On the road without Leonard Fournette, Derrius Guice picks up the slack and then some, running for a school-record 285 yards with four touchdowns to lead LSU to a 54-39 victory over Texas A&M. (1:16)

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- In a case of déjà vu, LSU and Texas A&M met on the field while the most compelling action was happening off it.

A year ago, it was Les Miles’ future that hung in the balance, as minutes ticked off the clock at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. It ended memorably, with Miles surviving -- if only prolonging the inevitable until 2016 -- and being carried off the football field by his team and retaining his job in a surreal standoff.

On Thursday, LSU athletic director Joe Alleva once again spent game night responding to reports about the school's future head coach, this time addressing reports that LSU is zeroing in on Houston coach Tom Herman to fill the vacancy Miles left in September.

The Aggies’ here-we-go-again moment comes because of what happened on the field, a refrain that has become all too familiar to a frustrated fan base watching its team go from lofty heights in September and early October to crashing and burning by regular season’s end.

Derrius Guice (5) posted 285 yards on 37 carries and celebrated his 45-yard touchdown run, one of four TDs, here with Foster Moreau. Bob Levey/Getty Images

LSU defeated Texas A&M 54-39 to bring both teams’ regular seasons to an end and kick off a boatload of uncertainty as bowl season begins.

Is Herman the guy for the Tigers? In the third quarter, LSU issued a statement from Alleva saying “no decision has been made on who will be the next football coach at LSU.” The Tigers were 5-2 under interim coach Ed Orgeron, who has done everything he can to try to prove that he deserves the job, short of running the table (a 10-0 loss to Alabama wasn’t at all a fatal blow, but last week’s 16-10 loss to Florida didn’t help his chances).

Orgeron will be among the interested parties closely watching what happens in the next 48 hours.

If Herman is the guy -- sources told ESPN.com’s Chris Low on Thursday that a deal for Herman to become the Tigers’ coach could be finished as soon as Saturday -- the Tigers nabbed the biggest prize off the coaching carousel, getting a jump-start on the other power programs that might have an opening. At 22-3 in just under two seasons and 6-0 against top-25 teams, Herman could be the sport’s next big coaching star.

As an offensive-minded coach, he would bring something the Tigers sorely need: offensive innovation. That’s if Herman indeed becomes the guy, and as we learned last season, when it looked like Miles was all but done, things can turn on a dime.

In Aggieland, uncertainty reigns as Kevin Sumlin’s fifth season in charge comes to a close. The overall results look solid on the surface: a 44-20 overall record and at least eight wins in each season for a program that has had its moments but has rarely been thought of as consistent winner. However, upon closer inspection, a disturbing trend continued this year: a hot start and a weak finish. The past four seasons, the Aggies are 3-9 vs. SEC teams in the month of November. That’s second-worst in the conference, ahead of only Kentucky (0-11).

Texas A&M is 15-17 overall in SEC play the past four seasons and 9-15 against SEC West teams. Against the top four teams in their division (Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Ole Miss), the Aggies are a dismal 3-13. They haven’t defended Kyle Field, the “Home of the 12th Man,” well at all: They are 5-9 against SEC teams at home.

What's more, the Aggies have yet to beat LSU in five tries since joining the conference, including on Thursday, when the Tigers were without four starters: their best offensive player (Leonard Fournette), their best pass-rusher (Arden Key), an All-SEC linebacker (Kendell Beckwith) and a talented receiver (Travin Dural). A defense that was dominant at the beginning of the season got dominated by an LSU offense without its best player and a quarterback who hadn’t thrown for more than 216 yards and a touchdown against a Power 5 opponent -- but threw for more than 300 yards on Thursday. For the fourth time this season, the Aggies allowed more than 250 rushing yards.

LSU reached half-a-hundred against an SEC opponent for the first time in more than three years. A 59-26 win over Mississippi State on Oct. 5, 2013, was the last time the Tigers reached 50 points in a conference game.

After they sunk nearly $530 million into facilities upgrades the past five years and more than $9 million into the coaching staff, including $5 million per year for Sumlin alone, it’s time to ask whether the Aggies are getting the proper return on their investment.

Athletic director Scott Woodward was on record before the season saying “8-5 isn’t good enough” at Texas A&M. The Aggies are 8-4 with many frustrated fans. Will they seriously consider making a change?

If they do, it won’t be cheap: $15 million remains on Sumlin’s contract, which runs through the 2019 season, and if Texas A&M fires him, it owes him all of it. That’s a hefty price to pay, and if the Aggies choose to do so, getting an upgrade over Sumlin, who has been a good coach but perhaps not a great one, is a must.

Nothing is certain in Baton Rouge or College Station at the moment, but how it all shakes out in the coming days -- or weeks -- will speak volumes about the direction of each program.