(Photo credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images)

Texas A&M -- not Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee or anyone else -- is the highest-ranked team in the ultra-competitive Southeastern Conference.

The No. 3 Aggies are tied with the No. 4 Crimson Tide atop the conference standings as Texas A&M prepares for a matchup with No. 20 LSU on Saturday night in Baton Rouge, La.

'This place truly does have the potential that I thought it did when I took the job,' second-year Aggies coach Mike Elko said. 'We came here with a vision for what this program should be.'

The Aggies (7-0, 4-0 SEC) have been able to win close games whether they have been high-scoring or low-scoring.

Texas A&M gave up 40 points to Notre Dame on the road and won by a point. The Aggies scored just 16 points at home against Auburn and won by six points. Last week, the surrendered 42 points at Arkansas and won by three points as quarterback Marcel Reed accounted for four touchdowns.

'When you talk about what a championship program looks like, it looks like a bunch of guys being bought in for when it's time,' Elko said. 'There is going to come a time when the game is on the line and the ball is going to come to you. Your challenge is that you have to be ready to make that play.

'We can't just keep saying we want to be something. At some point, we're going to have to go out and do it. ... It's good to see the program continue to move in the right direction.'

LSU (5-2, 2-2) is moving in the wrong direction. The Tigers were ranked as high as No. 3 early in the season, but they lost two of their past three games, most recently falling 31-24 at then-No. 17 Vanderbilt last weekend.

The Tigers might end up missing the College Football Playoff for the fourth time in as many seasons under $100 million coach Brian Kelly.

'I understand everybody's angst,' Kelly said. 'I mean, my meal doesn't taste good. I'm not in a great mood. I'm not happy. ... We've put in so much preparation time and to not to come through in those situations, the guys are angry and they're frustrated.

'Some (fans) are saying that I'm not getting it done now. I get that, right? We are working hard every single day to get our football team better.'

Kelly said he's proud of his players' 'resolve,' but the running game has been below par and quarterback Garrett Nussmeier and the defense have been inconsistent.

'We haven't played that complementary football where both sides are hitting on all cylinders,' Kelly said. 'We just haven't hit that point yet. So we'll continue to prepare our football team, work on the things that can help us get to that level.

'It's a competitive scenario each and every week. The SEC is a tough league. It's competitive each and every week. There are no layups.'

--Field Level Media