Longhorns and Tigers and more Tigers, oh my!
The SEC’s three permanent rivals for each program have apparently been decided upon, and Texas A&M’s are unsurprising. Or, at least two of them are.
According to On3’s Chris Low, who broke the story Monday morning, the Aggies will face Texas, LSU and Missouri on an annual basis. Even though the three are called “permanent” rivals, that may be a misnomer, as Low reported that the SEC will re-evaluate the three set opponents every four years.
The game against Texas, which was restarted last year with their arrival in the SEC, was widely considered a given. Texas won a defensive struggle 17-7 last year at Kyle Field, and the current No. 9 Aggies (3-0) and No. 10 Longhorns (3-1) are to play in late November in Austin.
Another obvious matchup was with the Bayou Bengals, who replaced Texas as A&M’s most hated rival over the previous decade-plus. LSU dominated the football series until 2018, when the Aggies beat the Tigers 74-72 in seven overtimes at Kyle Field. Since then, the teams have held serve at home, with the A&M beating LSU soundly in 2020, 2022 and 2024.
Missouri, on the other hand, is a bit of a head-scratcher. The two teams joined the SEC in 2012 after defecting from the Big 12 and played each other their first three years in the conference. A&M drubbed the Tigers 59-29 in 2012, then lost 28-21 and 34-27 in 2013 and 2014, respectively. The Aggies have pummeled Missouri in their last two matchups, winning 35-14 in 2021 and 41-10 last year. A&M will head to Columbia, Mo., to play the Tigers on Nov. 8, finishing a stretch of three straight road games.
Beyond the Big 12 ties, there is no obvious reason to deem Missouri a permanent opponent. Most A&M observers expected the third team to be Mississippi State — the planned third team in 2023 — or Arkansas, a traditional rival from the days in the Southwest Conference.
If Aggies were expecting an exuberant response from Mike Elko on the apparent three permanent opponents, they didn’t get it Monday.
“Not really,” he said if asked if he had any thoughts on the matter. “Obviously, it’s good we’re playing the in-state rivalry, always good to play LSU. And Missouri, I don’t know how that fit in, but it is what it is.”
A&M’s six remaining conference opponents for 2026 will be announced Tuesday on SEC Network at 6 p.m. central time.
Complete list of annual opponents
Alabama – Auburn, Mississippi State, Tennessee
Arkansas – LSU, Missouri, Texas
Auburn – Alabama, Georgia, Vanderbilt
Florida – Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina
Georgia – Auburn, Florida, South Carolina
Kentucky – Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee
LSU – Arkansas, Ole Miss, Texas A&M
Mississippi State – Alabama, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt
Missouri – Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M
Oklahoma – Missouri, Ole Miss, Texas
Ole Miss – LSU, Mississippi State, Oklahoma
South Carolina – Florida, Georgia, Kentucky
Tennessee – Alabama, Kentucky, Vanderbilt
Texas A&M – LSU, Missouri, Texas
Texas – Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M
Vanderbilt – Alabama, Mississippi State, Tennessee
