Texas A&M Coach Pleased With New-Look Receiver Corps

The Texas A&M Aggies made it a point to revamp their wide receiver room this offseason.

Sep 14, 2024; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Texas A&M Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed (10) celebrates with Texas A&M Aggies offensive coordinator Collin Klein after a touchdown against the Florida Gators during the first half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

The Texas A&M Aggies' passing attack was, shall we say, less than stellar in 2024, and while many have placed the blame on quarterback Marcel Reed, the lackluster wide receiver corps is also partly responsible.

Noah Thomas was the Aggies' leading receiver last season, but even then, he had just 574 yards and eight touchdowns (admittedly impressive). Beyond him, every other A&M receiver finished the year with fewer than 400 yards and two or fewer touchdowns. They also didn't have a single receiver with 40 receptions, even including Thomas.

The Aggies may be a ground-and-pound offense, but even then, the lack of a real receiving threat was incredibly detrimental to the unit as a whole. The good news is, they fixed it in a big way this offseason.

New Texas A&M WRs Impressing OC Collin Klein

Oct 28, 2023; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack receiver KC Concepcion (10) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the first half against the Clemson Tigers at Carter-Finley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images | Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

The Aggies made two big additions at wide receiver this offseason, bringing in KC Concepcion from NC State and Mario Craver from Mississippi State. Of course, neither of them have played games as Aggies yet, but offensive coordinator Collin Klein loves what he's seen on the practice field thus far.

"I think when you talk about KC and Mario as a couple of the new additions, I think both of them, what sticks out to me about both of them is they both love to compete," Klein told reporters Tuesday. "They both love the game of football. They play extremely hard every single snap, whether it's blocking, whether the ball's coming their way or not.

"And they're team guys. If a quarterback misses a ball, they're going over there and encouraging him like, 'Hey, we'll get the next one'. So there's a really good, not just skill set of route running, understanding of coverage, those types of things of actually doing the job, but there's a lot of intangible things that they've brought to our unit that I've been really excited about."

Between Concepcion, Craver and returning sophomore Terry Bussey, the Aggies now have a very solid trio of wideouts to work with. However, they're still more than comfortable lining up with just one or two receivers.

"I tell the guys all the time, the most important thing, again, is it's about what does the team need to be successful?" Klein said. "Everybody attacking every single time. We're trying to get touches to everybody, but at the end of the day, what does the team need to win? That's the most important thing. The ball will go and how we design it, and we will get our playmakers the ball and opportunities to make plays."

If this new-look receiving corps is as good as advertised, the Aggies' offense could be very dangerous in 2025.