Texas A&M spent last season with plenty of speed on the perimeter, but not the kind of receiver who could simply rise above a defender and make the tough catch when the play called for it. That gap showed up in the College Football Playoff loss to Miami, and the Aggies moved to address it by bringing in Isaiah Horton.
Horton gives Texas A&M something it did not have after Noah Thomas left for Georgia last offseason: a true X-receiver. At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, he brings the size to work on the outside and the frame to win in the air, giving the Aggies a different kind of threat than the one they had a year ago.
He is not arriving off a 1,000-yard season, or even close to it. Horton never reached that mark in his first four years of college.
But he did show he could handle the job Texas A&M wants him to do. Last season at his previous stop, he was a dependable option for quarterback Ty Simpson, even on a roster that also included former five-star prospect Ryan Coleman-Williams.
Coleman-Williams did not match the production he had as a true freshman, and Horton became the steady target. He finished third on the team in receiving yards with 511 and scored eight touchdowns.
The biggest proof of what he can do came in the games that mattered most. Against Georgia, Oklahoma twice and Auburn, Horton put up 221 yards and four touchdowns on 18 catches.
Now he heads to Texas A&M, where he projects to pair with Mario Craver and give the Aggies a more complete receiving duo. On paper, that might sound like a bold claim considering Craver and KC Concepcion each came close to 1,000 yards last season. But the fit is different now.
Craver and Concepcion were dangerous vertically, stretching defenses down the field. Horton brings something else: the size and body control to go up and take the football away. That 6-foot-4 frame could be the piece that changes the shape of the Texas A&M passing game.
In Other News...
Texas A&M Linebackers Suddenly Carry A Big Defensive Question
Texas A&Ms fifth preseason practice offered a little bit of everything on both sides of the ball, with quarterback Marcel Reed showing improvement and wide receiver Mario Craver continuing to stand out. The Aggies also brought in 17 transfer portal additions, and one of the more important ones for this fall is linebacker Ray Coney, who arrives with the kind of profile that can help steady a defense still sorting out its identity.
At linebacker, the intrigue is starting to center on how quickly that group comes together after the offseason turnover. Defensive coordinator Lyle Hemphill has already expressed confidence in the room, and Daymion Sanford is nearing full strength again after the injury he suffered in the Maroon & White Game. Even with those encouraging signs, the position still carries a big question for Texas A&M as camp unfolds, because the next few practices will go a long way toward showing who can turn promise into production. [Read more 🡒]
Texas A&M's Texas Tech Decision Says Plenty About SEC Scheduling
Texas A&M has made its scheduling priorities pretty clear by passing on Texas Techs offer to set up a non-conference game in the foreseeable future. Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire said the Red Raiders have reached out to multiple schools about matchups in 2027 and beyond, and so far the answers have not been encouraging. For the Aggies, the decision fits the broader way SEC teams have been managing their calendars, with outside games carefully chosen around the demands of league play and the need to protect long-term scheduling plans.
Texas A&M already has home-and-home series lined up against Arizona State and Louisville over the next four seasons, which underscores how selective these openings can be. For fans hoping to see old regional ties revived, the Texas Tech pitch would have carried real appeal, but the Aggies refusal suggests they are not eager to add another commitment unless it fits exactly what they want. In the meantime, Tech keeps searching for a partner, and the lack of traction says as much about the current scheduling climate as it does about any one matchup. [Read more 🡒]