Pate: Texas A&M-Alabama is a de facto SEC West division title game

As the only 2-0 teams remaining in the SEC's west division, Texas A&M and No. 11 Alabama will battle for the inside track to December's conference title game in Atlanta, and if you ask Josh Pate of CBS Sports, Saturday's showdown is absolutely for the SEC West crown.

Key notes from Josh Pate interview

• Two years ago, I was at the Oklahoma-Texas for an 11:00 a.m. kickoff. I was also credentialed to Alabama and Texas A&M that night. I decided to fly home because the spread was three touchdowns. I was on a flight as that A&M game ended. Alabama and I suffered that night.
   
• From a national perspective, when I am supposed to be neutral, and the point spread is one, anything I say, people say, “There is no way that can happen."
   
• I know that A&M has a defensive line. A&M has recruited to win this game. They will have to win this game to win the conference. There is a world where the Alabama offensive line gets it together. There is a world where Alabama doesn't do anything, and maybe you need one or two big plays.
   
• I don’t think you can hide your quarterback in this game. All backup quarterbacks are not equal. Max Johnson could play a completely clean game. The team that wins has to have a good quarterback play to win the game. Alabama has struggled on the road over the last couple of years. If I had to land on a side, I would land on A&M.
   
• College football fans look at quarterback stats. That is not where the story is told in games like these. Jalen Milore has thrown egregious interceptions this year. He will throw some balls out of bounds, but that's not what people look at because you never see it play out the other way. Those are the things that won't be asked about.
   
• Do you guys think this is an SEC West division title game? Because I do.
   
• The general fan will watch the game this Saturday, and Jimbo Fisher and Nick Saban will look like psychopaths. You have to coach with paranoia. It needs to rise to that level.
   
• I will not ignore what I saw against Miami, but the hallmark of any good team is improvement. Having a roster like A&M's, it's more likely for them to improve. Some teams need to taste their own blood a little bit, and that's what happened. No opinion should be cemented in September.
   
• What has given Alabama the most issues is that front. We are talking about the front guys but the guys that fill the gaps. A&M has athleticism there, and they do not have to sacrifice physicality. Margins are so important in this game.
   
• My model says LSU by six. I am looking at saying no. LSU's secondary is bad. Missouri has a good football team. Brady Cook has not thrown an interception in 348 passes. What do you guys think I should do?
   
• I think someone is making the playoffs with two losses. I don’t know who it will be.
   
• With Georgia-Kentucky, most people have that as an upset alert game, and I don't. I think Georgia will win by double digits. Kentucky will not run on Georgia. Ray Davis is a great player. I think its a recipe to get Georgia's best game of the year. I am on anti-upset alert.