Joel Klatt explains why Texas A&M is a sleeping giant in college football

Joel Klatt ranked Texas A&M No. 16 in his official preseason college football rankings. On Monday, the FOX Sports analyst explained why he has high hopes for the Aggies in 2025.

“I believe in their head coach. I think that this fan base deserves it because they’ve supported this program at a top-10 level, and have not gotten top-10 results from their team,” Klatt said. “They’ve got the right guy now, and he can bring this thing to fruition. I’m talking about Texas A&M.

“Texas A&M is a sleeping giant, folks. They’re absolutely a sleeping giant. And the more that I looked at A&M over the offseason, the more that I liked them.”

Head coach Mike Elko and Texas A&M burst out of the starting gates last season, beginning the 2024 campaign with a 7-1 record. However, the team stumbled in the home stretch, losing four of its final five games of the season.

Nonetheless, the Aggies finished the year with an 8-5 record, the program’s best since 2021. Moreover, players began to step up for Texas A&M and carve out a role for the future. Klatt believes those standouts will play significant roles in the Aggies’ success this fall.

“The offense has a lot coming back,” Klatt said. “Marcel Reed took over during last year and showed, I think, he’s a dynamic athlete. They bring back their entire offensive line. They’ve got running backs back, including Le’Veon Moss, after he missed the last month of last season.

“… I believe Elko will get the defense going. That’s his history. The schedule then becomes the difficult part,” Klatt said. “… I’m a huge, huge bet on the future guy with A&M. I think Elko is going to turn it around. I think that Texas A&M, again, is a bit of a sleeping giant. I think they can, and will, be a top 10 team here in the next couple of seasons.”

Texas A&M is returning a jaw-dropping 15 combined starters on offense and defense. Most notably, quarterback Marcel Reed is back in College Station after stepping into a starting role last season. Reed showed flashes of greatness last season, but will need to be consistent this year for the Aggies to make a run at the College Football Playoff.

Texas A&M’s returning players aren’t the only notable names on the roster. The team also reeled in several key transfers, including former NC State wide receiver KC Concepcion.

On Aug. 30, Texas A&M will kick off its season with a showdown against UTSA at 7 p.m. ET. The game will air live on ESPN.