Texas A&M Aggies at Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Early 2025 Preview

For the second season in a row, the Texas A&M Aggies and Notre Dame Fighting Irish will do battle on the gridiron.

Aug 31, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish running back Jeremiyah Love (4) breaks free and runs the ball into the end zone for a touchdown in the fourth quarter against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images / Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Week 3 of the 2025 season will see the Texas A&M Aggies face their first real test of the campaign against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, the runners-up in this year's national championship game against the Ohio State Buckeyes.

This will be the second consecutive year that Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko will face off against his former team, as the Fighting Irish reigned victorious at Kyle Field last year in the season opener for both teams, 23-13.

Elko was the Fighting Irish's defensive coordinator in 2017 under head coach Brian Kelly, who is now at LSU.

Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman celebrates a touchdown scored during the first round of the College Football Playoff between Notre Dame and Indiana University at Notre Dame Stadium on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, in South Bend. / MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

And this year, the team will have an extra week of rest before they welcome the Maroon and White to "The House That Rockne Built," as they take on the Miami Hurricanes to start the season on August 31 and then they have a bye week for the second week of the season.

The Irish will be led into battle by fourth-year head coach Marcus Freeman, and it will be interesting to see how the passing attack fares for Notre Dame now that quarterback Riley Leonard and tight end Mitchell Evans are off in the NFL.

Redshirt sophomore Kenny Minchey is expected to be under center in Freeman's offense, and the Aggie defense should be all too familiar with Fighting Irish running back Jeremiyah Love, who led the Irish past the Aggies in that 2024 season opener with 91 yards and a late touchdown to seal the deal for Notre Dame.

Price's 91 yards were part of the 198 that the team put up against the Aggies, giving the Maroon and White's run defense a rude awakening to start the season after boasting such splendid run defense numbers in 2023.

The Fighting Irish finished the 2024 season with a 14-2 record, their only losses coming in an upset against Northern Illinois following the opener with the Aggies, and to Ohio State in the national championship game.

The Aggies and Irish are set to kick off at 6:30 PM on Saturday, September 13, from Notre Dame Stadium.

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