{"id":369474,"date":"2026-07-11T13:41:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-11T13:41:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/369474\/"},"modified":"2026-07-11T13:41:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T13:41:10","slug":"why-texas-am-may-finally-start-winning-big-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/369474\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Texas A&#038;M May Finally Start Winning Big Games"},"content":{"rendered":"<p id=\"inline-text-0\" class=\"mt-[18px] md:mt-0 mb-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"69\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/college\/tamu\/football\/the-3-games-that-could-define-texas-am-2026-season\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Texas A&amp;M Aggies <\/a>are now on the doorstep of breaking through the glass ceiling and cementing themselves as one of the top teams not just in the SEC but in the country, as the Aggies head into the 2026 season looking to build on the momentum from the 2025 season.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-1\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6c\">For a long time, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/college\/tamu\/football\/5-players-under-the-most-pressure-entering-fall-camp\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Aggies<\/a> have been hovering around the upper half of the SEC and yet have never truly found the moment to announce themselves as a legitimate powerhouse program, always holding the label of a &#8220;sleeping giant&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-2\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6f\">And a lot of the limits and labels placed on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/college\/tamu\/football\/why-mike-elko-is-building-texas-am-for-long-term-success\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Aggies<\/a> have come from always being one major win away, which would legitimize the program, as they&#8217;ve come up short in plenty of big games. However, now that Texas A&amp;M heads into the 2026 season, this year might be its best chance to finally win some of those big games, and here are two reasons why.<\/p>\n<p>Texas A&amp;M Has the Infrastructure at the Top in Place<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01kx7a1y5jrwhpcbse54.jpg\" alt=\"Texas A&amp;M Aggies head coach Mike Elko\" title=\"Texas A&amp;M Aggies head coach Mike Elko\" width=\"360\" height=\"360\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full blur-[5px]\" q:id=\"6s\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Texas A&amp;M Aggies head coach Mike Elko stands on the sideline during the second quarter against the Auburn Tigers at Kyle Field.  | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6w\">For a long time, leading to the Aggies&#8217; inconsistencies in big games has been their head coaches. And now, after just two seasons at the helm, it seems that Texas A&amp;M has the right person in place for the job with its head coach, Mike Elko.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-6\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6z\">In Elko&#8217;s two seasons in College Station, the Aggies&#8217; head man has produced the second-best two-year start by a head coach in program history, holding a 19-7 record thus far. And the mark is also the 13th time the Aggies have recorded 19-plus wins in consecutive seasons and the first since 2012-13.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-7\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"72\">Elko got the Aggies rolling over the hump with momentum during the 2025 season, where they were one of the top teams in the country as they ended with an 11-2 ledger and Texas A&amp;M made its first-ever appearance in the College Football Playoff.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-8\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"75\">Now, as the Aggies head into their third season under Elko, the next step will obviously be to make another jump, either playing for an SEC title or making a deeper run into the postseason. And with the infrastructure and stability that Elko has put in place, it won&#8217;t be a surprise for those wins to come pouring in soon.<\/p>\n<p>Texas A&amp;M has High-End Talent Across the Board<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01kx7ezmg81a9xe3x1n7.jpg\" alt=\"Texas A&amp;M Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed\" title=\"Texas A&amp;M Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed\" width=\"360\" height=\"360\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full blur-[5px]\" q:id=\"7i\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Texas A&amp;M Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed (10) eludes the tackle of Miami Hurricanes defensive lineman Akheem Mesidor (3) during the game between the Aggies and the Hurricanes at Kyle Field.  | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-11\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7m\">The Aggies head into the 2026 season with one of the top rosters in the SEC, with some of the top players at their positions and with depth to compete in those big games.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-12\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7p\">Everything obviously starts with quarterback Marcel Reed, who became one of the top quarterbacks not just in the SEC but in the nation, and with another jump, he could fully solidify himself as one of the top players in the country.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-13\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7s\">Texas A&amp;M has elite talent at the wide receiver position with the duo of Mario Craver and Isaiah Horton, and depth in that room with Ashton Bethel-Roman and Terry Bussey. And throughout the rest of the offense, the Aggies have difference-makers at key positions.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-14\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7v\">On the defensive side, the Aggies also have plenty of talent at every level, including edge rusher Anto Saka, linebacker Noah Mikhail, and cornerback Dezz Ricks. And while Texas A&amp;M has front-line talent, the depth is also present for the Aggies&#8217; defense, which was one of the top units in 2025.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-15\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7y\">The Aggies have always had elite talent, but now that talent is playing up to its billing, and the coaching is getting the best out of the talent, giving Texas A&amp;M the best chance to start having program-defining wins.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-16\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"81\">Sign up to<a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/college\/tamu\/newsletter\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">\u00a0our free newsletter<\/a>\u00a0and follow us on<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AggiesOnSI\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">\u00a0Facebook<\/a>,<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TAMUAggiesOnSI\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u00a0X<\/a>\u00a0and<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/tamuaggiesonsi\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0for the latest news.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.minutemediacdn.com\/platform\/google_discover_icon.svg\" class=\"shrink-0\"\/>Add us as a preferred source on Google<a aria-label=\"Follow si.com on Google News\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=si.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" class=\"flex h-[30px] w-[30px] shrink-0 items-center justify-center rounded-full bg-primary font-group-large text-sm font-medium text-white transition-colors hover:bg-secondary focus:bg-secondary md:w-auto md:gap-2.5 md:px-4 md:py-[5px]\">Follow<\/a><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Texas A&amp;M Aggies are now on the doorstep of breaking through the glass ceiling and cementing themselves&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":369475,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[27,29,28],"class_list":["post-369474","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/369474","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=369474"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/369474\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/369475"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=369474"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=369474"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=369474"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}