Texas at Texas A&M

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Texas at Texas A&M


#3 Texas (11-0, 7-0 Big 12) at Texas A&M (6-5, 3-4 Big 12)
8:00 PM ESPN
Kyle Field (Natural Grass)
Sports.com Line: Texas -21, O/U 62.5

Hard to believe we?ve reached the end of another Thursday night season of college football. Seems like yesterday that we were kicking off the season with South Carolina and NC State and now we?re already at Thanksgiving.

It doesn?t seem hard to believe that this is Colt McCoy?s last season. After all, it feels like the Texas QB has been under center for the Longhorns for about 10 years now. That always appears to be the case when a player gets time as a freshman, as McCoy did.

The senior has certainly put together an impressive career as he is now the winningest quarterback in NCAA history after the win over Baylor last weekend. McCoy will suit up one more time against Texas A&M when the Longhorns travel to College Station this Thursday night.

For the first half of McCoy?s career, the Aggies were a real thorn in the side of the Longhorns. In 2006, the Aggies beat their bitter rivals 12-7 in a hard fought battle and then turned the trick again in 2007, besting Texas 38-30 in a shootout. McCoy certainly didn?t help the cause in those losses, completing 56.7 percent of his passes with one touchdown and four interceptions.

However, revenge was sweet in 2008 as Texas crushed A&M 49-9 in Austin, with McCoy throwing for over 300 yards and two touchdowns. That said, McCoy has yet to win at Kyle Field although Texas will enter this contest as a three touchdown favorite.

There is really nothing for Texas to play for as far as the Big 12 is concerned. The Longhorns are all set to face North Division champion Nebraska in the Big 12 Championship game at the brand new Cowboys Stadium in Arlington on Dec. 5.

That said, Texas has everything to play for from a national perspective. That?s because, with #1 Florida and #2 Alabama on a collision course in the SEC Championship, the #3 Longhorns will face the winner of that game in the BCS championship game if they can get by A&M and the Cornhuskers. With that in mind, you can best believe the Longhorns will give maximum effort this Thursday night.

And when teams have gotten the Longhorn?s best punch its often been a bloody ending. In all, nine of the 11 Texas wins have come by 21 points or more with Texas Tech (34-24) and Oklahoma (16-13) hanging around with McCoy and company.

On paper, this game has all the marking of another one that could be a first round knockout for Texas. The Aggies have the 110th ranked pass defense in the nation, allowing an average of 259 yards through the air. You can bet that McCoy, who is currently the nation's most accurate passer with a 73.0 completion percentage, is seeing lots of things he likes on film this week. McCoy?s main target is good buddy Jordan Shipley who has a school-record 1,204 receiving yards so far in 2009 and should add plenty to that this Thursday.

To have any chance, the Aggies are going to have to hope their offense can come up big. And with the 7th ranked total offense in the land at just over 450 yards a game, there is some reason for optimism. As is the case with Texas, the Aggies rely heavily on their QB to lead the team. Jerrod Johnson, a Houston native, has put up a monster season for coach Mike Sherman with a school record 241 pass completions for 2,875 yards, with 24 touchdown passes and four 300-yard games. With those stats you know the A&M defense must be bad if the Aggies are just 6-5.

That said, the 6-foot-5 junior will be making his first start against the Longhorns and with all due respect to his previous opponents, Johnson and the Aggies will be facing the best defense they have seen all season. The Longhorns rank third in the country in total defense, giving up an average of 238.7 yards and that?s after losing three defensive starters from last season in the first three rounds of the 2009 NFL draft.

Kyle Field will definitely be rocking and rolling for this game but will the home field advantage be enough to bridge the obvious gap in talent between these two teams?

Both the Longhorns and the Aggies have been 5-5 against the spread this season.

 

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Weather Report

Weather Report

Weather Report

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NCAA FOOTBALL WEATHER
Matchup Conditions Game Time Temp Heat Index
TEXAS
TEXAS A&M
Thu 8:00 p.m. ET MOSTLY FAIR. NORTH WIND 4-9 60 N/A%
Humid

 

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(3) Texas (11-0) at Texas A&M (6-5)



Thursday, November 26th, 8:00 p.m. (et)




GAME NOTES: The third-ranked Texas Longhorns will attempt to remain undefeated and keep their national title hopes alive as they close out the regular season against Big 12 foe Texas A&M on Thanksgiving night.

