Kirk Herbstreit Issues Blunt Reality Check to Texas A&M After Kentucky Loss

Each college football season, a handful of teams ranked in the top 10 spots of the preseason AP poll seriously underperform.

Oregon and Oklahoma both suffered humbling losses in Week 2 that sent them tumbling out of the top 10. The Ducks got right with an 84-point blanking of Portland State last Friday, but the Sooners' 14-6 win against New Mexico was the antithesis of reassuring.

Texas A&M joined the conversation of preseason top 10 teams headed in the wrong direction in Week 3. The preseason No. 8 Aggies won each of their first two games comfortably, but a terrible third quarter cost them a 31-21 home loss to an unranked Kentucky team.

The result naturally sparked discourse about a potential quick turnaround for Kentucky under a new coach, but it also raised several red flags about Texas A&M. ESPN lead college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit discussed the concerns surrounding the Aggies on "Nonstop" with Joey Galloway, specifically pointing to the inefficiencies in their rushing attack.

"Where is A&M's running game? Where is A&M's ability to run the ball, keep Kentucky on the sideline, have a balanced attack?" Herbstreit said. "I think Marcel Reed led them in rushing, he ran the ball I think 10 times. If they're gonna get to where they need to go, I think they're going to have to become a more balanced team."

Texas A&M's weaknesses were showing prior to the loss to Kentucky

The Aggies' 48-20 win against Arizona State in Week 2 was incredibly deceptive. Texas A&M scored 17 of those points off turnovers in the fourth quarter, including a pair of pick sixes.

Marcel Reed was an inconsistent 15-of-25 passing with several concerning misfires, and as Herbstreit alluded to, the Aggies were ineffective on the ground. Defensively, the secondary allowed Cutter Boley and Reed Harris to connect for 189 yards and a pair of touchdowns before the turnover barrage in the fourth quarter.

Can Texas A&M still find its way to the College Football Playoff?

Trey'Dez Green in LSU's 2026 game against Ole Miss. — LSU tight end Trey'Dez Green (7) carries the ball during a college football game between Ole Miss and LSU at Vaught Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Miss., on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026. Ole Miss defeated LSU 32-24. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

One loss has never been enough to fully eliminate a team from College Football Playoff contention, and many participants in past 12-team iterations held two regular season losses. However, the Aggies draw multiple surefire contenders for the College Football Playoff later in the schedule.

The immediate future for the Aggies involves a night game at No. 10 LSU in Week 4. The Tigers are also in desperate need of a win after their heartbreaking loss at Ole Miss and are determined to get back at Texas A&M after the meltdown that ended Brian Kelly's tenure last season.

Additional contenders on the schedule are Alabama and Texas. The Crimson Tide's offense has been highly productive through three weeks, a worrisome sign for a struggling secondary. As for the Longhorns, the Aggies fell into early deficits each of the last two seasons and were unable to recover.

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