Texas A&M HC Mike Elko needs to address the LOS issues this offseason

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Texas A&M’s 2025 season can be described as historic and highly disappointing in the same sentence, capped by Saturday’s 10-3 home loss to Miami in the first round of the College Football Playoff, which epitomizes the Aggies’ central issues that have plagued the team over the past month.

While it’s easy to place all the blame on starting quarterback Marcel Reed, who finished with 237 passing yards and two interceptions against the Hurricanes, Texas A&M’s offensive line couldn’t create holes in the running game. In contrast, the pass protection broke down in the second half, resulting in seven sacks, including three from junior defensive lineman Rueben Bain Jr.

Lauded as the best offensive line in the country throughout most of the regular season, this veteran unit failed to match its pre-game confidence, despite senior left tackle Trey Zuhn finishing with a prolific 83.9 pass blocking grade (PFF), but did struggle against Miami’s defensive front down the stretch of the game.

Marcel Reed is the type of quarterback who needs a healthy running game and above-average pass protection to find a rhythm in the passing game, as he did in his memorable second-half performance against South Carolina. However, consecutive losses to Texas and Miami highlighted the same issues, contributing to Reed’s regression as a pocket passer.

“When you can’t establish the run, it makes it hard on Marcel, and we haven’t been able to establish the run these last two games. It starts with our inability to run the football. We’ve got to go into the offseason and figure some things out.”

After the game, head coach Mike Elko stated that losing at the line of scrimmage was the main problem, disrupting Marcel Reed’s ability to go through his progressions and ultimately leading to at least two of the Aggies’ three turnovers on the day.

“We lost the game at the line of scrimmage. We couldn’t keep them off of us or get the run game established. They finished with seven sacks. You can’t play playoff football and not win the line of scrimmage. We lost the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.”

Texas A&M’s run defense has been an issue all year. After allowing Texas running back Quintrevion Wisner to run for 155 yards, Miami back Mark Fletcher had a career day on the ground, running for 172 yards. In contrast, his 56-yard run in the fourth quarter directly led to the Hurricanes’ game-winning touchdown.

Under new defensive coordinator Lyle Hemphill and linebackers coach Travis Williams, Texas A&M’s run defense will (hopefully) improve with personnel changes and a greater focus on downhill rushing concepts.

Marcel Reed has already announced his return next season, but outside of his own personal improvement, reestablishing a consistent rushing attack is an absolute necessity if the offense has any chance in 2026.

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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: Texas A&M HC Mike Elko will need to address LOS issues in the portal

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