Texas A&M got exactly what it needed on Saturday: a clean, convincing reset.
The Aggies rolled past The Citadel 41-0 at Kyle Field, picking up their second shutout of the 2026 season. It was a notable one for the program, too, because it marked the first time since 1993 that Texas A&M has posted two shutouts in the same year.
The offense leaned on its young playmakers to make it happen. Freshman KJ Edwards turned 13 carries into 116 yards, while sophomore Jamarion Morrow added 54 yards on eight carries and scored three times. In the passing game, freshman Aaron Gregory and sophomore TK Norman combined for 182 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
After the game, head coach Mike Elko pointed to how efficiently the Aggies started and how much of the roster he was able to use.
"Proud of how they handled it. 4-for-4 on offense with four touchdowns in the first half. Defensively, to pitch a shutout… Thought we were able to get a lot of guys a lot of reps," Elko said. "We were able to get done what we wanted to get done."
Elko also addressed Ashton Bethel-Roman without going into detail.
"I am going to leave that one alone. He is going through some things, so we will keep praying for him," Elko said.
The coach added that the game gave some injured players a chance to breathe.
"We were able to get a lot of guys rested. Guys who were trying to push through and had been dealing with serious injuries, resting and getting healthier was most important," Elko said.
On offense, Elko said the development from Norman and Gregory keeps showing up.
"I think that's a couple weeks in a row we saw TK get more comfortable. Aaron is young kid who keeps getting better with reps," Elko said.
He also singled out Colton Chmelar for his work on special teams.
"He's a kid who has been really good in practice. We talked about the wear and tear of doing both. We wanted to get him kickoff reps, and I thought he did a nice job with it," Elko said.
Even with the lopsided score, Elko said there are still things to clean up.
"I thought, offensively, we did a better job of staying in third and manageable. Defensively, I don't think we did a great job on third down. I would have liked to see us do a little bit better job of getting off the field," Elko said.
He also framed the shutout as part of the standard this group is trying to build.
"That's what you hope for. You create a standard we need to play to. It's the first time in one season we have had two shutouts since 1993," Elko said.
Gregory said the day was as fun as it looked from the outside.
"Crazy, man. Going and seeing all the boys playing ball, it was a great experience," Gregory said.
Looking ahead to Week 8, Gregory kept the message simple.
"Continue to build. Continue to play hard. Continue to play on one path," Gregory said.
He also described what gives him value on the field.
"I think the biggest strength is that I can play anywhere. I can stretch the field. The biggest thing I have worked on is my breaks since I got here," Gregory said.
And when did he know it was starting to click?
"I think after Missouri State, it clicked, and it was like, 'You can do this at the next level. Now go eat,'" Gregory said.
On the defensive side, Sam M'Pemba said the Aggies can take a lesson from the way they prepared for The Citadel.
"The week's preparation. Use this as a learning opportunity and move on from this. There are more things to come, and we still have to get better," M'Pemba said.
He also liked what he saw from the group’s overall concentration.
"I think it was beautiful to see, really. Everyone having that focus, that's what we need to do the next couple of weeks," M'Pemba said.
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