SEC Mike believes A&M will 'surprise' college football fans in 2025

Key notes from Michael Bratton interview

• I am fired up for some SEC football. There was stuff I liked from Missouri and stuff I didn’t like. Beau Pribula looked like a million bucks. That was the biggest question I had was how the starting quarterback would look. I think they have their answer in Pribula. Now, it was against Central Arkansas, but the offensive line had minimal push. That can happen in Week 1, but it has to get better, or else it is going to be a really long season.
   
• Missouri does have pieces. It is an old adage that you get better from Week 1 to Week 2. They smoked them. It should’ve been 61-0. Central Arkansas scored very late. There were some things to be critical about, but it was, overall, a good outing for Missouri.
   
• It all starts with Coach Mike Elko. We all know what he can do on the defensive side of the football. Now, we have not seen it as a head coach yet. We've clearly seen it as a defensive coordinator. He was probably the best in America when he was in College Station last time. I don’t think they were near that last year.
   
• If they get the defense right, for me, this year it is all about the offense. Year 2 with Collin Klein, Year 1 of Marcel Reed as the starting quarterback. Bringing back everyone on the offensive line, the running backs, I am hearing great things about KC Concepcion. A&M is going to surprise a lot of people. I have them as a College Football Playoff team, and I think it starts to show this weekend.
   
• Suppose the defense does not live up to expectations under Elko in Year 2... Last year, it was the secondary. Elko says he has solved that. But now, what about the defensive line? On paper, A&M had one of the best in the country last year. They didn’t live up to that billing, even though they put several guys in the NFL. Now, the defensive line is completely rebuilt, and I am hearing good things about the new guys they put in. But you hear good things about every player in the SEC. But if the defensive line doesn’t hold up their end of the bargain, I think by the end of the year, Elko will be pounding the table.
   
• I think it is more likely that A&M goes 10-2 than that Texas goes 9-3. That is what I am predicting to happen. You need to factor in Texas’ schedule. I know they are playing Ohio State, and people say they now have a tough schedule, but not so fast, in my opinion. Just because they are playing one difficult non-conference game. They do travel to Georgia. Otherwise, there aren’t many roadblocks on the schedule for Texas. Maybe A&M is. I have it pegged that A&M will be 10-2. They will be one of the most improved teams in college football this year, and that is why I have them as a college football playoff team.
   
• I am more interested in how South Florida whipped Boise State, and next week in the Swamp, they go and play Florida. What happens if Florida loses to South Florida? How competitive will Florida be against Texas if that happens? That was eye-opening to me yesterday.
   
• I don’t think LSU will win. If they do, it’ll be because of Garrett Nussmeier. He’s been in these situations before. He’s trained to do this, and many people have him as a potential No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick. He’s had some highs and lows, but that is life as an NFL quarterback. You have games like A&M where you get solved, but he bounced back. I am not sold on the talent around him in Week 1, going on the road, against a top-five-ish opponent. I think it's going to be a very difficult task for LSU. How does their offensive line hold up? How do they implement the new wide receivers? It doesn't happen overnight. I’d much rather have this game in Week 2 or Week 3 for LSU this season. I don’t think LSU gets it done. Brian Kelly is a good coach, not elite, and I think LSU is going 8-4 this year.
   
• Many coaches were allegedly elite, but then joined the SEC. The one guy who could fit that description is Kalen DeBoer. Alabama should destroy Florida State, but if they lose as a nearly two-touchdown favorite, we will question if he is cut out for life in the SEC. If they lose, I don’t think they’ll fire him Sunday, but I don’t think he’ll make it to Year 3.
   
• I think Alabama would be the one winning fewer games than Georgia. It is more likely. It is more of a vote of confidence for Kirby Smart and the program he has established. He lost a couple of regular-season games last year and still managed to win the conference. Smart is one heck of a coach. Alabama is my preseason pick to win the SEC, so I am not saying it’ll be a disaster for Alabama. I'm saying that if things start trending poorly, decisions may need to be made that he is not cut out to be Nick Saban’s replacement.
   
• For LSU, just because it is Clemson, just because it's on the road, and we’ve seen them stumble then recover, I don’t think it is the end-all-be-all for LSU. They are saying this year is going to be different. Our preparation is different. I think for LSU, Week 3 is the bigger game against Florida. They had a chance to hire Billy Napier, but he was publicly campaigning when he was at Louisiana. They didn’t answer because they had Kelly in their pocket. If LSU, regardless of what happens against Clemson, if they lose to Florida, that is a devastating one there. For Alabama, they have a lot more difficult games upcoming than Florida State. They have Georgia, Tennessee and Missouri. There are so many games for Alabama. They need to win by 20-plus points, and they need to crush Florida State.
   
• I have gone back and forth on the Gamecocks. At SEC Media Days, everyone was so high on the Gamecocks, it made me think they could even do better than last year. They are wildcards this year. I love Shane Beamer as a head coach. He’s doing a great job in Colombia. One thing, to nitpick, South Carolina typically starts slow. I don’t know why. They start with Virginia Tech, play Vanderbilt, go to Missouri and play Kentucky. We can laugh that off. Kentucky vs. South Carolina is a weird series. The favorite team does not win it normally, and South Carolina is the favorite. If they are not 5-0 to start the season, then they are in trouble. The back half of the schedule is very difficult. They are a hard team to pick, but I would put them around 9-3.
   
• With Auburn, it’s a new year, same coach, Hugh Freeze. I don’t understand why people give this guy a solid reputation. For offensive football, for coaching quarterbacks, for being an offensive innovator. Yes, he beat Saban, he’s living off of that, but it was 10 years ago. Yes, very few have done it, so credit to him, but beyond that, I don’t know what he has done. Auburn is massively more talented than Baylor. But I go back to Freeze, and our listeners have challenged us to take a shot every time Freeze benches a quarterback, and I am getting scared over that. I think Baylor will go out and win the game even though Auburn should win it.
   
• I understand the hesitation around Tennessee. Syracuse is not returning much, two offensive starters and three defensive starters for Syracuse. I am a graduate of Tennessee. They always let you down, but since Josh Heupel got there, he has combated the narratives of them being a constant letdown. He has done a really good job. These are two different programs. They just made a College Football Playoff. Many of the new players are unknowns, but I believe in what he is building. They have a ton of talent. Meanwhile, Syracuse’s program is still being built. Tennessee’s is already built.
   
• I like the staff continuity for Texas. For Ohio State, they lost both coordinators. I agree that Arch Manning is going to be a really good player. He may not be a Superman in Week 1, and if it were at the end of the season, Texas would steamroll them. I think there is going to be a transition there. Four new offensive linemen for the Longhorns. Then, Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin... I think Sayin is going to have a better day than Manning. It will be a good game, but I have Texas winning. Wouldn’t surprise me at all if Ohio State won, though.