One Matchup Could 'Vault' Texas A&M Aggies Into 2025 Playoff Contention

The Texas A&M Aggies have a massive matchup early on in to the 2025 season.

Matt Galatzan | Feb 20, 2025

Notre Dame Fighting Irish wide receiver Beaux Collins catches a pass vs. Texas A&M Aggies / Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

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Texas A&M Aggies

The Texas A&M Aggies might not have finished the first year of the Mike Elko era the way they wanted to.

However, they are expected to take a big leap forward in Year 2.

According to Bleacher Report, there is one game that could not only get them started off on the right foot but also propel them into College Football Playoff contention early in the season.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish fans react during the second half against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. / Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Of course, they are referring to their Sept. 13 matchup in South Bend vs. the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Notre Dame got the best of Texas A&M last year, winning 23-13 in Week 1," Bleacher Report wrote. "The Fighting Irish have to replace a lot of the pieces who took them close to a national title last season, while the Aggies return quarterback Marcel Reed. If Texas A&M can pull off a huge road upset, that might vault the team into the playoff conversation."

If most of the Way-Too-Early Top 25 projections are correct, the Aggies will head to South Bend ranked somewhere in between the top 10 to the top 20. Meanwhile, the Irish are largely projected as a top-5 to a top-10 team, leaving a massive opportunity early in the season.

On top of that, the Aggies could actually have a couple of major advantages over the Irish heading into the game. For starters, Texas A&M will be returning many key players, including their starting quarterback Marcel Reed, whereas on the other side, the Irish will be

The Aggies are also bringing in a dynamic new receiving corps, led by transfers Kevin Concepcion, Mario Craver - and hopefully - Micah Hudson.

Either way, it will be a huge opportunity for Mike Elko and Co. to not just get revenge for a frustrating 2024 loss, but also set themselves up nicely for a big 2025.

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Published Feb 20, 2025

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.