How Texas A&M Can Reach Its Full Potential Next Season
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The Texas A&M Aggies will head into the 2026 season with lofty expectations after finding some success a year ago. Head coach Mike Elko will look to keep building heading into his third season after reaching the College Football Playoff in year two.
The chase back to the postseason will be challenging for the Aggies, who will face a daunting SEC slate that heads into its first season with nine conference games. The Texas A&M schedule brings matchups against two teams that reached the College Football Playoff and a series of battles against other tough SEC opponents.
There are plenty of boxes that the Aggies will have to check in order to reach their full potential in 2026. Here's a look at three things the Aggies will have to accomplish to get them back into the College Football Playoff and potentially compete for a national championship.
Marcel Reed Takes Another Step
A lot of the expectations for the Aggies heading into 2026 rest on the shoulders of starting quarterback Marcel Reed. And while putting a lot of the responsibility on Reed's shoulders might be unfair, it's not unwarranted, as the quarterback has proven he can be one of the top signal callers in the country.
Reed was in the conversation to be a Heisman Trophy finalist late down the stretch of the 2025 season. He finished with 3,169 yards and 25 touchdowns to go along with 493 yards on the ground and an additional six touchdowns.
The quarterback heads into his second season as the Aggies full-time starting quarterback. And given his development from the first time he hit the field in 2024, another jump could further Texas A&M's postseason chances.
Reed will have to work through some changes with the Aggies, having a new offensive coordinator, Holmon Wiggins. Wiggins has an internal hire, meaning the offense may not completely change, but with a new player caller, the Aggies' offense might take on a new identity that Reed will have to lead.
Avoid the Late Season Drop-Off
The Aggies were rolling throughout the 2025 season with an 11-0 record heading into the final week of the regular season. A shot at Texas A&M's first-ever appearance in the SEC championship game and a high seed in the College Football Playoff were right around the corner.
However, a loss to the Texas Longhorns was a wall that the Aggies ran into and were unable to recover from for the rest of the season. Texas A&M's season would then flame out in its very next game, losing to the Miami Hurricanes in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
Not facing any adversity is likely impossible for an entire season, especially in a conference like the SEC, but the responses to a loss are the key. The Aggies have the talent on the roster to compete with any of the top teams in the country, and a complete season could have them competing for a national title.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/tamu as How Texas A&M Can Reach Its Full Potential Next Season.
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