LSU fired Brian Kelly the day after Texas A&M ran them off their own field last October — now Lane Kiffin gets his first crack at the Aggies in Death Valley.
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TA&MLSU
TA&MLSU
OverUnder
Best BetTexas A&M
Texas A&M enters as the proven commodity — an 11-2 team that made the program's first College Football Playoff appearance with Marcel Reed still under center. LSU is running out a nearly unrecognizable roster under a first-year coach, and until Sam Leavitt and this transfer class prove it in a real game, the Aggies feel like the safer moneyline swing. Backing the Tigers outright right now means betting on chemistry nobody's actually seen yet.
Texas A&M
+11-2 in 2025, program's first CFP berth
+Marcel Reed and top-2 receivers all return
−Lost both coordinators this offseason
−Kicking game was SEC-worst in 2025
LSU
+Hired Lane Kiffin, a proven QB developer
+Loaded transfer haul: Leavitt, Umanmielen, Dottery
−59 newcomers means unproven chemistry
−Got blown out by A&M 49-25 last year
Marcel Reed heads into his second full year as A&M's starter after leading the Aggies to an 11-0 start and their first-ever CFP appearance, while across the field Lane Kiffin has already installed Sam Leavitt — the Arizona State transfer who took the Sun Devils to a Big 12 title and the Playoff as a redshirt freshman in 2024 — as his new QB1 after a foot injury limited him in some offseason work. Both quarterbacks arrive with real pedigree; only one of them has done it in this building.
Leavitt says he's fully cleared heading into fall camp, which matters given how much LSU is leaning on him to stabilize an offense replacing the bulk of its two-deep. A&M isn't immune to turnover either — offensive coordinator Collin Klein left to become Kansas State's head coach and defensive coordinator Jay Bateman took the same job at Kentucky, so Mike Elko is breaking in Holmon Wiggins and Lyle Hemphill in new seats by the time this one kicks off.
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TA&M Texas A&M
LSU LSU
None of that changes the baseline heading in: A&M is the program that just made history, and LSU is the program starting over. Kiffin countered by loading up his defense with Ole Miss transfers — edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen and linebacker TJ Dottery both followed him from Oxford — built specifically to make a jump like this survivable in year one.
Texas A&M Aggies
Sep 19?vs Kentucky—
Sep 12?vs Arizona State—
Sep 5?vs Missouri State—
LSU Tigers
Sep 19?@ Ole Miss—
Sep 12?vs Louisiana Tech—
Sep 5?vs Clemson—
Recent form.
Whatever happens on the field, this one carries weight beyond the standings. LSU fired Brian Kelly the day after A&M rolled through Tiger Stadium 49-25 last October, a loss that dropped the Tigers to 5-3 and effectively ended his tenure on the spot. Kiffin's first shot at the program that got his predecessor fired lands on a Friday night in Baton Rouge, in front of a crowd that hasn't forgotten how last year ended.
Texas A&M Aggies
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
LSU Tigers
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
A&M has its own repair job in progress, too — the Aggies' kicking game was the worst in the SEC in 2025, and Elko spent the offseason retooling that unit rather than resting on an 11-2 season. Both programs have real questions to answer by the time Friday night rolls around, and how each side answers them will say a lot about where the SEC's pecking order stands the rest of the fall.