Texas is a perfect 11-0, and 10 of the team's wins have come by double figures. The Longhorns crushed Kansas last weekend in a 51-10 final, and the club has scored 41 or more points seven times. Mack Brown may not have his best team since taking the reigns at Texas, but this group figures to have a chance to play for the national title if it can win this game and next weekend against Nebraska in the Big 12 Championship Game.

Texas A&M hasn't been nearly as successful as Texas this season, but the Aggies are bowl eligible at 6-5, and they can even their Big 12 record at 4-4 with a victory on Thursday night. Last weekend, the team halted a two-game skid with a 38-3 romp over Baylor in front of the home crowd. Texas A&M has been wildly inconsistent this season, as it beat Texas Tech by 22 points while also losing to Oklahoma and Kansas State by a combined score of 127-24.

Texas owns a 74-36-5 advantage in the all-time series with Texas A&M, including a 49-9 triumph over the Aggies last season.

UT's Colt McCoy has now won more games as a starting quarterback (43) than any player in Division I football history. Last weekend against Kansas, McCoy completed 32-of-41 passes for 396 yards with four touchdowns and zero interceptions, another brilliant performance by the Heisman hopeful. His favorite target, Jordan Shipley, made 10 catches for 108 yards and a touchdown in the win, while James Kirkendoll posted two scores.

"I don't think we could have scripted it any better," said coach Brown of McCoy's performance against Kansas en route to breaking the all-time wins record. "With all the pressure on him, he's showing everybody he's in here for a big finish. He is in here for a big finish and he was sending that message tonight."

Defensively, Texas was able to hold Kansas to 303 total yards on 65 plays, including 47 rushing yards on 26 carries. Sure, McCoy and the offense garner most of the attention, but this Longhorns' defense has been among the nation's best groups all year.

"We gave up more big plays than we've been giving up but they've got a great scheme offensively and I think they're really talented," said Brown when asked to assess his defense's play against Kansas. "I think that'll be really good for us going to A&M because they've got a great quarterback and really good skill at receiver as well."

Overall this season, Shipley has made 91 catches for a school-record 1,204 yards and nine touchdowns, and he is also one of the truly elite punt returners in the nation, having scored twice this year. McCoy has completed 73 percent of his throws for 3,024 yards and 23 touchdowns with nine interceptions, numbers that definitely place him in the Heisman discussion. Considering the fact that no player has rushed for more than 370 yards for Texas this season, the team has obviously employed a backfield-by-committee approach. The Longhorns are averaging 42.5 ppg to go along with 438.4 total ypg.

Defensively, Texas is limiting foes to 13.3 ppg and 238.7 total ypg. The Longhorns have only allowed 14 touchdowns to opponents through 11 games, including a mere four rushing scores. The fact that they are holding opponents to 1.7 yards per rushing attempt and 50.1 yards per game on the ground is downright staggering. Texas has made a wealth of big plays, as the club has registered 20 interceptions, 10 fumble recoveries and 35 sacks. Earl Thomas is second on the team in tackles, and he has recorded a stellar total of seven interceptions. As for Roddrick Muckelroy, he leads Texas with 69 total tackles.

Texas A&M is scoring 33.5 ppg this season, and the team is generating 459.3 total ypg. Those numbers are extremely solid by any standards, so there is little chance that the Longhorns will take the Aggies lightly this weekend. Quarterback Jerrod Johnson is a standout performer who has thrown 24 touchdowns against only five touchdowns and has 2,875 passing yards to his credit. More than just a passer, the versatile Johnson has rushed for 358 yards and eight touchdowns. Cyrus Gray has posted 741 rushing yards and five touchdowns to lead the ground attack, and Ryan Tannehill paces a balanced group of receivers with 40 catches.

While the Texas A&M offense has been strong, the team's defense has been rather weak. Opponents are scoring 31.2 ppg against the Aggies, who are yielding 416.3 total ypg. They have struggled against both the run and the pass, as opponents have racked up 40 total touchdowns against them, including 24 on the ground.

Fortunately, the defense played brilliantly against Baylor last weekend, limiting the Bears to 297 total yards while coming up with three big interceptions. Most importantly, zero touchdowns were permitted in 60 minutes of football.

"It was huge for us to keep a team out of the end zone for an entire game," said defensive lineman Eddie Brown. "The win was great -- it means we're going bowling. Now we can't wait for Texas on Thursday."

