Twelve is a sacred number at Texas A&M.
Unless the subject is interceptions. Then 12 is reviled instead of revered.
The dirty dozen of picks was the difference in Aggie quarterback Marcel Reed having a good season in 2025 vs. being a Heisman Trophy finalist.
That’s not revisionist history. Reed was seen nationally as a legitimate Heisman contender going into the Texas game last season.
“He’s our guy,” A&M coach Elko said last week at the Southeastern Conference spring meetings. “He’s the engine that runs it all.”
Alas, the engine sputtered at the worst time last year.
Of course, Reed threw two interceptions in a 27-17 loss to the Longhorns. Then he threw two more in a 10-3 playoff loss to Miami.
Complicating matters, half of Reed’s interceptions were either in the red zone or on the brink of the 20-yard line.
Because of that, Reed has been largely omitted from discussions about the top returning quarterbacks for 2026.
Brian Jones
Roman Harper on SEC Now recently ranked Reed as the fourth-best QB in the SEC behind Trinidad Chambliss, Arch Manning and Sam Leavitt.
It’s as though the idea of Reed improving isn’t considered.
Consider this: Last season, Reed passed for 3,169 yards and 25 touchdowns. He also rushed for 493 yards and six scores. That’s 3,662 yards of total offense and 31 touchdowns.
There’s no reason to doubt Reed can and will improve on those numbers.
Indeed, the last five Heisman Trophy-winning quarterbacks significantly improved on their totals from the season before their Heisman run.
In fact, all had lesser numbers than Reed last year.
Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza passed for 3,004 yards and 16 touchdowns at Cal in 2024.
LSU’s Jayden Daniels passed for 2,913 yards and 17 touchdowns the season before his 2023 Heisman campaign.
USC’s Caleb Williams passed for 1,912 yards and 21 touchdowns the season before winning the 2022 Heisman.
Alabama’s Bryce Young, who won the 2021 Heisman, hardly played in 2020.
In 2018, LSU’s Joe Burrow passed for 2,894 yards and 16 touchdowns. The next season, he won the Heisman after passing for 4,715 and 48 touchdowns before votes were due.
All threw six or fewer interceptions.
Will Huffman, TexAgs
In 27 career games, Marcel Reed has passed for 5,407 yards and thrown 41 touchdowns.
That does not suggest that Reed will win the Heisman Trophy in 2026. It just illustrates that elite quarterbacks often make significant leaps in production from one year to another.
Detractors seem to dismiss the possibility that Reed, like the aforementioned Heisman recipients, could get better.
He’s largely seen as a competent quarterback who’s unable to produce in high-pressure situations.
That’s erroneous. Don’t forget Reed’s game-winning touchdown pass in the final seconds vs. Notre Dame. Also, he was dynamic in leading A&M back from a 30-3 halftime deficit to defeat South Carolina.
True, Reed has to get better for A&M to be better. But Elko pointed out — like Highway 6 — that goes both ways.
A&M will need a productive running game. The Aggies will need to control the line of scrimmage. They’ll need the defense to be stronger vs. the run and allow fewer big plays.
“We’ve got to be able to stay balanced,” Elko said. “We’ve got to be able to play with a lead. We’ve got to be able to stop people from scoring.
“That’s a bigger picture than just Marcel Reed.”
