Texas A&M landed outside the projected 12-team College Football Playoff in the Tuesday night release, checking in at 15th. The Aggies are 8-2 on the season and tied with Texas atop the SEC standings with 5-1 records in conference play. They travel to Auburn in Week 13 and host the Longhorns to cap the regular season on Nov. 30. 

Behind the two rivals is a four-team logjam between programs holding two losses apiece in SEC play – Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, and Ole Miss. Those four teams have something else in common beyond their conference records – they’re all ranked above Texas A&M by the CFP committee and the Associated Press. 

The argument against Texas A&M is quality wins. The Aggies haven’t played any of those four teams. Their two losses are to Notre Dame and South Carolina. The Fighting Irish are marching toward a home game in Round 1 of the CFP, and the Gamecocks are a Top 20 team that is peaking at the end of the season. 

But what is Texas A&M’s best win? LSU and Mizzou are 3-3 in SEC play. Arkansas and Florida aren’t even bowl eligible with two games left. The other victories are over McNeese State, Bowling Green, Mississippi State, and New Mexico State. A victory over Auburn, even on the road, won’t boost the resume much, but it will set up a winner-goes-to-Atlanta showdown with the Horns. 

“It has been a long time since A&M controlled its own destiny,” star linebacker Taurean York said at media availability on Monday. “We are excited for it.”

Ultimately, the rankings don’t matter. Not now, anyway. The only CFP ranking that means anything is the final one on Dec. 8. As York said, the Aggies are in control of their destiny. A two-loss team entering the SEC championship won’t be punished for picking up a third loss. If Texas A&M beats Auburn and Texas, they’re in the CFP. Win the SEC title in Atlanta and they’ll get a bye. 

Mike Elko took over an Aggie program that boasted more than toasted. The program’s last national championship was in 1939. Its last conference crown was 1998. The last bowl win was in 2020. Their last season of 10 or more wins was in 2012, and the one before that was in 1998. Jimbo Fisher won recruiting championships and was given a replica national championship trophy upon arrival, but all he left with was a check to go away. 

Elko arrived in December and went to work. The team avoided drama for the entire offseason. The Aggies were purposely boring. If good teams take after their head coach, Texas A&M was ahead of the curve. Elko didn’t make any grand statements. As he put it after the LSU win, “it’s not a politician running this program.” It wasn’t a direct shot at Fisher, a man he respects and once called boss. But it was a statement of intent. 

True to form, Elko isn’t concerned about the rankings. Or the outside noise. As the team lets it be known while entering Kyle Field, “if you ain’t in my jersey, f*** you.” 

“This year, if we handle our business the way we can and the way we’re supposed to, we don’t need help from anybody,” Elko said on Monday in College Station. “The kids are just excited to be playing for something meaningful down the stretch.” 

But is Texas A&M underrated? 

The Aggies rank 38th in scoring offense at 31.6 points per game and 22nd in scoring defense, allowing 19.4. They’re top 50 in total offense and defense and sit at 32nd in turnover margin at plus-four. Something Texas A&M does well is create tackles for loss while avoiding them on offense. The team is 11th in TFLs with 73 and 10th in TFLs allowed with 37. 

A&M is top 40 in red zone touchdowns allowed and 25th in opponent’s third down percentage. The team ranks 19th in red zone touchdown percentage at 72.5 percent. As expected for an Elko team with Collin Klein calling plays, the program is 24th in time of possession at over 31 minutes a game. 

But the Achilles heel for the Aggies is big plays. The offense is 72nd in 20-plus yard with 43 on the season. The defense has allowed 42, which is 60th in FBS. The Texas A&M passing offense is 81st in pass plays over 20 yards with 28 and 101st in pass plays over 30 yards with 10. 

The Aggies are good. We can’t be sure if they’re great. Through no fault of their own, the Aggies simply haven’t played enough good teams. As Elko pointed out, however, they don’t need style points. Or respect, really. All they need to do is win. York echoed those statements. 

“This team has one mindset, and it's win ballgames,” he said. “We don’t care about stats. It’s all about winning.”