The offense took care of business as well against Baylor, as 375 yards were gained on the ground en route to a total of 528 yards. Johnson was tremendous under center, as he completed 19-of-25 passes for 153 yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions. He also ran for 83 yards and a score, while Christine Michael had 116 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

"It's a great feeling knowing that Thursday isn't our last game," said offensive lineman Lee Grimes when asked to comment on his team becoming bowl eligible. "It's rewarding to the team to know we are coming back to play a bowl game."

Winning at Texas A&M can be tough, but there is no way that the Longhorns will suffer a letdown. Expect McCoy to be tremendous as usual.

Predicted Outcome: Texas 38, Texas A&M 17

 

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College Football Matchup - (3) Texas at Texas A&M

(3) Texas Longhorns (11-0) at Texas A&M Aggies (6-5)
Date: Thursday, November 26th
Kickoff: 8 p.m. (et)
Site: Kyle Field (83,002) -- College Station, Texas
Surface: Natural Grass
Home Record: Texas 6-0; Texas A&M 5-1
Away Record: Texas 4-0; Texas A&M 1-4
Neutral Record: Texas 1-0; Texas A&M 0-0
Conference Record: Texas 7-0; Texas A&M 3-4
Current Road Win/Loss Streak: Texas 5W
Current Home Win/Loss Streak: Texas A&M 2W
Television: ESPN
Announcers: Chris Fowler, Craig James, Jesse Palmer and Erin Andrews
All-Time Series: Texas (74-36-5)
Last Meeting: November 27, 2008 (Texas, 49-9 at Texas)
Series Streak: Texas A&M has won two of the last three meetings.

Season Schedule/Results
Texas Longhorns
Sep 5 - W vs. UL-Monroe, 59-20
Sep 12 - W at Wyoming, 41-10
Sep 19 - W vs. Texas Tech, 34-24
Sep 26 - W vs. Texas-El Paso, 64-7
Oct 3 - Open
Oct 10 - W vs. Colorado, 38-14
Oct 17 - W vs. Oklahoma, 16-13 (at Dallas, TX)
Oct 24 - W at Missouri, 41-7
Oct 31 - W at Oklahoma State, 41-14
Nov 7 - W vs. U-C-F, 35-3
Nov 14 - W at Baylor, 47-14
Nov 21 - W vs. Kansas, 51-20
Nov 26 - at Texas A&M, 8:00 PM
Dec 5 - at Nebraska, 8:00 PM
Texas A&M Aggies
Sep 5 - W vs. New Mexico, 41-6
Sep 12 - Open
Sep 19 - W vs. Utah State, 38-30
Sep 26 - W vs. U-A-B, 56-19
Oct 3 - L at Arkansas, 19-47
Oct 10 - L vs. Oklahoma State, 31-36
Oct 17 - L at Kansas State, 14-62
Oct 24 - W at Texas Tech, 52-30
Oct 31 - W vs. Iowa State, 35-10
Nov 7 - L at Colorado, 34-35
Nov 14 - L at Oklahoma, 10-65
Nov 21 - W vs. Baylor, 38-3
Nov 26 - vs. Texas, 8:00 PM

 

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Sharp action coming in on Broncos and Aggies

Sharp action coming in on Broncos and Aggies

Sharp action coming in on Broncos and Aggies


New York Giants at Denver Broncos

Line/total: We opened Giants -6.5 and took significant early money on the favorite. We moved rather aggressively off that money and went Giants -7. After going to 7, sharp money came in on the dog and we went back to 6.5. Since then, we've seen a bit more Bronco money and are now using 6 on the game.

We opened the total at 42 and all the early action is on the over. Nearly 75 percent of the action is on the over and we've gone to 42.5 based on that action.

Key Injuries:

Giants - RB Ahmad Bradshaw has been downgraded to doubtful. RB Brandon Jacobs has been upgraded to probable. OG Rich Seubert and WR Hakeem Nicks were both injured last game and are aboth questionable. LB Antonio Pierce is out indefinitely.

Broncos - DB Brian Dawkins and QB Kyle Orton are both probable. RB LaMont Jordan and OL Ryan Harris are both expected to miss tonight's game.

Comments: About five weeks ago, these two teams looked like possible Super Bowl contenders. Since then, each team has struggled big time.

The Giants started their season 5-0, both SU and ATS, but went on to lose four straight games. They beat the Falcons, but failed to cover last weekend.

The Broncos season has been flipped upside down since improving to 6-0 back in Week 6. Four straight losses have been accompanied by four straight non-covers. They've been completely blown out in their four losses, losing by an average of 20 points a game.

