempt, a number that won’t play well in the SEC.
Texas A&M’s early-season hole is already notable. The Aggies and South Carolina are the only SEC teams with two conference losses before the calendar flips to October.
And the schedule isn’t doing them any favors. Mizzou, Texas, Tennessee and Alabama are still ahead, and all four are ranked in the top 25 in this week’s Coaches Poll.
The one breather comes first: a home game against Arkansas, a team the source described as woeful. After that, Texas A&M heads to Mizzou in Week 6 with a chance to get back above .500.
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Lane Kiffin had plenty to point to afterward, from the defensive effort to Sam Leavitts play while dealing with injury and Jackson Harris breakout as a Hawaii transfer. The next stop is a more local one, with McNeese coming to Baton Rouge, but LSU will still be carrying the bigger picture: whether this was a one-night statement or the start of something sturdier. [Read more 🡒]
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Jackson Harris became the kind of big-play outlet LSU badly needed after TreyDez Greens injury, turning into a reliable downfield threat and changing the shape of the offense. On the other side, Blake Bakers defense made life miserable for Texas A&M by leaning on the safeties, with Tamarcus Cooley and Ty Benefield both showing up around the ball in big moments, leaving LSU with reason to believe two of its biggest worries may not be as dire as they first looked. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Has A New Top 10 Snub Fans Wont Like
LSUs strong start still didnt buy the Tigers any extra respect in the latest Associated Press Top 25, where they slipped from 10th to 11th despite handling Texas A&M at home. In a Week 4 poll that shuffled a few contenders around, the Tigers found themselves on the outside of the top 10 even after a decisive result that should have helped their case.
At the top, Texas stayed No. 1 after surviving a tight one against Tennessee, while other teams moved based on how the weekend played out. For LSU, the placement is the kind of early-season reminder that style points and perception can matter just as much as the win column, and it leaves the Tigers with a little more to prove as the schedule rolls on. [Read more 🡒]