Nick Saban Identifies Rising College Football Giant That Could Threaten SEC Powerhouses

The balance of power could be about to change in the SEC, the conference's most successful head coach has observed.

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Texas A&M burst onto the scene last season by emerging as the team to beat in the SEC, and could make another serious run in 2026.

That’s the opinion of Nick Saban, who argued that the Aggies have everything they need in theory to take another crack at the SEC championship, and more.

Saban backs the Aggies

“I’m a Mike Elko guy in terms of what he’s done at A&M,” Saban said on The Pat McAfee Show.

“They had 10 guys drafted. That’s more than they’ve ever had. They’ve got some of the highest rated recruiting classes, which they’ve never had in the past. They’ve won more games. They’re playing better defense. They’ve reloaded. They got some good players coming back.”

"I'm a Mike Elko guy and I love what he's done at Texas A&M..

They've reloaded and they've got some great players coming back" ~ Coach Saban #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/XW6f4J0Fqs

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) July 23, 2026

A&M comes off a strong run

Working behind a strong defense and the play of quarterback Marcel Reed, the Aggies started last season 11-0 for the first time since 1992, and earned a No. 3 placement in the AP poll, the school’s highest since 1995.

That was, until an upset loss at rival Texas and then a first round exit in their first College Football Playoff appearance in a 10-3 loss to eventual CFP runner-up Miami.

It will be tougher in 2026

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Critics argued that Texas A&M benefited from a more winnable schedule last season, but no such argument could be made against this year’s team.

A projected six ranked opponents await the Aggies this fall, including a particularly tough late-season stretch that includes road trips to Alabama, South Carolina, and Oklahoma, with home dates against Tennessee and Texas.

That’s in addition to early road tests against LSU and Missouri.

Returning talent will help

Saban is right to point out the top-flight contributors Texas A&M brings back in 2026.

That group includes Marcel Reed at quarterback, Reuben Owens in the backfield, Mario Craver and Ashton Bethel-Roman at receiver, and a stacked secondary that returns Dezz Ricks in the corner and Marcus Ratcliffe and Dalton Brooks at safety.

Still, the Aggies had to hit the transfer portal hard to patch up holes on both lines of scrimmage, with six of their top seven blockers and five of their seven best tacklers gone.

The good news? Four of those new blockers have more than three dozen SEC starts between them.

Reed needs to be better

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Having a returning quarterback who started for an 11-2 team in the SEC that made the playoff is about as unequivocal a good as you can dream up for a team.

Especially one in Reed who was one of three SEC quarterbacks last year to have 3,000 passing yards and at least 550 rushing yards.

But he also placed seventh in the conference in quarterback rating, had a dozen giveaways, the SEC’s third most, and had no touchdowns in the Aggies’ two losses, which came in their games against the most superior competition.

Not to worry, says Nick Saban. The positives far outweigh the negatives.

“I think they’re going to be one of the teams that people need to contend with in the SEC. No doubt.”