Texas A&M Football: Game-by-Game Predictions for the Month of October

The Texas A&M football team will play one of the most challenging schedules in the nation in the month of October. The Aggies will face three teams ranked in the Top 12 but should be able to scrape by with a 2-1 record. 

Texas A&M is 5-0 on the season with a 2-0 conference record and the No. 6 ranking in the latest Associated Press poll. They are one of the top teams in the nation but are not without flaws. They still have a couple of weaknesses that can be exploited by their opponents. 

The Aggies are going to play No. 12 Mississippi State, No. 11 Ole Miss and No. 3 Alabama in consecutive weeks. That is a very challenging schedule, especially when you consider that two of those contests are on the road.

This is a look at the expected outcome of the Aggies' October slate of games.   

Mississippi State

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The Aggies will travel to Starkville to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs on October 4. The Bulldogs are 4-0 with an impressive 34-29 win over LSU in Baton Rouge. 

Mississippi State had an off week after the victory over LSU to help the team prepare for the Aggies. The Bulldogs feature the most dynamic dual-threat quarterback in the conference in junior Dak Prescott. 

The 6'2", 230-pound athlete from Haughton, Louisiana, is averaging 241 yards passing and 94.5 yards rushing per game on the 2014 season. With the win over LSU, the Bulldogs are 1-0 in the conference. Whoever wins the game between A&M and MSU will have a leg up in the race for the West Division crown in the SEC. 

MSU also features 5'9", 215-pound junior running back Josh Robinson on offense. He is averaging 121.2 rushing yards per game and has scored four touchdowns. 

Robinson and Prescott are big, strong runners who will present a problem for the Aggies linebackers. The Bulldogs will likely try to control the clock with the running game in order to keep the Aggies offense on the sideline. 

The Mississippi State defense has struggled against the pass. The Bulldogs are allowing 319 yards passing per game. This bodes well for an Aggies passing game that is averaging 401.2 yards passing per game. 

Look for the Aggies quarterback to slice up the Bulldog secondary on the way to a close win on the road. 

Prediction: Texas A&M 38, Mississippi State 37

Ole Miss

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The Aggies will play No. 11 Ole Miss on October 11 at Kyle Field. The Rebels are currently 4-0 with a 1-0 record in the SEC. 

Ole Miss has one of the top defenses in the country, allowing only 248 yards and 8.5 points per game. On offense, the Rebels are scoring 39 points and averaging 496.2 yards per game. 

The Rebels are a little smaller than your typical SEC team on defense but are extremely fast and play a variety of schemes. 

Senior quarterback Bo Wallace leads the Ole Miss offense. He is completing 71 percent of his passes for 317 yards per game. The problem with Wallace is that he still tends to throw the ball to the other team. He has thrown six interceptions during the first four games. 

Ole Miss will be playing on the road for the second straight week after traveling to Alabama on October 4. Expect the Aggies to force enough turnovers on defense to get a win at home. 

Prediction: Texas A&M 31, Ole Miss 23

Alabama

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The Aggies will travel to Tuscaloosa on October 18 to take on Alabama. The Crimson Tide are 4-0 and ranked No. 3 in the AP poll. 

The Tide feature one of the top offenses and defenses in the nation. Alabama is averaging 594.2 yards per game while only allowing 250.2 yards. 

The question for Alabama is whether it can stop a true hurry-up spread offense. The Tide struggled to slow down West Virginia to start the season, as the Mountaineers passed for 365 yards in the season opener for both teams. 

The Aggies should be able to move the ball against the Tide because Nick Saban still does not know how to slow down Kevin Sumlin's offense. However, Alabama has too much talent across the board on the offense for the Aggies defense to handle. 

Alabama has arguably the greatest assortment of skill players in the country in running backs T.J Yeldon and Derrick Henry, wide receiver Amari Cooper and tight end O.J. Howard. The Aggies' only hope is to force Alabama quarterback Blake Sims to turn the ball over multiple times. 

Alabama simply has too much talent spread across the offense for the Aggies to handle. 

Prediction: Alabama 41, Texas A&M 30

Playoff Implications?

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If the Aggies go 2-1 in the month of October, that will leave them at 7-1 on the season and still ranked in the Top 10. They would be in prime position to make a run for the SEC West title. 

If the Aggies want to make the playoffs in 2014, then they need to win the West and hope that Georgia wins the East. If A&M and Georgia are both one-loss teams and meet in the SEC Championship Game, there is a chance that both teams could advance to the College Football Playoff. 

If anyone else from the East advances to the SEC title game other than Georgia, then the Aggies would need to win the SEC title game in order to advance to the playoffs. 

The Aggies will face two ranked teams in Auburn and LSU after the month of October. If they can get through October with only one loss, then they will still have a shot at making the playoffs if the right pieces fall into place.