The Texas A&M Player Who Could Become Mike Elko's Most Trusted Leader

After the exodus of many of his finest talent, Mike Elko could have a new leader on the rise for the 2026 season.

Texas A&M Aggies head coach Mike Elko looks on prior to the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Kyle Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The college football season starts in just under two months' time, and if there is one thing that Mike Elko and the Texas A&M Aggies have on their minds, it is redeeming themselves for another late season collapse that ended with them getting booted from the College Football Playoff in just the first round.

Like any school in the offseason, they have had to navigate through the transfer portal and also fill the holes left by players in the NFL draft, which saw elite talent such as KC Concepcion and Cashius Howell take the next step in their professional careers.

Their departures give opportunity for new leaders to emerge within the team, and luckily for Elko, there's one defender that has shown that he is more than capable of leading the team over the years.

The Next Leader for Texas A&M

Texas A&M Aggies running back Rueben Owens II (4) rushes during the fourth quarter against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With the promotion of Concepcion, as well as Le'Veon Moss to the NFL, the latter of whom oddly retired just days after signing with the Miami Dolphins, there is one man that is in perfect position to serve as a leader for Texas A&M in the 2026 campaign, and he comes from the same corps that Moss did.

Running back Rueben Owens II.

After a preseason lower-body injury kept him out for a vast majority of the 2024 season, Owens came back in 2025 and recorded a career-high 639 yards on 119 carries and found the end zone five times.

Owens broke out during the 31-9 win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs, where he rushed 21 times for 142 yards and also caught one pass for 19 yards, one of two triple-digit rushing performances on the campaign for the El Campo native.

Even before his injury in 2024, Owens was on his way to making a name for himself in College Station, putting up 385 yards and three scores during his 2023 season.

In addition to the Mississippi State game, Owens' shining moment came in the Aggies' final road conference win of the season against the Missouri Tigers, where he logged 102 yards and two touchdowns, including a 57-yard scoring run to put the game fully out of reach in the early stages of the fourth quarter.

Now that he is fully healthy and set to get a full season of starting reps under his belt now that Le'Veon Moss and Amari Daniels are in the NFL, the ceiling for Owens could be limitless in the 2026 season.

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