Texas A&M’s Week 4 trip to Baton Rouge comes with plenty of drama baked in. The Aggies head to Tiger Stadium on Sept. 26 to face an LSU team that looks a lot different from the version Texas A&M has handled in each of the last two seasons, and the Tigers now have Lane Kiffin steering the show.
Kiffin’s arrival has only amplified the noise around LSU. His ties to Ole Miss and his push to add NFL players to the roster have made him college football’s most obvious villain, and he seems perfectly fine with that.
Strip away the spectacle, though, and what’s left is one of the sport’s sharpest offensive minds. His background, his system and his ability to land elite recruits helped fuel plenty of success with the Rebels, and now he’s tasked with pulling a blueblood back into form.
This LSU roster carries a different look, too. The Tigers bring in one of the country’s best transfer classes, pair that with a strong group of returning veterans and have an elite coaching staff around Kiffin. A week after LSU’s game against Ole Miss in Oxford, the Tigers return home to host the Aggies in a matchup that should tell us a lot about where both teams stand.
On defense, LSU is built around coordinator Blake Baker’s 4-2-5 scheme, and the results were clear in 2025. The Tigers ranked 27th nationally by giving up 328.7 yards per game and finished 15th with a 71.2% defensive stop rate.
Whit Weeks is back to lead the linebacker group, bringing the kind of veteran steadiness every defense wants. On the edge, Ole Miss transfer Prince Umanmielen gives LSU a disruptive presence who can turn a pocket into a mess in a hurry.
With that mix of returners and transfer help, this unit has the look of a group that could keep climbing and become one of the SEC’s best by 2026.
The offense may be even more dangerous. Charlie Weis Jr. runs the show there, and the veer-and-shoot system fits Arizona State transfer quarterback Sam Leavitt as well as any scheme could.
Leavitt spent much of the offseason recovering from an ankle injury that kept him out for much of last year, but the expectation is that he’ll be ready for the season opener against Clemson. His arm strength and mobility, paired with returning tight end Trey’Dez Green, give LSU a matchup problem Texas A&M will have to sort out in a hurry.
The backfield also has plenty of options, including Wisconsin transfer Dillin Jones, who has been one of the names generating buzz in fall camp as a possible starter.
The projection here leans LSU’s way, 35-27. Texas A&M has the talent to hang around, but this version of LSU is not the same team the Aggies have beaten the past two years.
Kiffin’s offense can stress a defense in a dozen different ways, especially with tempo and RPOs forcing constant adjustments. The Aggies should make it a real fight, but winning in Tiger Stadium is a different challenge altogether.
The prediction is Texas A&M takes its first loss of the 2026 season in a competitive Week 4 game in Death Valley.
In Other News...
Texas A&M Just Backed Off A Fight With Major SEC Stakes
Texas A&M has chosen not to push back against the SECs new stance on former professional athletes, clearing the path for the Aggies to move on from Bryson Warren. Warren, who spent time in the G-League and never played college basketball, has entered the transfer portal after the conference ruled that players with a pro background like his are not eligible to compete in SEC basketball.
The bigger issue for Texas A&M was never just one roster spot, but the risk attached to standing its ground. The SECs penalties for schools that sign ineligible former pros are severe enough that the Aggies decided against challenging the conference, leaving Warren out of the picture and ending one potential test case before it could become a much larger fight. [Read more 🡒]
Texas A&M May Be Getting Back A Familiar Guard After All
Texas A&M may be in line to welcome back a familiar guard after all, with Rylan Griffen reportedly granted a temporary restraining order against the NCAA and SEC that could open the door to an extra year of eligibility. Griffen has enrolled in classes at Texas A&M and, according to reports, intends to rejoin the basketball team for the 2026-27 season, giving the Aggies a possible boost from a player who already knows the program.
The timing is notable for a roster that just saw guard Bryson Warren depart, leaving a spot to be filled in the backcourt. Nothing is official yet, but Griffens situation adds another layer of intrigue to Texas A&Ms offseason planning, especially with the team trying to sort out its guard rotation and keep some continuity heading into the next chapter. [Read more 🡒]
Texas A&Ms New College Football 27 Ratings Send An Early Message
EA Sports College Football 27 has started rolling out its latest wave of player ratings, and Texas A&M is already giving fans a fresh talking point. The Aggies check in at 86 overall as a team, with wide receiver Mario Craver leading the way at 91 overall, a sign that the game sees him as one of the rosters clear headliners heading into the new cycle.
The updated player pool also brought in several newcomers for Texas A&M, including freshmen and sophomores Evan Jacobson and Caleb Tafua. Their initial ratings fall in the 74-to-77 range, which gives the Aggies a fairly solid baseline but also leaves room for a few younger pieces to make a bigger impression once the real season gets moving. [Read more 🡒]