Prop of the game: Eli Manning (Giants) total passing yards - 230.5

No. 2 Texas at Texas A&M

Line/total: We opened Texas -22.5 and sharp money came on the dog on Monday afternoon. We moved Longhorns to -21.5 and eventually to 21, where line still currently stands. Money is starting to show for Texas and I believe we'll be going back to 21.5 as we get closer to game time.

We opened the total 62.5 and have seen mostly over money so far. About 70 percent of the action is on the over and we've gone to 63 based on that action.

Key Injuries:

Texas - WR John Chiles, DT Calvin Howell and OG Mason Walters have all been downgraded to doubtful. RB DJ Monroe is questionable. CB Aaron Williams is probable

Texas A/M - DB Marcus Gold is out indefinitely

Comments: Aggies junior quarterback Jerrod Johnson has been phenomenal this season tossing 24 touchdown passes against only five interceptions.

Problem with Texas A&M in 2009 is it defense. The unit ranks dead last in points allowed in the Big 12, surrending 31.2 points a contest.

Texas QB Colt McCoy has only thrown one interception over his past four games, and has a completion percentage of 73 percent on the year. Texas is just two wins (Nebraska is next in the Big 12 Championship Game) away from the BCS National Championship Game.

These two teams have split their last two meetings, with Texas winning and covering last year as 35-point favorites. The previous year, A&M won outright at Kyle Field as 7-point underdogs.

Prop of Game: Colt McCoy (Texas) total touchdown passes - 2.5

 

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Texas at Texas A&M

Texas at Texas A&M

Texas Longhorns at Texas A&M Aggies (+21, 62)

Millions of turkeys will have been devoured and millions of dollars wagered when No. 3 Texas takes on Texas A&M at Kyle Field at College Station in a key Big 12 battle Thanksgiving night on ESPN at 8 p.m. (ET).

Gametime temperature will be in the mid-50s with a 30 percent chance of rain, under partly cloudy skies.

Night moves

The game opened Texas as a 22.5-point favorite. The initial line moved a point and a half in A&M?s favor with the Longhorns now favored by 21.

Record setter

Longhorn quarterback Colt McCoy, runner-up in last year?s Heisman Trophy race, set an all-time NCAA FBS mark for wins in a career when he improved to 43-7 as a starter in Texas? 31-point pummeling of Kansas.

McCoy completed 32-of-41 passes for 396 yards and four TDs to become just the fifth player in FBS history to eclipse 14,000 total career yards.

"I don't think we could have scripted it any better," head coach Mack Brown said. "He's in here for a big finish and he was sending that message."

The message was sent to Heisman Trophy voters.

By the horns

Texas has scored 34 or more points in all but one game (Oklahoma) this season. Behind McCoy, the Horns are averaging 40.2 points per game.

The Longhorns are 12-5 SU and ATS in regular season weekday games since 1993, but only 1-2 SU and ATS behind McCoy ? all three games were against Texas A&M.

Wake up, Aggie

The Aggies have fallen asleep in front of the cameras this season, going 0-5 in televised games. They have won all six of their games that weren't on TV, including last week?s 38-3 beat down against Baylor.

"These kids are about ready to give me a heart attack," head coach Mike Sherman said. "One week it's one thing; one week it's something else. But I was proud of them. I thought they did a good job of responding to the challenge they had in front of them."

That mission was to become bowl-eligible and they did that with the 35-point win against Baylor.

Strengths and weaknesses

The Longhorns are the nation?s No. 1 ranked team in total defense, surrendering 239 ypg. The Aggies are ranked No. 102 in team defense, allowing 444 ypg.

Texas has held nine of 11 foes under 100 yards rushing this season, with 134 yards on the ground by Oklahoma State being the most. Texas A&M is 6-0 SU and 5-1 ATS in 2009 in games in which it has rushed for 200 or more yards in a game. The Aggies are 0-5 SU and 0-4-1 ATS in games this season in which they failed to eclipse the 200-yard mark.

With a win tonight and in next week?s Big 12 title game, UT is ticketed for an appearance in this season?s BCS Championship game. A&M is likely headed to the Independence Bowl or the Texas Bowl.

From the archives

Undefeated teams in their last game of the season are 13-3 ATS when facing an opponent with a .555 winning percentage or less.

The Aggies are 2-4 SU and 4-1 ATS as a series host (all as a dog) and 14-2-2 ATS as a conference home dog off a win of six or more points.