Texas A&M Lands Elite SEC Defensive Back Via Transfer Portal

Mike Elko and the Texas A&M Aggies land some more defensive firepower, this time from within their own conference.

Texas A&M Aggies head coach Mike Elko takes the field prior to the game against the Miami Hurricanes during the first round of the CFP National Playoff at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Mike Elko and the Texas A&M Aggies have been fortunate through the first few days of the NCAA transfer portal officially being open, after a heap of players have exited either to pursue another school or the NFL.

Tight ends Houston Thomas from UTSA and Richie Anderson from Fresno State announced their commitments to bring life back to A&M's tight end room, and the Maroon and White have even added a kicker in Illinois' David Olano after Randy Bond announced he would be heading to the NFL draft.

And now the Aggies can check off another item on their shopping list, at least on the defensive side.

Texas A&M Lands DB Rickey Gibson III From Tennessee Volunteers

Just a short time after entering the portal, Tennessee Volunteers defensive back Rickey Gibson III announced that he would be switching SEC schools by joining Texas A&M.

Tennessee defensive back Rickey Gibson III (1) throws the ball during warm-ups before a college football game between Tennessee and Arkansas at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Oct. 11, 2025. | Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The back only appeared in one game for head coach Josh Heupel and the Volunteers in 2025 before suffering a season-ending arm injury in the opener against the Syracuse Orange, where he recorded a single tackle while playing 19 snaps. Tennessee would win the game, 45-26.

During his time in Knoxville from the 2023 season through 2025, he appeared in 26 games, recording 42 tackles, three tackles for loss, six pass deflections, and one forced fumble.

With Nico Iamaleava out and Joey Aguilar in at quarterback, the Volunteers were unable to repeat their bid for a national championship in their fifth season under Heupel, composing an 8-5 season that not only ended with a three-score loss to the Vanderbilt Commodores in front of the home crowd at Neyland Stadium, but also a 30-28 loss in the Music City Bowl in their home state against the Illinois Fighting Illini.

A graduate of Hewitt-Trussville High School in Trussville, Alabama, in the class of 2022, Gibson enrolled at Tennessee in Dec. 2022 and participated in Orange Bowl practices before going through 2023 spring practices, officially starting during the 2023 season, where the Volunteers would go 9-4 and shut out the Iowa Hawkeyes 35-0 in the Citrus Bowl.

Gibson was expected to be the Volunteers' No. 1 cornerback in the 2025 season, but it now seems that he will be making that impact for Mike Elko and Texas A&M instead in a defensive backfield that has seen quite a few departures since A&M's early exit from the College Football Playoff a few weeks ago.

Gibson and the Aggies begin their 2026 season with a home game at Kyle Field against the Missouri State Bears.