Does Texas A&M Have To Share Their Reign Atop the SEC?

Here's a sentence that hasn't really been a statement of fact since head coach Mike Elko took over last year: Texas A&M is the team to beat in the SEC.

After a massive 41-40 win in South Bend over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and 3-0 start to the conference slate in 2025, the Maroon and White are once again the hunted in the Southeastern Conference midway through the season.

But also in the midst of college football's toughest conference sit plenty of other teams vying for the top spot in the conference, such as the Ole Miss Rebels, the other undefeated SEC team thus far in the season, as well as the Georgia Bulldogs and the Alabama Crimson Tide, two blue bloods over the past decade in conference play.

Texas A&M "1B" in the SEC?

According to analysts such as Josh Pate, the host of Josh Pate's College Football Show, the race is still tight at the top of the conference, but even the talk show host acknowledged that the Maroon and White have made their presence felt as one of the best teams in the SEC, and believes they could serve as a "1A" or "1B" with Alabama at the top of the food chain.

Texas A&M Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed (10) looks to pass the ball during the first half against the Florida Gators. — Oct 11, 2025; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed (10) looks to pass the ball during the first half against the Florida Gators at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

“If they (Alabama) are the best in the SEC, it’s by inches and not by miles,” Pate said. “Because I’ve looked at Texas A&M, and I don’t have a problem or 1A as long as you make Texas A&M your 1B, or vice versa. No particular order right there."

Pate went on to describe the trials and tribulations that the Aggies have conquered thus far in the season, including the highs and lows in scoring against Notre Dame and also Auburn.

"Texas A&M has already shown you they have a multitude of ways they can beat you. They’ve won rock fights. They’ve won shootouts. They made it possible for Notre Dame to score 40 in South Bend and still lose the game. They scored 41. Then, they beat Auburn in a game that was played in the teens.”

Aside from their season-opening loss to the Florida State Seminoles, the Alabama Crimson Tide have shown that they are just as effective under Kalen DeBoer as they were under Nick Saban in the 2025 season, defeating Georgia, as well as Vanderbilt and also holding off Missouri in Columbia just last Saturday.

Unfortunately for the Aggies and the Crimson Tide, a regular season matchup between the two is not in the waiting for the 2025 season, meaning that their one meeting in the year could actually be in Atlanta in December when they meet for the SEC Championship.

That is, of course, as long as they continue to perform at the level that they have been at.