Texas A&M Aggies' Spotlight Player of the Week: Cashius Howell

After losing three of its top defenders to the 2025 NFL Draft, Texas A&M football is witnessing a breakout year from Bowling Green transfer Cashius Howell, a fifth-year senior who is keen on making his second season with the Aggies his best so far.

With just four sacks in his first season in head coach Mike Elko's program, Howell has already recorded seven sacks in five games of work, including two 3-sack games against Utah State and now Mississippi State.

Rather than three consecutive sacks against the moniker-sharing Utah State Aggies, Howell had the courtesy to space out his corralling of the quarterback to impact the Bulldogs throughout the whole contest. He seemed unstoppable, and with just five games under his belt this season, it looks like the best is yet to come for Howell's final year of eligibility.

One-Man Wrecking Crew

Sep 27, 2025; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies defensive end Cashius Howell (9) defends in coverage against the Auburn Tigers during the first half at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Howell has been the Aggies' featured pass rusher since taking over a starting role with the likes of defensive linemen Shemar Stewart and Shemar Turner going off to the big leagues, and he has yet to look back on his time as a rotational depth piece.

The Missouri native is strong enough to overpower offensive linemen but lean enough to drop into coverage if need be. In fact, Howell has already defended a pair of passes after taking care of seven last year, while also getting his first interception of his career in the Aggies' bowl game.

Two multi-sack games have propelled Howell into the conversation of being one of the country's most elite pass rushers. In just five games, he has 1.5 more sacks than the nearest defender to his numbers and has been a wrecking ball in the offensive backfield.

The last A&M defender to reach double-digit sacks was defensive end Landis Durham in the 2017 season, where the surprising junior moved from linebacker to defensive end and managed 10.5 sacks on the year. Howell, more than halfway to Durham's feat, is itching to add more to his totals.

Though before the season he was in talks of being drafted on the second day of the 2026 NFL Draft, games like Saturday's make a case for the edge rusher to be considered by NFL teams everywhere as a Day One talent.

Now with Florida coming to town, Howell has yet another chance to show out against SEC competition while putting on a stellar performance for what is likely to be another record crowd at Kyle Field.