SEC College Football

No. 6 Texas A&M vs. No. 1 Alabama

The biggest game on the Week 8 college football schedule is Saturday’s SEC matchup (3:30 PM  ET, CBS) between the No. 6 Texas A&M Aggies and the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide. At press time, Alabama are 18-point home favorites, up from –17 at the open; the Tide (7-0 SU, 5-2 ATS) were as high as –18.5 Tuesday afternoon before settling back down.

There’s little doubt that ‘Bama is the best team in the nation right now, but the Aggies (6-0 SU, 4-2 ATS) have yet to lose a game themselves. They’re also coming off a bye week, while the Tide were busy last Saturday beating Tennessee 49-10 as 14-point road favorites. Texas A&M is the most balanced team Alabama has faced thus far, and covering that big spread will be difficult as long as Aggies RB Trayveon Williams (8.6 yards per carry) is chewing up the clock.

The Tide don’t seem too troubled by these giant spreads. They’ve been double-digit favorites in every game this season. Plus, the last time a Top-10 FBS team was getting 18 points or more was three years ago, when No. 3 Florida State beat No. 7 Miami 41-14 as a 21-point home chalk.