The sixth-ranked LSU Fighting Tigers (6-1, 2-1 SEC) journey west to College Station, Texas, for their first-ever conference matchup with No. 20 Texas Agricultural & Mechanical University (5-1, 2-1 SEC). Hit the hay early on Friday night, folks, as toe-to-leather at Kyle Field is scheduled for 11 a.m. on ESPN.

11 a.m. for college football? We’re not talking about Maryland vs. Wake Forest or something JV like that. We’re talking major conference college football in a game involving top-25 teams.

Let’s face it, early kickoffs . . . how do I say it . . . they suck. But more generally speaking – early – more often than not, is bad. When you were a kid, going to bed early was the worst. When you’re a parent, kids waking up early is the worst. I don’t like early tee times. Something about dew on the grass and the slight guilt for wanting to crack open a cold pop to enjoy the round at 8:15 in the morning. Early voting is bad; favors the Dems. To paraphrase country singer Kenny Chesney’s powerful lyrics, everyone wants to go to heaven; no one wants to get there early. I reckon early retirement is good if you’ve made enough geet along the way. But, in general, early . . . well . . . sucks.

Which brings us to the tilt between the Tigers and Aggies this Saturday morning. Will the dreadful LSU team from two weeks ago at Florida show up in College Station? Or, will the confident, smash-mouth Tiger squad that beat South Carolina board the westbound team plane on Friday?

Hopefully the latter. LSU’s hodgepodge offensive line finally gelled last week as the Tigers’ running backs, led by newcomer Jeremy Hill, had strong performances against an excellent South Carolina defense. Signal-caller Zach Mettenberger was not stellar but managed the game well enough and looks to continue his improvement. The Tigers’ defense is just badass, like the Bayou Bengals’ head coach.

A&M won’t make it easy for LSU. Aggie fans will be just as fired up at 11 a.m. as they would be at 8:00 p.m. Kickoff times don’t matter when your fan base is as dorky as A&M’s. They’re geeks 24-7.

There’s nothing dorky about Texas A&M’s offense, however. Led by redshirt freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel, nicknamed “Johnny Football,” the Aggies have put up points at will this season. They’ve scored 48, 70, 58, and 59 points in various games – but they haven’t faced a defense like LSU’s.

This could be a close one. LSU’s offense doesn’t have the firepower to withstand a shootout in College Station. Les Miles will use his ground-and-pound attack to control the ball, eat up the clock, and keep Johnny Football off the field. LSU’s defense has historically grounded more potent offenses than this A&M unit. Sam Montgomery and Keke Mingo should get to Manziel early and often. (I guess early is good in some situations.)

The Tigers continue their road to redemption and notch a solid SEC Western Division win entering their bye week.

Prediction:

LSU 31
Texas A&M 21

Geaux Tigers!

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