CFB Betting – Texas AM Aggies vs. Colorado Buffaloes Week 2

There is a reason why teams schedule a cupcake game to start the season. Breaking in a new starting quarterback, the Texas AM Aggies struggled initially before taking control in the second half of their 41-10 season opening win over Kent State. The Aggies take on the Colorado Buffaloes this week in what is a neutral site game, though the Buffs travel the short distance to Denver for the matchup. Colorado opened with a win over FCS Northern Colorado and gets a big step up in competition with this SEC opponent. The Aggies hit the board as a 17.5-point favorite in the first meeting between the teams since 2009 when they were members of the Big 12.

Texas AM Aggies vs. Colorado Buffaloes
Date and Time: Saturday, September 11, 2021, 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: Empower Field at Mile High, Denver, CO
CFB Odds: Texas AM -17.5, O/U 52
Texas AM vs. Colorado TV Coverage: FOX

Odds Analysis

There are lofty expectations for the Aggies again this season and they are a big favorite hitting the board at -17.5 for this neutral site matchup. It took them a half to get untracked before knocking off Kent State last week covering the 29.5-point line. It was their ninth straight win dating back to last season putting them at 7-2 ATS in those games. This will also be the ninth straight game the Aggies play as a favorite and the sixth time in that span they’re laying double-figures. They are 3-2 ATS in the previous five.

Colorado opened the season with win and they also had a relatively easy time beating FCS Northern Colorado 35-7. And like the Aggies, they overcame a slow start offensively, but failed to cover the 37.5-point spread. Things get taken up a notch this week for both clubs and they’ll have to make adjustments. Despite the Buffs and Aggies each scoring at least 35 points last week, they cashed the UNDER in their games. The total opened at 52, a number that seems manageable now that they have a game under their belts.

Texas AM Aggies

They got away with five turnovers against outclassed Kent State, but the Aggies will need to take better care of the football against Power 5 competition. After three years of Kellen Mond as their starting QB, the Aggies handed the ball to Haynes King, and there were some positives. He completed 21 of 33 for 292 yards and a pair of touchdowns. However, he also displayed some first-start jitters by throwing three picks. Inexperience at the position and an offensive line defining roles made for some uneasy moments in the first half when the Aggies produced just 10 points. They clicked over the final 30 minutes getting some big plays in the run game and on defense.

Those are strong areas so it wasn’t a surprise they came up big. King isn’t expected to win games with his arm instead allowing the ground game to beat down opponents while the defense throws a blanket on them. With Devon Achane running for 124 yards and Isaiah Spiller 113, the Aggies amassed 305 yards on the ground and nearly 600 yards total. And the defense came up with a few takeaways of their own. Leon O’Neal Jr. had a pair of interceptions, one returned 85-yards for a touchdown. Despite the final score it wasn’t a dominant performance and the Aggies will need to find some consistency on offense when playing tougher competition.

Colorado Buffaloes

Playing a FCS opponent is a no-win proposition for an FBS squad. The upper level programs are supposed to win big. A loss is devastating and even a close game can feel like a defeat. So in that respect the Buffs took care of business against the Bears. It doesn’t give us a clear picture of how good Colorado is, though. There were a lot of similarities between Colorado and Texas AM in Week 1. The Buffs had a first-time starting QB in Brandon Lewis and struggled early against a lesser opponent. The ground game proved destructive churning out 281 yards and four touchdowns led by Jarek Broussard’s 94 yards on 15 carries.

Running the ball is going to be more difficult against the Aggies putting pressure on Lewis and the passing game. Lewis attempted just 15 passes completing 10 for 102 yards and a score. The end result was nice, but the Buffs started slowly and committed 12 penalties for 118 yards. That lack of discipline will be costly against a team like A&M, so the Buffs have to clean up that area.

Bet Texas AM vs. Colorado at BookMaker.eu

The Aggies are laying a good number of points against a team that can run the football and will also have a home field advantage, though it’s technically a neutral site game. Still, I expect them to be better at the start than they were on Saturday and defensively the Aggies are going to contain CU’s ground attack leaving Lewis to try and do it through the air. And that’s not going to get it done.

CFB Score Prediction: Texas AM 41, Colorado 21

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- Phil Simon, Gambling911.com