LSU and Texas A&M both took it on the chin in Week 3, and there’s no getting around it.
The Tigers lost a heartbreaker to Ole Miss on Saturday night in Lane Kiffin‘s return to Oxford, while the Aggies fell at home in a shocker to unranked Kentucky. Both teams have designs on an SEC title and a College Football Playoff spot in 2026, but those hopes took a big uppercut on Saturday.
Now comes the shot at a big-time rebound for both teams, with No. 10 LSU heading back home to Death Valley for a primetime showdown with No. 23 Texas A&M, which fell 14 spots in Sunday’s new AP Poll. The Tigers fell 3 spots, but both teams will have a chance to improve on those rankings while avoiding that dreaded 2nd loss of the season before September even ends.
The opening Week 4 betting lines were revealed on Sunday afternoon, and the first line on the LSU-Texas A&M game gives a big advantage to the home team to bounce back from the Ole Miss loss. LSU is not only favored — the Tigers are a 9-point favorite to hand the Aggies that 2nd loss, with the teams kicking it off in primetime at 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
Here is the LSU-Texas A&M line as well as all of the opening betting lines for the final college football Saturday in September:
The Tigers and Aggies will both be trying to avoid something else — an 0-2 start in the SEC, with each losing their conference openers in that forgettable Week 3. Both teams are 2-1 overall, and LSU also has a chance for some payback after being blown out by Texas A&M last season, 49-25, in a late October primetime game in Death Valley that led to the firing of head coach Brian Kelly.
So, it’ll be same location, same teams, same primetime stage in 2026 as the now-desperate SEC rivals hook up for, this time, a late September showdown.
LSU and Texas A&M have their eyes on each other this Saturday for the primetime clash, but in the big picture there is also an SEC title to win come December. Here is what the Kalshi market is currently saying about both teams’ chances to lift that SEC trophy when the dust settles:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
