Best bets for Miami-Texas A&M: The two most disruptive teams in the CFP face off - ESPN

Miami and Texas A&M have similar features: They win by disrupting you, pressuring you and forcing you into decisions you don't want to make on third down. That's the tone here, two fencers in a phone booth with no room to breathe, no space to get comfortable and every mistake amplified.

It's the second game of the College Football Playoff and looming is Ohio State, rested and waiting in the Cotton Bowl, watching two teams wear each other out for the right to get there. Which team will advance?

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

College Football Playoff First Round
No. 10 Miami at No. 7 Texas A&M -3
Saturday, noon, ABC, ESPN

Records: Miami 10-2, 4-0 vs. AP teams; Texas A&M 11-1, 3-1 vs. AP teams
Opening Line: Texas A&M -4, O/U 52.5
Money line: Miami (+136); Texas A&M (-162)
Over/Under: 50.5 (O -108, U -112)

Miami's defense is legit — full stop. The Canes have a playoff-caliber unit with an elite pass rush, strong coverage, the ability to speed quarterbacks up and steal possessions. If Miami is competitive at Kyle Field, it's because the defense keeps it there.

The problem is what happens on the other side. Miami's ceiling and floor are tied to one variable: QB Carson Beck being protected, clean and on schedule.

When Beck is protected, Miami is efficient and capable of beating quality teams like Notre Dame. Beck is decisive; the ball comes out on time, and the offense hums. When pressure shows up, efficiency drops with no second gear to lean on. That fragility showed up as clear as day in losses to Louisville and SMU, where Beck threw six combined interceptions.

That matters against Texas A&M, a team built to disrupt. It can force Beck off his first read, turn third-and-manageable into third-and-long, and that's where