Texas at LSU has the potential to be the biggest and most interesting College Football Playoff talking point going into next Tuesday. The Longhorns are 7-2 and No. 6 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings. The Tigers are 6-3 and all the way down at No. 21.
If Texas wins … boom. It will have eight victories, including great wins over Ohio State, Tennessee, Ole Miss, and Missouri, to go along with two 27-24 losses to Florida and Oklahoma.
Add a win at LSU to the résumé, and it keeps moving along, but losing one of its last two games to Arkansas or Texas A&M would make it a fight to get in, even with the great résumé of wins. If Texas wins, LSU is done.
However, even at 6-3, things might get a bit interesting if LSU pulls this off. The three losses to No. 3 Alabama, No. 11 Kentucky, and No. 19 Ole Miss might end the debate, except for one key factor – next week, the Tigers play at No. 8 Tennessee. Close strong, hope for a slew of losses from other SEC teams, and …
It’s Texas at LSU. It should be a great game.

Texas vs LSU: Quick Hits

  • Texas still has to face Arkansas next before finishing up the season at Texas A&M – beating the Longhorns would be a season-maker for the Aggies.
  • This is Senior Day for LSU. It’s actually a positive that the next game is at Tennessee before finishing up the regular season at Arkansas.
  • The two programs have only played 16 times. LSU won the last meeting 45-38 in 2019, Texas won the 2003 Cotton Bowl, and before that, the last meeting was a 13-0 LSU win in the 1963 Cotton Bowl.

How To Watch Texas vs LSU

Date: Saturday, November 14, 2026
Game Time: 7:30 PM ET
TV: ABC
Location: Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, LA
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Why Texas Will Win

Don’t let LSU get into a groove.
The offense is fantastic when it finds its rhythm, and moving the ball hasn’t been too much of a problem in losses, compared to most normal teams, but if you can keep the Tiger ground game under wraps, everything else tends to be off.
LSU threw for 380 yards against Alabama – it had to after getting down – but it only averaged 2.3 yards per carry.
The Tigers were stuffed by the Mississippi State run defense, but that wasn’t an issue because of the punchless Kamario Taylor-less Bulldog offense. And, not a shocker, the other bad day on the ground for LSU was in the loss to Kentucky, averaging just 2.6 yards per carry.
Texas is 16th in the nation against the run, allowing just 2.9 yards per carry.

Why LSU Will Win

Complete your passes against Texas.
The Longhorn defense might be a killer against the run, but it’ll give up big plays here and there. It’ll be tempting to keep cranking out the deep shots, but LSU’s uptempo offense should be able to maintain some semblance of control.
Sam Leavitt hasn’t always been perfect, but again with the rhythm, he and the LSU attack can be devastating when the passing game clicks. Leavitt is hitting 71% of his throws this year, and even with the team’s problems overall against Alabama, he has settled into his role.
He hasn’t been under 71% since the loss to Ole Miss back in mid-September.

Texas vs LSU Prediction, Betting Lines

It’s a narrative I’ve seen coming for months. I can’t shake it, and I can’t back off now.
Texas becomes the cause célèbre for the SEC “this three-loss team deserves to be in” faction of the college football world. It has too many good wins; the losses will be close, and dropping a tight battle in Death Valley in a Saturday night fight will be considered as acceptable as it gets.
Arch Manning will have deep threat Cam Coleman to open things up, but LSU will bounce back after the problems against Alabama with its first really, really good win. And no, it won’t be enough to get LSU back into the College Football Playoff discussion, but it’ll be the first giant moment to set the tone for the Lane Kiffin era going forward.

LSU 27, Texas 24
Latest Consensus Line: LSU -4.5, o/u: 45.5
ATS Confidence (out of 5): 2.5
Must See Rating (out of 5): 5

Consensus line based on BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel. Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

Source: Yahoo Sports