BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Sam Leavitt hit Jackson Harris twice for touchdowns — once for 57 yards on a Lane Kiffin fourth-and-short special — and No. 10 LSU defeated 23rd-ranked Texas A&M 35-6 on Saturday night.
Kiffin started sprinting down the sideline while Leavitt's fourth-down pass was in the air, having seen the Aggies freeze on a play fake as Harris sprinted into the open down the middle of the field.
The LSU coach then put both hands over his
shoulder and swung them down vigorously as if wielding a sledge hammer.
The play put LSU (3-1, 1-1 SEC) ahead 21-3 in the third quarter and the Aggies (2-2, 0-2) did not threaten after that en route to their second straight defeat.
Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed struggled for the second straight game, completing 10 of 26 passes for 106 yards, with some passes landing nowhere near intended receivers. He also was intercepted by safety Tamarcus Cooley deep in A&M territory.
But Reed didn't have many chances to throw comfortably. LSU was able to apply pressure and keep him largely contained in the backfield — unlike the previous two times that Reed had faced LSU coordinator Blake Baker's defense.
Last season, Reed quieted Death Valley with 108 yards and two TDs rushing to go with two more TDs passing in a 49-25 triumph that helped A&M earn a College Football Playoff berth.
Now, A&M looks like a longshot at best for the 2026 CFP and will all but certainly drop out of the AP Top 25.
Reed was sacked four times in his latest visit to LSU and did not account for any touchdowns. LSU edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen helped stall a third-quarter drive with his team-high seventh sack of the season.
But the Tigers also lost a key player when linebacker Whit Weeks hobbled to the locker room in a walking boot after an apparent ankle injury.
LSU never trailed after Dilin Jones' 1-yard TD run made it 7-0. Leavitt, who passed for 312 yards, gave LSU a 14-3 halftime lead with his first scoring pass to Harris, which covered 16 yards on a timing pass to the right corner.
Playing with an apparent leg injury and limping at times, Leavitt subbed out a few times in favor of backup Landen Clark, who rushed for touchdowns of 4 and 2 yards late in the third quarter, after which the Tigers led 35-6.
Texas A&M: In a pair of SEC games in the past two weekends, Reed has completed 36 of 75 passes for 342 yards and one TD against three interceptions. Coach Mike Elko came to Reed's defense after the Aggies' loss to Kentucky last week, but his comments were not validated by his QB's latest showing. Reed was pulled in favor of Brady Hart in the fourth quarter.
LSU: There was no hangover for the Tigers after their loss at Mississippi in a hard-fought contest a week earlier. Although Leavitt was intercepted once, and for the sixth time this season, he had a number of pinpoint completions downfield, finishing 17 of 23 (74%). It looked as though his relative lack of mobility might even have helped him to commit to throwing more, and with more consistent accuracy.
Texas A&M hosts Arkansas next Saturday.
LSU hosts McNeese State next Saturday.
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