Texas A&M came into this game with Alabama as a two-touchdown underdog. There were a fair few number of people who expected that the Tide would cover that number, given the way these two teams have been playing recently— after all, Alabama was due for a bounce back after two straight losses, and the Aggies had scored six points in each of their previous two road games.
So the fact that the Aggies were leading the game going into the fourth quarter was a massive shock to the system for many neutral onlookers. This was despite the fact that Marcel Reed threw a pick-six on the Aggies' first offensive possession— and then threw another interception on his very next pass.
The Tide's avalanche of a fourth quarter, scoring two touchdowns within a few minutes of game time to go up 31-20, notwithstanding, this was a far better effort out of the Aggies than anyone had anticipated coming into this game. There are still things to be upset about from this contest, of course— opportunities left on the table, for sure. But if nothing else, this shows that the Aggies' season is far from completely lost, even if they are firmly out of the College Football Playoff picture.
Texas A&M shows they have a lot left in the tank against Alabama despite the loss
This is a team that is now at .500 through eight games— much worse than we expected coming out of the preseason. But compared to the way things looked against Missouri, the change is shocking— far from being offensively inept, the Aggies were moving the ball for much of the game on a very stingy Alabama defense.
It wasn't anything that will break offensive records, of course, but compared to what we've seen out of the Aggies to this point, it was an exciting improvement. This was the hardest test left on Texas A&M's schedule, without a doubt, so to rise like this to the moment shows that the Aggies do indeed have what it takes to win every single one of their final few games.
Four contests, two on the road, in the SEC won't be a cake walk by any stretch of the imagination. Oklahoma's defense will be tougher than Alabama's (even if their offense will be far easier to face), and South Carolina has been a house of horrors for A&M recently.
There are clearly things to work on still, as well. Marcel still missed some throws downfield that could have gone for explosives, and the turnovers speak for themselves— but for the most part, he was on time and on target with the throws that he was making, which is far different than what he's shown to this point in the season.
The offensive line was nothing to write home about in pass protection, but they held up well against one of the best rush defenses in the country. The defense got bit by the big play through the air once more, again given no help by the lack of pass rush.
There will still probably be several changes made over this bye week, in all honesty. The Aggies are going to need to tweak some things, and compared to what was expected, the performance of this offensive unit leaves a lot to be desired, and that will have to be addressed.
But for the purposes of this season— finishing strong, keeping this recruiting class together, and the rest— there's hope now. There's a rhythm established for this offense. The Aggies need to capitalize, but this bye week could set up for a heck of a finish for the 2026 season.
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