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#10 Alabama faces #9 Texas A&M Saturday
By: Brian Graham - StatFox
Published: 10/17/2015  at  9:22:00 AM
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ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE (5-1)
vs. TEXAS A&M AGGIES (5-0)

Kyle Field - College Station, TX
Kickoff: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET
Line: Alabama -4, Total: 53.5

A huge game that could determine the eventual SEC West champion will take place Saturday in College Station, TX when No. 9 Texas A&M hosts No. 10 Alabama.

Here is the BetDSI Sportsbook betting preview for this matchup:

The Crimson Tide (2-4 ATS) have bounced back strong since their lone loss of the season on Sept. 19 versus Ole Miss with three straight wins by 13+ points. The Aggies (4-1 ATS) haven't lost all year, and have opened conference play 2-0 with wins over Arkansas and Mississippi State on Oct. 3 before last week's bye. These teams are meeting for just the fourth time since Texas A&M joined the SEC, and after the first two matchups were won by the road team by seven points or less, Alabama rolled to a 59-0 laugher at home last season. The score in that rout was 45-0 at halftime and the Tide finished with a ridiculous 602 to 172 advantage in total yards over the Aggies. Most of the betting trends favor Alabama in this contest, including the team's 18-8 ATS road record in the first half of the season under head coach Nick Saban and its 23-5 ATS mark on the road off an SU win/ATS loss combination as a favorite since 1992. Texas A&M benefits from Kevin Sumlin's 13-4 ATS record after committing no turnovers and 16-6 ATS mark at home after 300+ passing yards in three straight contests in his head coaching career. Both schools have only one notable injury each, with Crimson Tide WR Raheem Falkins and Aggies WR Speedy Noil both questionable for Saturday with undisclosed ailments.

Can Alabama hand Texas A&M its first loss of the season on Saturday? For the answer, connect to College Football Best Bets for all the StatFox Experts picks throughout the 2015 regular season and bowl season.

Alabama's offense has been strong this season with 34.7 PPG on 436 total YPG. The ground game hasn't been as potent as usual, but still has a solid 189 YPG on 4.6 YPC. Junior RB Derrick Henry has run for 665 yards on 5.5 YPC with 10 touchdowns in six games, but the massive 6-foot-3, 242-pounder is coming off a season-low 3.5 YPC versus Arkansas. Henry should get plenty of touches against a Texas A&M team that he ran for 70 yards on 10 carries and 1 TD against last season. Senior QB Jake Coker is in the midst of a strong season with 60% completions for 1,238 yards, 11 TD and 6 INT, and he even got to play versus the Aggies in last year's blowout, completing 5-of-8 throws for 36 yards, 1 TD and 0 INT. Per usual, the Crimson Tide defense has been outstanding in limiting opponents to 15.7 PPG and 265 total YPG. The run-stop unit has been particularly impressive with 77 YPG allowed on 2.6 YPC. But opponents can't overlook the passing defense that has held teams to 187 YPG (5.1 YPA) on 51% completions. Since surrendering 43 points to Ole Miss on Sept. 19, Alabama's defense has allowed only 8.0 PPG and 204 total YPG on 3.1 yards per play. Forcing seven turnovers during this three-game stretch has also helped, giving the team 12 takeaways this season. But the Aggies are not prone to mistakes, having not turned over the football in either of their SEC games this year.

Texas A&M once again has a powerful offense that is averaging 39.2 PPG on 480 total YPG (6.5 yards per play) this season. But even though 188 YPG (4.7 YPC) have come on the ground, the team has averaged only 130 YPG (4.0 YPC) in two SEC contests. Senior RB Tra Carson bounced back from a poor rushing performance at Arkansas (28 rush yds) with a 110-yard outburst versus Mississippi State last week. The air attack has been outstanding (292 YPG, 8.7 YPA, 63% completions), which includes three straight games of more than 300 passing yards. Sophomore QB Kyle Allen has tossed at least 2 TD in all five games, totaling 1,274 yards on 64% completions, 13 TD and only 2 INT. His favorite target has been electric junior WR Josh Reynolds who has produced back-to-back, 100-yard receiving games, totaling 247 yards on only 10 catches. On defense, the Aggies have been decent in limiting opponents to 21.0 PPG on 375 total YPG. The unit has been on the field for an average of 32:01, which has led to 183 rushing YPG allowed on 4.6 YPC, and 192 passing YPG allowed on 6.2 YPA. The Aggies have forced at least one turnover in all five contests, including two takeaways in both SEC contests. Considering Alabama has 12 giveaways in its past five games, turnovers will be a huge story for Saturday.


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