The Associated Press seems to have a lot of faith in Texas A&M entering the 2026 season. The Aggies landed at No. 8 in the preseason Top 25 poll after turning in an 11-2 campaign last year, of which the two losses came back-to-back in the program's final two games of the year including a brutal College Football Playoff first-round exit at home.
Looking at this year, the AP is putting too much stock in College Station but when have preseason polls ever been that accurate? This is why you should be skeptical of Texas A&M finishing the season in the Top 10 let alone qualifying for the playoff again.
Coordinator turnover means growing pains
Both of Texas A&M's coordinators departed this past offseason. Holmon Wiggins will take over the offense but despite his being a very successful wide receivers coach, he's never called plays before. He also has to deal with four new faces replacing massive offensive line talent that departed in the NFL Draft. That's going to invite decent opportunity for mistakes and he may have to lean on his experienced playmakers to pick up the slack on the fly.
Senior assistant Lyle Hemphill steps up to claim the defensive reins but he's got just as little experience as Wiggins. Talent will only take a unit so far but if the preparation and play calling can't keep up with the high-octane offenses the Aggies are going to face, there could be a lot of boat races in their future. Head coach Mike Elko is a smart and capable leader but his team looks poised to sputter early and potentially cost it a vital playoff berth.
QB Marcel Reed is a strong regression candidate
Remember when Reed was considered a Heisman Trophy candidate? Then he was exposed as an untested product with a zero touchdown and four interception performance across his final two contests. His 3,169 yards and 25 touchdowns were the result of feasting on lowly defenses for most of the season. Even with that easy schedule, he threw an eye-popping 12 interceptions and things are only going to get harder this year.
Reed won't have his top weapon from 2025 either. Wideout KC Concepcion was selected in the NFL Draft and was responsible for nearly 30 percent of Reed's passing yardage. Replacing him with senior transfer Isaiah Horton offers more risk than reward, especially with relative unknowns backing him up on the depth chart. Don't be surprised if Reed's stats — and potential draft stock — take a major hit this year.
The road schedule is the most grueling in the sport
Texas A&M went 11-0 to start the year, including a well-earned one-point win over Notre Dame, but it never faced a true test again until it was gored 27-17 by the Texas Longhorns in its regular season finale. The 2026 slate is going to be tough to handle especially since a lot of teams the Aggies beat, who were in down years last season, are going to be well reset and looking for revenge.
The team's road schedule will be, in particular, the worst part of the challenge. Texas A&M's five conference road games will be against LSU, Missouri, Alabama, South Carolina and Oklahoma. Two of them joined the Aggies in last year's CFP and the other three are viewed as dark horse candidates this season. Sweeping those foes will be far from simple, especially considering the above mentioned hindrances.
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