Texas A&M and Oklahoma haven't played since 2012. Both showed up to the 2025 Playoff and got bounced in the first round, so this one's a statement game for two programs trying to prove last year wasn't a ceiling.
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TA&MOU
TA&MOU
OverUnder
Best BetTexas A&M
Reed's efficiency numbers and lower turnover rate stack up better than Mateer's, and A&M enters this having been the more consistent team of the two down the stretch last year. Oklahoma's defense keeps every game within reach, but backing the Aggies to win outright is the more defensible read given the quarterback gap.
Texas A&M
+Reed threw 25 TDs, added 6 rushing scores in 2025
+First-ever Playoff berth, finished 11-2
+17 transfer additions to address roster turnover
−Lost 13 starters off last year's Playoff roster
−Offensive line is a real question mark
−First road trip into a hostile, unfamiliar rivalry environment
Oklahoma
+Mateer put up 3,316 total yards, 22 total TDs in year one
+Defense has been Venables' program hallmark
+Hosting at home in prime late-season stakes
−Mateer threw 11 interceptions last season
−Offense still needs to prove consistency under Ben Arbuckle
−Brutal SEC slate Venables himself flagged as unforgiving
This is a quarterback showcase whether the standings say so or not. Marcel Reed threw for 3,169 yards and 25 touchdowns last season while adding 493 yards and 6 scores on the ground, the kind of dual-threat production that got Texas A&M to 11-2 and its first-ever Playoff berth. Oklahoma counters with John Mateer, who put up 3,316 total yards and 22 total touchdowns in his first year in Norman after transferring in from Washington State. Two teams that made the 12-team field in 2025, both looking to actually win a game once they got there.
The concern for A&M is up front. The Aggies lost 13 starters off that Playoff roster, and Mike Elko went out and grabbed 17 transfers this offseason to patch the holes, including edge Anto Saka and corner Rickey Gibson. The offensive line is the shakiest link on paper, and if it doesn't hold up, Reed's the one absorbing the hits. Mateer's issue is turnovers, not protection. He threw 11 interceptions in 2025, and Brent Venables has said the whole offseason plan was getting him faster and cleaner in his reads before the ball comes out.
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TA&M Texas A&M
OU Oklahoma
Venables' defense is the other half of that equation, and it's the reason Oklahoma keeps showing up in these games no matter what the offense is doing. It's been the identity of the program since he arrived, and by his own admission this is a loaded SEC schedule that doesn't give a defense many easy weeks. A&M brings its own firepower at receiver with Isaiah Horton and Mario Craver, so this isn't a game where either coordinator gets to coast.
