Texas A&M Aggies at Texas Longhorns Big 12 Expert Picks

Texas A&M Aggies at Texas Longhorns
Thursday, 11/25/10, 8:00 PM EDT, TV: ESPN
Opening Point Spread: Texas A&M -3.5
Current Betting Line: Texas A&M -3.5
Opening Total: 48
Current Total: 47.5
Current Moneyline: Texas A&M -165 / Texas +145

Texas Longhorns Vs Baylor Bears — The Texas Longhorns are in a must-win situation on Thanksgiving night to keep the school's bowl appearance streak alive

Texas A&M heads to Austin and face an unranked Texas team for the first time since 1998, when they were defeated by the Longhorns 26-24 on a late field goal. The Aggies are coming off a 9-6 home win over the Nebraska on Saturday and have won five straight Big 12 Conference games. The team is also undefeated in the month of November for the first time since 1997, but know this week’s game will be tough with its opponent bowl eligibility on the line. “The most important thing for us is to worry about the University of Texas and playing a great game,” said head coach Mike Sherman. “I’d be proud of our team if we could win Thursday night.” This week’s game will mark the 116th meeting between the two teams, with the Aggies having a 13-12 advantage over the last 25. Texas A&M’s lone victory over Texas in Austin in the Big 12 era came in 2006 with a 12-7 victory. The squad is 2-0 ATS as a road favorite this year and are laying more than a field goal on the college football lines page.

The Aggies resurgence this season has been directly attributed to the play of quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who has a 4-0 record as a starter, becoming the first school signal caller to win his first four starts since 1992. He has thrown for 10 touchdowns during the team’s five-game winning streak after replacing the benched Jerrod Johnson. It’s important not to forget that the running game has proven vital for this team’s success this year, posting a perfect 8-0 record with a 100-yard individual rusher in 2010. In fact, the Aggies have won 11 straight when they have a 100-yard rusher over the past two years.

Texas has gone to a bowl in every year since 1998 and kept that dream alive with a 51-17 win against the Florida Atlantic Owls, which also snapped a four-game losing streak. “Coaches, players, everybody, they’ve been so beaten down,” said Mack Brown. “If you’re a school that doesn’t expect to win, losing is probably easy. It’s expected. They just live with it.” The victory didn’t come as a surprise with the program posting a 15-0 overall mark against teams from the Sun Belt Conference and many experts believe another loss is in store this week with a much-higher caliber opponent. The offense went for more than 500 yards for the first time in 2010, which is strange considering the team has gone over that mark in 54 games over the last 12-plus years. Texas is 1-5 ATS at home this season.

The Longhorns will be led on the field by a group of 20 seniors that will take the field at Texas Memorial Stadium for the last time. This senior class has helped the program compile a 40-11 overall record over the last four years, including posting at least 10 wins in three consecutive seasons. Despite the troubles at home this season, Texas is still 39-6 in tonight’s venue versus league opponents during the Brown era. The team is also 27-10 in its last 37 games against Top 25 opponents, with five of those losses coming to Top 10 teams.