BATON ROUGE — No trophies will be won Saturday night when No. 7 LSU football squares off with No. 14 Texas A&M on Kyle Field.

The showdown will be for the lead in the Southeastern Conference standings, and that's it, as November looms around the corner. But the way this game sets up for the Tigers (6-1, 3-0 SEC), who are currently second in the standings, and the Aggies (6-1, 4-0 SEC), who are on top, it'll have felt like a title bout after the final whistle.

Both A&M and LSU enter Saturday on six-game winning streaks after both dropped their season openers to Notre Dame and USC, respectively. And both are playing their best ball.

Whomever emerges victorious will have to continue that trend.

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Led by Whit Weeks, can LSU football defense stay hot against Texas A&M?

LSU's defense has allowed one touchdown in the last six quarters, plus an overtime possession. Imagine thinking that was a possibility when the season was starting.

Defensive coordinator Blake Baker has found a way to plug holes in a unit that's been dealt a raw deal with injuries, losing experienced, standout players in Jacobian Guillory and Harold Perkins Jr.

And, it appears the defense is just now rounding into form.

The Tigers' defensive stats don't pop off the page, they rank eighth in the SEC in passing defense and 12th in the league in stopping the run, but they've been able to string stops together.

And how LSU stops the run will be key against Texas A&M. Junior tailback Le'Veon Moss is second in the SEC in rushing, gaining 107.5 yards per game in conference play with five touchdowns, while averaging 6.4 yards per carry.

The Aggies will want to establish the run first. If the Tigers can prevent that and force A&M to put the ball in Conner Weigman's hands, that could benefit them.

Matchups between Will Campbell, Emery Jones Jr., Nic Scourton, Shemar Stewart must-see TV

Texas A&M football coach Mike Elko quipped earlier this week that the individual matchups between his defensive ends Nic Scourton and Shemar Stewart against LSU's star tackles Will Campbell and Emery Jones Jr. has "$10 million cash on the line."

"I think it's a great matchup," Elko said. "Someone's going to go get it. If you want it, it's yours. That's what happens in these matchups, you see these high-level players from both programs go head-to-head against each other."

LSU has already seen a formidable pass rushing tandem in South Carolina's Kyle Kennard and Dylan Stewart. In that game, Campbell and Jones were stingy, giving up just 1.5 sacks.

Kyren Lacy, Aaron Anderson, LSU receivers to be key vs Texas A&M secondary

LSU receivers Kyren Lacy, Aaron Anderson, C.J. Daniels, as well as tight end Mason Taylor, getting separation to give quarterback Garrett Nussmeier space to throw to them will be key.

Texas A&M defensive backs Will Lee Jr., Marcus Ratcliffe, Jaydon Hill and Jayvon Thomas have started to find their form and been opportunistic. Ratcliffe has three interceptions on the season while the Aggie secondary has combined for seven picks in seven games.

Nussmeier has had some errant throws this season, but for the most part been clean with the ball. But the matchup with A&M for the passing game will be all about timing. The offensive line will need to protect long enough for the receivers to break open in order for Nussmeier to throw.

LSU football at Texas A&M score prediction

LSU 29, Texas A&M 25: Either team will lead by more than one possession in this evenly-matched game, but the Tigers will put together another drive late to sink the Aggies at their place.

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Cory Diaz covers the LSU Tigers for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his Tigers coverage on Twitter: @ByCoryDiaz. Got questions regarding LSU athletics? Send them to Cory Diaz at bdiaz@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: LSU football at Texas A&M: Score prediction, scouting report