Texas A&M Overlooked in CBS’ Latest College Football Bowl Predictions

CBS Sports projects Texas A&M to play KC Concepcion's former team in a bowl game.

Texas A&M Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed (10) runs with the football during the first quarter against the Utah State Aggies at Kyle Field. | Sean Thomas-Imagn Images

Even with Texas A&M off to a 2-0 start and boasting a dynamic offense averaging 43 points per game, experts remain skeptical of the Aggies’ playoff chances.

CBS Sports currently projects Mike Elko’s squad to face NC State in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.

While January bowl games have traditionally carried more prestige, being slotted into the Duke’s Mayo Bowl feels like a stray for an A&M program aiming higher.

Texas A&M vs NC State Bowl Game

Texas A&M Aggies wide receiver KC Concepcion (7) celebrates after a touchdown in the second quarter against the UTSA Roadrunners USA; at Kyle Field. | Sean Thomas-Imagn Images

The Duke’s Mayo Bowl features a set of conference tie-ins: the ACC and Big Ten in even years, and the SEC in odd years, with games played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC.

With the 2025 college football season underway, that means an SEC representative is due. If this projection holds, it would mark only the second-ever meeting between Texas A&M and NC State.

The last and only matchup came in 2018 when the Aggies dismantled the Wolfpack 52-13 behind a 236-yard and three-touchdown performance by running back Trayveon Williams.

Eight years later, the storyline writes itself: Aggie wide receiver KC Concepcion is facing his former team after transferring from NC State this past offseason, following two standout years in Raleigh.

Concepcion is off to an impressive start in his first two games with the Maroon and White. With nine receptions for 145 yards and three touchdowns, he’s already on pace to surpass last year’s team leaders across the board. And that doesn’t even account for his play making ability, having already housed an 80-yard punt in the season opener against UTSA.

Last year’s Duke’s Mayo Bowl featured a Minnesota 24-10 win over Virginia Tech.

The Golden Gophers entered that game with a 7–5 record, hardly the standard A&M is chasing. With two wins already secured, the Aggies need just six more to surpass the 2024 Mayo Bowl champion’s regular-season mark.

The road to eight wins, however, won’t be easy. Texas A&M faces the nation’s No. 5 toughest schedule, with ranked showdowns ahead. 

At Kyle Field, the Aggies will host No. 24 Auburn, No. 11 South Carolina, and a loaded Florida team. 

Away from College Station, the challenges only grow with trips to No. 25 Missouri, No. 3 LSU, and archrival No. 7 Texas.

It all begins this Saturday in South Bend, where A&M faces No. 9 Notre Dame in a rematch of last year’s season opener.

For Elko and his staff, this will serve as the first true test of the season. And what better opportunity to prove to the college football world that what they’re building in College Station can contend with national powers and quiet the doubters at outlets like CBS.