Week 8: #14 Aggies vs #7 Crimson Tide Odds
College football Week 8 betting action sees the #14 Texas A&M Aggies taking on the #7 Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday October 18th at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. Cappers Picks provides free NCAA football handicapping tips all season long.
After a weird couple weeks for Alabama, the Crimson Tide are looking to turn the tides with a big win against a newer rival in Texas A&M. The Aggies, meanwhile, are trying to recover from 2 straight defeats courtesy of the state of Mississippi.
College Football Lines
#14 Texas A&M (5-2, 2-2 SEC) @ #7 Alabama (5-1, 2-1 SEC)
Saturday, October 18th 3:30 PM ET @ Bryant-Denny Stadium – Tuscaloosa
NCAA Football Spread: Alabama -13
NCAA Football O/U: 60
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With both of these squads losing to a really good Ole Miss squad, things in the SEC may have opened up. While Alabama is in no way hurting, the increased production of conference schools has them being doubted weekly.
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Texas A&M is still trying to get their newest star quarterback, Kenny Hill, acclimated to the big time. This tilt against Alabama is the third straight game in which the Aggies have had to face a top-15 ranked conference opponent. They also face Auburn (currently ranked #6) in November.
#14 Texas A&M
Things were looking up for the Aggies until they had to take on the state of Mississippi. Two weeks in a row resulting in losses to Mississippi State and Ole Miss have Texas A&M supporters wondering about the caliber of play in big games, especially after squeaking out an OT win against Arkansas.
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Kenny Hill has been huge for A&M this season, easing the doomsday talk after the loss of Johnny Manziel. On the season, Hill has completed 197 of 295 passes for 2,511 yards, 23 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. Last week against Ole Miss, he threw for 401 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.
The Aggie offense has been potent – the team has SIX one-hundred yard rushers and FIVE receivers with over 300 yards on the season already.
On the ground, Trey Williams and Tra Carson have been carrying the load. Williams has tallied 301 yards and 5 touchdowns on 49 carries while Carson has 54 carries for 273 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Wide Receiver Josh Reynolds is approaching the 500 yard mark for the Aggies, amassing 476 yards and 8 touchdowns on 29 receptions. Edward Pope has 23 grabs for 399 yards and 4 touchdowns while headliners Ricky Seals-Jones and Speedy Noil aren’t far behind with Seals-Jones having 37 catches of his own for 377 yards and 3 scores and Noil with 27 catches for 360 yards and 3 touchdowns.
The Aggie defense has bent many times without breaking this season. They have found ways to give up slightly less than the offense produced and come away with some close games. A big reason for that is Freshman defensive linemen Myles Garrett, who has 7.5 sacks on the season already.
#7 Alabama
While the downfall of Alabama is well underway outside of Tuscaloosa, Nick Saban has his team ready to go yet again in a must-win game in order to keep their hopes alive for a big-time bowl game. Also losing to Ole Miss, the Crimson Tide feel the pain the Aggies are feeling. Not to mention, they get to face #1 Mississippi State in 3 weeks.
The two-headed rushing attack of T.J. Yeldon and Derrick Henry have proven successful for the Tide. On the season, Yeldon has 93 carries for 452 yards and 2 touchdowns. Henry has 77 carries for 382 yards and 2 touchdowns of his own.
Leading those two in rushing touchdowns, though, is starting quarterback Blake Sims. Sims has 36 carries for 154 yards and 3 touchdowns. Through the air, he has completed 101 of 149 passes for 1480 yards, 10 touchdowns and 3 interceptions.
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Half of Sims’ touchdowns have gone to star wide receiver Amari Cooper, who has 5 on the season. He has racked up 768 yards on 54 receptions this season. The next closest on the team in receptions is DeAndrew White, with 16 grabs for 154 yards and a touchdown.
Kenyan Drake has been a dual offensive threat, scoring 4 touchdowns on the ground (22 carries, 112 yards) and 2 through the air (5 catches, 159 yards).
On defense, Landon Collins is leading the way in tackles with 46. He’s also got 2 interceptions on the season, also leading the team. Xzavier Dickson has 5 sacks on the year to go with his 2 passes defended while Cyrus Jones has 3 forced fumbles and a fumble recovery for the Alabama defense.
NCAA football handicapping trends
- Aggies are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall
- Aggies are 2-9 ATS in their last 11 games in October
- Aggies are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 conference games
- Aggies are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games following a ATS loss
- Crimson Tide are 11-3 ATS in their last 14 games in October
Week 8 NCAA Football Prediction
It’s easy to pick the sexy option here. Kenny Hill throws for a lot of yards and touchdowns, can run the ball well and can make some big plays. But the two times he has faced a real defense, he hasn’t come away with a victory.
Free NCAA Betting Pick: Alabama -13
Add to that the fact that Alabama is still Alabama and can win a high scoring game just as easy as keeping it a low scoring affair.
4* Final Week 8 Score: #14 Texas A&M 17 – #7 Alabama 31
Oh yeah….they have a pretty good defense, too.
Check out our Updated College Football Week 8 Odds.
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