No. 10 LSU Beats No. 23 Texas A&M 35-6 as Aggies Fall to 0-2 in SEC

Texas A&M managed only two field goals in a 506-197 yardage rout at Tiger Stadium and hosts Arkansas next Saturday still searching for answers.

No. 10 LSU dominated No. 23 Texas A&M 35-6 on Saturday night at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, dropping the Aggies to 2-2 overall and 0-2 in Southeastern Conference play. The Tigers outgained Texas A&M 506-197 in total yards, and the Aggies' only points came on a pair of David Olano field goals.

Head coach Mike Elko offered no quick fixes afterward. "We have to find a way to play better football," he said. "We're not playing football at nearly a good enough level, obviously. It's the understatement of a lifetime. I don't have answers right now at this second, but we got to find them and find them fast."

Quarterback Marcel Reed was 7 of 15 for 75 yards at halftime and finished 10 of 26 for 106 yards with an interception. The slump began a week earlier, when then-No. 9 Texas A&M lost 31-21 to unranked Kentucky, a defeat that brought heavy criticism of the Nashville native, including a doxxing incident that leaked his phone number, and prompted Elko to compare him to a pitcher who could not throw a strike.

Reed agreed with that pitching comparison during the week, but he said the two outings were different, describing the Kentucky loss as a matter of missed throws while feeling he largely put the ball where it needed to be at LSU. "I'm just trying to figure out what's the issue," Reed said. "I think that's what we're trying to figure out as an offense right now."

The running ability that produced 108 yards and two touchdowns against LSU last season, plus a team-high 80 rushing yards against Kentucky, was bottled up. Reed carried 10 times for minus-13 yards, took four sacks, and was held below zero on the ground for only the second time in his career. "I'm sure they knew and understood that I was effective running the ball the past two years, so you know they had people around for me whenever I did run the ball," he said.

Asked whether a quarterback change was coming, Elko answered "No." Backup Brady Hart got his chance in the fourth quarter and was intercepted on his only pass of the night.

Injuries kept piling up at receiver. Junior Terry Bussey suffered a season-ending injury against Kentucky, junior Ashton Bethel-Roman did not record a catch after entering as a game-time decision, and junior Mario Craver went to the injury tent twice in the first half after being hurt on a punt return. Craver caught three passes for 31 yards and rushed once for six yards before halftime, then had no catches after returning to the game, while graduate student Isaiah Horton led the Aggies with 41 yards on three receptions. "It certainly hindered things, not having (Craver)," Elko said. "He's a big part of what we want to do. But 10-for-26 for 106 is certainly not just because Mario is out."

LSU redshirt junior quarterback Sam Leavitt completed 17 of 23 passes for 312 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. His 57-yard scoring pass to redshirt junior wide receiver Jackson Harris on fourth-and-1, with 10:57 left in the third quarter, extended the lead to 21-3. Harris finished with six catches for 167 yards and two touchdowns on eight targets. Redshirt sophomore running back Jones added 63 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries, his 36-yard long more than double Texas A&M's best run of the night, and backup quarterback Landen Clark ran for two second-half touchdowns on nine carries.

Senior safety Dalton Brooks pointed to breakdowns in the secondary. "It's on all of us back there," he said. "It's a communication issue. Everyone has to communicate, and everyone has to do their job." Texas A&M returns home to host Arkansas next Saturday, still searching for its first SEC win. "Go back to work," Brooks said. "You can't dwell on what's already happened."