Texas A&M football is entering year two of the Mike Elko era after a first season that ended poorly.
After a 7-1 start, the Aggies dropped four of their last five, including a loss to USC in the Las Vegas Bowl.
Still, Elko quickly established his brand of football on both sides with a productive rushing attack alongside a defense that could be suffocating at times.
Late injuries and a breakdown in efficiencyresulted in a sour finish to the campaign, but there’s still going to be a lot of optimism surrounding the Aggies program.
A&M brings back breakout quarterback Marcel Reed, who began 2024 as backup signal caller, as well as a dynamic rushing tandem in Le’Veon Moss and Rueben Owens after each dealt with significant injuries.
A lot of work has been done in the transfer portal to replenish a roster that lost impact players to the NFL Draft and via the portal.
A&M will have a lot of new faces on the defensive line and in the wide receiver room.
Here’s what they’re saying nationally about A&M’s 2025 roster and their projection in way-too-early top 25 rankings.
ESPN – No. 22
The good news is Reed is returning, along with Moss and Owens, who suffered season-ending leg injuries in 2024. The Aggies hit the portal hard to beef up their receiver corps, adding NC State’s Kevin Concepcion, Mississippi State’s Mario Craver and Texas Tech’s Micah Hudson(although his future with the team is reportedly unclear). Even better, every offensive starter is expected to return. There are massive holes on the defensive front, and a couple of key players will have to be replaced in the secondary.
Pro Football Focus – No. 10
What can take the Aggies from a good team to a great one will be Reed’s development as a passer. The redshirt freshman’s 67.5% adjusted completion rate was the ninth-worst in the Power Four but he’ll have one of the best receiving corps in the country at his disposal thanks to incoming transfers Kevin Concepcion and Mario Craver in addition to electric rising sophomore Terry Bussey.
The Athletic – No. 17
Reed, a dual-threat QB, became the face of the offense, which is adding some playmakers at receiver, and the Aggies produced a physical rushing attack. Elko’s challenge will be on the other side of the ball, where all of the standouts up front are gone. Four of A&M’s 13 transfer adds so far are D-linemen.
Yahoo Sports – No. 17
The Aggies’ season ended with a whimper, but there’s still plenty to like ahead of 2025. The Aggies added NC State WR Kevin Concepcion through the transfer portal along with Georgia DB Julian Humphrey. Marcel Reed should have a full offseason as the No. 1 QB and RB Le’Veon Moss is also returning as he recovers from a season-ending knee injury. It’ll be a huge boost if he’s at 100%.
