Texas A&M’s 2026 schedule comes with a quarterback tour, and it starts early.
By the time the Aggies open the season Sept. 5 against Missouri State in Kyle Field, Mike Elko will be entering Year 3 after checking off two major boxes in his second season: Texas A&M reached the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history, and the staff navigated a massive roster turnover with 17 transfer additions before a record 10 players were selected in the 2026 NFL Draft.
There’s still plenty of change around the program. Elko promoted WR coach Holmon Wiggins to replace Collin Klein as offensive coordinator, a move that could make the offense a little uneven at the start. But Marcel Reed is back at quarterback, and with an elite receiver group around him, Wiggins has the pieces to work with in his first year calling plays.
On the other side of the ball, Jay Bateman is gone to Kentucky after Elko kept his own play-calling responsibilities. Lyle Hemphill steps in as the new defensive coordinator, and the move makes sense given his long relationship with Elko and his successful one-year run as James Madison’s DC.
The Aggies also had to replace some serious firepower. KC Concepcion and unanimous All-American edge Cashius Howell went in the first and second rounds of the NFL Draft, but Texas A&M answered with plug-and-play help in former Alabama receiver Isaiah Horton and Northwestern transfer edge Anto Saka.
Now comes the grind of the new nine-game SEC slate: Kentucky at home, LSU on the road, Arkansas at home, Missouri on the road, Alabama on the road, South Carolina on the road, Tennessee at home, Oklahoma on the road, and Texas in Kyle Field to close the regular season.
So who will the Aggies be chasing all fall? Here’s the projected quarterback lineup Texas A&M is expected to see.
Kentucky is projected to start Kenny Minchey on Sept. 19.
Will Stein, in his first year as head coach, has apparently locked in his quarterback for the next two to three seasons. Minchey’s dual-threat ability nearly won him the job over current Notre Dame star CJ Carr before the 2025 season.
LSU’s projected starter is Sam Leavitt on Sept. 26.
That one feels straightforward after Leavitt’s run at Arizona State, where he became one of the Big 12’s top quarterbacks and helped lead the Sun Devils to the CFP two seasons ago. He’s reportedly healthy after injury issues last season, and he won’t speak at SEC media days next week.
Arkansas is expected to turn to KJ Jackson on Oct. 3.
He’ll battle Memphis transfer AJ Hill, but former Memphis coach Ryan Silverand knows both quarterbacks well and called the competition a "death heat" this offseason. Even so, Jackson should get the first crack.
Missouri is projected to go with Austin Simmons on Oct. 10. The Tigers appear to be one solid starter away from taking the next step, and Simmons arrived after current Ole Miss star Trinidad Chambliss pushed him toward other options.
Alabama’s projected starter for Oct. 24 is Keelon Russell. The battle with redshirt junior Austin Mack likely gets settled before the season, but Russell has the edge right now after an impressive showing in the Alabama A Game scrimmage.
South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers is one of the few quarterbacks Texas A&M can probably pencil in with confidence for Nov. 7. NFL scouts are still waiting for him to make that long-anticipated "next step," and last year’s 31-30 Aggies comeback in Columbia included a rough second-half performance from Sellers after South Carolina led 30-3 at the break.
Tennessee’s projected starter is George Macintyre on Nov. 14, though freshman Faizon Brandon could be the guy by then. Before the Volunteers open against Furman, Macintyre has a chance to build momentum in preseason, even if Brandon is the name to keep an eye on early.
Oklahoma is expected to have John Mateer under center on Nov. 21. His thumb injury wrecked the Sooners’ shot at a deep CFP run, but now healthy, he gets the benefit of a revamped receiver room and an elite defense.
And then there’s Texas. The source projects Arch Manning as the starter, and the numbers back up the hype: 3,163 passing yards, 26 touchdowns and 7 interceptions in his first full starting season, despite playing through an injury. That nearly matched Marcel Reed’s 2025 output, and with a loaded roster that now includes star receiver Cam Coleman, Manning will carry real pressure into the rivalry game and the push for a national title.
In Other News...
Kyle Field Just Became A Question Aggies Never Wanted Asked
Kyle Field has spent more than a century growing from a modest home field into one of college footballs most recognizable venues, and its place in Texas A&M lore has only deepened with each expansion and renovation. Named for E.J. Kyle, the stadium has long been treated as more than a building in College Station, a historic landmark that has carried the Aggies through generations of football and tradition.
That is why any conversation about its future tends to land with extra weight, especially after the massive redevelopment that reshaped the stadium ahead of the 2015 season and made it the SECs largest. Even with its modern scale and packed Saturdays, Kyle Field still sits at the center of the same question that has followed it through every era: how much change can a place absorb before it stops feeling like Kyle Field? [Read more 🡒]
Jimbo Fisher Just Reopened An Uncomfortable Texas A&M Conversation
Mike Elko has already given Texas A&M a cleaner football story to tell since taking over after Jimbo Fishers dismissal, and the numbers back it up. In less than two full seasons, Elko has guided the Aggies to a 19-7 record, capped by an 11-2 campaign and a College Football Playoff appearance, which has helped move the program past the turbulence that followed Fishers six-year run in College Station.
Still, Fisher has a way of pulling that old conversation back into the room. Now working as an ACC Network analyst, the coach who was fired by Texas A&M is again talking publicly about his future, and any hint that he could want back into the profession naturally reopens the question of what his next chapter might look like. For Aggies fans, it is less about nostalgia than about whether the program is finally settled or whether Fishers name will keep lingering around the edges of the post-Jimbo era. [Read more 🡒]
Texas A&M Commit Is Suddenly Closing In On Five-Star Status
Texas A&Ms 2027 recruiting class already looks like a heavyweight, sitting No. 1 overall and packed with six five-star prospects, with offensive tackle Mark Matthews headlining the group. But the buzz around the class has only grown because edge prospect Frederick Ards III is pushing his way toward that same elite tier, giving the Aggies another potential centerpiece in a cycle that has already drawn plenty of national attention.
Ards has the kind of production that keeps evaluators coming back, and his ranking now has him sitting just outside five-star territory in the Rivals300. He also figures to keep trending upward once he gets into Texas A&Ms development pipeline under strength and conditioning coach Tommy Moffitt, which is part of why the Aggies are trying to hold firm as other blue-blood programs circle before Early Signing Day. [Read more 🡒]