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Texas A&M at Texas Football Betting Odds & Predictions

Written by Jimmy Boyd on November 24, 2008

Texas takes on Big 12 rival Texas A&M on Thanksgiving Day to close out its 2008 regular season and odds makers are expecting nothing short of a blowout with the Longhorns listed as the 34.5-point favorite.

There is little doubt that the Longhorns should be able to score points this week, but if they hope to cover the spread, it’s going to be up to the defense to shut down the Aggies. Texas’ defense has been solid but far from dominant this season. While the Longhorns rank second in the conference in total defense, they are just 58th nationally with a 348.5 yards against average. It should help the confidence of the defense that it is coming off their best performance of the season, holding Kansas to just 7 points on November 15th. The Longhorns are 10-1 overall and 6-1 in the Big 12 and come into this matchup renewed on a couple different planes. First of all, Texas has had an off week to prepare and rest up. Secondly, the Longhorns got the help they needed from Oklahoma as the Sooners destroyed Texas Tech last Saturday to form a three-way tie in the Big 12 South.

Offensively, few teams have been as explosive as Texas, but its one weak spot has been an inconsistent running game. The Longhorns rank fourth in the Big 12 in rushing at 173.4-yards per game, but QB Colt McCoy remains their leading rusher. By using a committee of backs, including Fozzy Whittaker, Chris Ogbonnaya and Vondrell McGee, the Longhorns lack a dominant rusher, which can take it upon himself to win a big game. If you think the Horns will beat the spread this week, bet Texas at -34.5 at BetUS and receive up to a 50% cash sign up bonus.

A restless Texas A&M fan base does not want to wait for a winner. A shocking upset over rival Texas would go along way in satisfying the Aggies faithful for another year. An upset here would rival the upset we saw a season ago when Stanford beat USC as more than a 40-point underdog. With a 4-7 record heading into this game, the Aggies already know that there will be no Bowl game and that they have locked up the Big 12 South basement. Things don’t get any worse than losing to Baylor in the Big 12 and that’s exactly what happened to A&M on November 15th. A win this week is the only thing that can keep the grumblings down and it’s something that Mike Sherman’s predecessor, Dennis Franchione was able to do each of the past two seasons. The Aggies will be missing out on the postseason for the fourth time in seven years and stand at 42-42 during that period. This is a team which was once one of college football’s elite and was a Big 12 champ just a decade ago. A&M was not very patient with Franchione and its likely that they’ll be even less patient with Sherman. Simply put, the Aggies offense needs to bounce back. Prior to defeats to Oklahoma and Baylor, Texas A&M averaged 416.8 yards per game behind QB Jerrod Johnson over a four-game stretch. The Aggies only turned the ball over four times during that span. In back-to-back losses, they have averaged only 293 yards per game and turned the ball over nine times. Defensively, A&M has struggled to stop the run, but could catch a break against a Texas team which prefers to pass. The Aggies allowed 269 yards rushing to Baylor in their last game. QB Jerrod Johnson committed five turnovers against Baylor, including four interceptions, but he already holds the A&M single-season record with 20 touchdown passes. If you like the Aggies to bounce back and play a much tougher football game this week, bet Texas A&M at +34.5 at BetUS.

Do yourself a big favor and do your college football betting on Jimmy Boyd’s award winning football picks this week to give yourself the best shot at dominating the college football odds.

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