ESPN reveals Texas A&M's four biggest "ifs" to compete for a CFP title
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SEC Media Days have come and gone for Texas A&M coach Mike Elko, who, alongside quarterback Marcel Reed, linebacker Daymion Sanford, and safety Marcus Ratcliffe, spoke to the local and national media on Wednesday, one of the final times before preseason practices begin next month.
It's been a busy offseason for Elko, who, in his second season, led the Aggies to the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history and saw a record 10 players selected in the 2026 NFL Draft, accomplishing two key goals in his second season. Still, losing to Texas at the end of the regular season and Miami in the first round of the CFP was a step back given the Aggies' dominance during their historic 11-0 start.
Much of this falls at the feet of Marcel Reed, who, despite passing for a career-high 3,169 yards and 25 touchdowns, threw 12 interceptions, including four against Texas and Miami. Eight of his interceptions came against top-35-ranked defenses, and if the Aggies have any shot at making it back to the College Football Playoff, the redshirt junior must be more consistent and be a plus player in tight games.
With 65% of the 2025 roster returning, paired with 17 transfers, and 27 freshmen from the 2026 signing class, Texas A&M should be considered a national title contender, and ESPN agrees, as Bill Connelly placed the Aggies among 18 2026 title contenders who need to answer three to four questions in order to reach their ultimate goal.
As we discussed above, Connelly's first "if" is focused on Marcel Reed being, yes, a more "consistent" Marcel Reed.
"Reed is one of the most dangerous dual-threat QBs in the country. His fight-or-flight instincts are terrific. Translation: He doesn't take many sacks, at least not unless Rueben Bain Jr. is involved — and per SP+, last season he piloted A&M's best offense since 2014. But when things go wrong, they can stay wrong for a while. He threw multiple picks in four of his final six games last season, and his Total QBR regressed in each of the final four. Can he improve with a new coordinator (Holmon Wiggins) and a new offensive line?"
Among the 10 players drafted, four starting offensive linemen were selected, leading Elko and O-line coach Adam Cushing to add four SEC starters from the transfer portal. Combined with several up-and-coming players from the 2025 signing class, this group must perform at a high level throughout the season for the Aggies to find consistency and finally re-establish the running game.
"A&M returns plenty of veterans in 2026, but almost none are on the O-line; it lost six of last season's top seven, and coach Mike Elko brought in four SEC transfer starters to fill those gaps. Is this a genuine plug-and-play situation?"
In the defensive trenches, losing unanimous All-American Edge Cashius Howell and defensive tackles Albert Regis and Tyler Onyedim to the NFL could cause some early-season headaches, but after landing Northwestern transfer Edge Anto Saka, former San Diego State Edge Ryan Henderson, and defensive tackles CJ Mims (North Carolina) and Angelo McCullom (Illinois), Elko fully prepared for these departures, while returning senior defensive tackle DJ Hicks fills out a deep rotation.
"It's definitely a bit scary that the Aggies are rebuilding on both lines, especially considering how important those lines were to last season's 11-win campaign. Two-thirds of last year's D-line snaps are gone, and though Elko has recruited well up front, he'll either get major contributions from transfers such as end Ryan Henderson (San Diego State) and tackles Brandon Davis-Swain (Colorado) and CJ Mims (North Carolina), or he'll be reliant on a few unproven youngsters."
Lastly, but most importantly, Connelly praised the Aggies for improving their balance of allowing too many explosive plays on defense, but lost both games last season due to, yes, big plays, especially Texas quarterback Arch Manning using his legs and connecting on several explosive throws.
"A&M improved to 14th in defensive SP+, but the risk-reward balance was off sometimes."
Texas A&M will kick off the 2026 season vs. Missouri State on Saturday, Sept. 5.
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: ESPN reveals Texas A&M's four biggest "ifs" to compete for a CFP title
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