Texas A&M Debuts at No. 6 in New AP Poll
Texas A&M will need to prove they belong in the same category as Alabama and Georgia. However, they're getting a pretty close head start entering the 2021 season.
The Associated Press released its preseason Top 25 poll Monday morning. On the list, Texas A&M finds themselves outside the top five, but not by much.
The Aggies will begin the season as the No. 6 team in the country.
The No. 6 ranking is the highest for the A&M since 1995 season when the Aggies ranked preseason No. 3. This also marks the 15th time in program history that Texas A&M has garnered a top-10 ranking in the initial AP poll of the season.
The Aggies, who finished No. 4 in the polls last season — their highest since 1939 — will be looking to replace four offensive linemen and starting quarterback Kellen Mond. Mond, who was drafted No. 66 overall by the Minnesota Vikings, is one of three players in SEC history to finish their career with 9,000-plus passing yards.
Mond was a three-year starter under A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher, and split reps in 2017 with Nick Starkel during the final year of the Kevin Sumlin era.
Fisher returns most of his top 10 defense from last season. Under Mike Elko, the Aggies finished No. 1 in total defense, allowing opponents to average a mere 317.3 yards per game.
A&M will be returning nine starters from last season. The two replacements for Bobby Brown and Buddy Johnson should be taken care of with McKinnley Jackson and Andre White Jr., respectively.
Texas A&M is one of five SEC schools to make the initial preseason rankings. Others include Alabama (No. 1), Georgia (No. 5), Florida (No. 13), and LSU (No. 16).
Ole Miss, who finished No. 25 in the Coaches Poll, finished with 106 votes, second-most among teams that did not qualify for the rankings.
The Aggies open the season on September 4 at Kyle Field against Kent State. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m.
The Full Top 25:
- 1. Alabama (47 first-place votes)
- 2. Oklahoma (6 first-place votes)
- 3. Clemson (6 first-place votes)
- 4. Ohio State (1 first-place vote)
- 5. Georgia (3 first-place votes)
- 6. Texas A&M
- 7. Iowa State
- 8. Cincinnati
- 9. Notre Dame
- 10. North Carolina
- 11. Oregon
- 12. Wisconsin
- 13. Florida
- 14. Miami
- 15. USC
- 16. LSU
- 17. Indiana
- 18. Iowa
- 19. Penn State
- 20. Washington
- 21. Texas
- 22. Coastal Carolina
- 23. Louisiana
- 24. Utah
- 25. Arizona State
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