Texas A&M has one of their deepest teams in recent memory for the upcoming 2026 season, but they will also be counting on a couple of key freshmen to contribute for them this year. That’s not because of lack of depth at certain positions, but because the level of play of these first-years has demanded they be considered to get some snaps.
There are a couple of names on this list that should be familiar to fans, of course— chief among them are RB KJ Edwards and WR Aaron Gregory, as well as a guy like CB Brandon Arrington, or even DL Bryce Perry-Wright. All of these players were highly-rated coming out of high school, so the Aggie faithful were ready when their names started cropping up as guys who have been making their presence known in a big way during fall camp.
One player who has not been so often-discussed, though, is freshman safety Chance Collins out of Mansfield, Texas. A late riser in the 2026 cycle, Collins was ranked outside of the top 300 prospects when he committed to the Aggies, but finished as a four-star. Insiders have dropped his name a couple of times over the past few weeks, but thanks to a recent video, Rueben Owens may have put everyone on notice about just how well Collins has been playing.
Rueben Owens raves about freshman safety Chance Collins with three-word review that should excite Aggie fans
Every Aggie fan enjoys hearing the “mic’ed up” segments that Texas A&M football puts together from time to time, and yesterday’s edition that heard Mike Elko as the subject of the video was very popular among the fanbase. It’s the note from Rueben Owens midway through, though, that Aggie fans should be jotting down.
Inside access with Coach Elko. #GigEm | @CoachMikeElko 🎤 pic.twitter.com/AR41BKI3VZ
— Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) August 21, 2026
In the middle of the video, Owens approaches Elko and asks where “two-eight” is from— the reference there being number 28 on the defense, Chance Collins. Elko responds that he’s from Dallas, and asks why Owens is inquiring— to which Owens responds “he’s the truth.”
For such a senior player like Owens to give that kind of review directly to the head coach speaks volumes. This is a guy that has gone against NFL players as soon as he stepped foot onto campus in College Station, and he’s this impressed by a guy only months removed from high school ball— that says a lot.
One issue here is that the depth at safety is really solid for the Aggies right now, and it could be hard for Collins to break through with players like Dalton Brooks, Marcus Ratcliffe, and Tawfiq Byard ahead of him. That said, it is realistic to think that, especially by season’s end, he could be getting some rotational snaps under his belt if he keeps this level of play up.
This is also great news for the future for Texas A&M football. The defensive backfield will more than likely undergo quite a bit of attrition after this season, so getting a guy like this in Collins will bolster the room going forward— especially if he’s able to get a good bit of experience over the course of this year. Keep an eye on two-eight this upcoming year— he could just be the next breakout star for Texas A&M football.
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