We are the highest ranked and have a defense the Sec would be proud of. Some bowl projections have us playing aggy? How do you think we would measure up?
A bigger question is would they choose to play us?
On a neutral field Vegas would install A&M as a 7-10 point favorite. Being in the SEC is worth 4-5 points
Vegas is about as nonbiased as it gets when it comes to comparing teams. In a match up versus A&M, Coogs would likely be a 3 point favorite on a neutral field, and yes, we are undeniably the best team in Texas.
I think our offense would struggle against their defense without some incredibly creative scheming. Their pass rush is really good, so we would have to live by quick passes and screens on the outside to get our athletes in space. But I also think their offense would struggle against our defense. I don’t think their ground game is as good as OU’s, and we all know what we did to OU’s ground game. If we could force Trevor Knight into having the throw the ball a lot, we could certainly beat them. I think our coaching staff is infinitely better than theirs, and with a lot of time to prepare for a bowl game, we would have the clear advantage. Knight is a good, but not great QB. He would make some mistakes against us. I think we could beat them in the same fashion we beat FSU last year.
Massey’s simulator has us as a 1 point favorite over A&M and a 6 point favorite against Baylor on neutral fields.
That’s hilarious! We would beat Baylor by double digits this year. That defense couldn’t stop Iowa State. I’m pretty sure we would put 50 on them.
Yes, UH is the best college football team in Texas. Two years running.
At this point in time, flip a coin between A&M and UH.
My ratings between the two:
O - Line: Push Both are still developing and although good pass blockers, both still need work on run blocking
TE- Advantage UH - McClosky just seems to find a way to be open when Ward needs him.
WR - Advantage A&M - Possibly the best set of wide outs in the nation and go 3 deep,
RB - Advantage A&M - Ford and Williams are the next Dynamic Duo
QB - Advantage UH - Both can run, have good touch passes, and are team leaders but Ward has a more accurate long ball
D-Line: Advantage A&M. No question at all. (But just imagine what the A&M D-Line would be like if Mr. Oliver was lining up with Garrett, Hall, and Mack. Scary)
LB: Push Both teams look solid at least through the 2 deep at all positions
DB: Advantage UH. Although A&M’s DBs are good, I believe UH’s are quicker and thus can cover closer and be able to react faster when they make a mistake.
Safety: Slight advantage to A&M although both groups are rock solid and really bring the wood!
PK - Advantage A&M
Punter - Push. Different styles but both are effective and restricting returns and flipping the field.
Overall, I see two evenly matched teams and it would be an interesting contest although I think A&Ms depth and conditioning would be a deciding factor.
To borrow someone else’s gif…
With that analysis, your Ag is becoming more noticeable in your user name.
Only clear change to me there is LB. According to CBSSports.com draft ratings:
Texas A&M
2017 #35 OLB Shaan Washington
2018 #31 ILB Josh Walker
2019 #10 OLB Otaro Alaka
2019 #14 OLB Richard Moore
Houston
2017 #8 OLB Steven Taylor
2017 #17 OLB Tyus Bowser
2018 #41 ILB Matthew Adams
2018 #61 ILB D’Juan Hines
2019 #10 ILB Emeke Egbule
A&M has some young talent at LB, but with the talent combined with tons of experience, UH to me has the clear advantage there.
Edit: Missed the part about A&M’s depth and conditioning being a factor. Depth, yes. Conditioning, no chance in hell. Not going to be a team in the country better conditioned than this one, Yancy McKnight has made sure of that.
I was ok with this (with slight disagreements) until you said you think A&M’s depth and conditioning would be a deciding factor. I can guarantee the conditioning at A&M is not better than what Herman puts our guys through. I also think our advantage with the coaching staff FAR outweighs any depth considerations. Herman and company would out-scheme Sumlin and company 7 days a week and twice on Sunday.
We don’t call our conditioning coach “Black Death” for nothing! As for schemes, Chavis and Malzoone are pretty damn good in their own right.
Remember, Larry Jackson was here with Sumlin. We’ve seen both guys’ results on the field, up close. Give me McKnight 365 days a year, all day, every day. Also, “Black Death”???
Well here’s to hoping we find out in the CFB playoffs!
Zero chance the Aggies will be there, so that won’t happen. Here’s how all that plays out… A&M miraculously upsets Bama, and ends up getting to the SEC championship game where they face Tennessee. The week before, Scumlin’s agent gets a call from LSU wanting to pay him $6.5M annually. During the championship game, A&M strangely shows up completely unprepared and gets manhandled by Tennessee although they are significant favorite to win. The next morning, Scumlin announces he’s leaving to LSU. Wait… stop me if you’ve heard this before.
Oh how I would love that.
Hey, we are all getting a little more fired up than usual on these threads. Another pizza party with a few beers is in order I think. I’ll pitch in. Go Coogs!
If Vegas made A&M a 7 point favorite, it’s only because they think that is where the balance of the betting would be around. It isn’t necessarily their job to be accurate. It’s better for them if the bets go 50% one way and 50% the other way. So if Vegas thought Houston was the better team but the gambling was going to heavily favor A&M, they would favor A&M.