Texas A&M’s 2026 football roster is slowly but surely coming together, and may just be complete after head coach Mike Elko and his staff added 17 players from the transfer portal, led by Alabama star wide receiver Isaiah Horton, and Northwestern Edge Anto Saka, who is a favorite among NFL Draft analysts, and will likely replace unanimous All-American pass rusher Cashius Howell.
While nearly every one of these transfer additions needs to make an impact next season, the returning players on both sides of the ball, led by starting quarterback Marcel Reed, wide receiver Mario Craver, and cornerback Dezz Ricks, will all be counted on to continue progressing, especially after finishing the 2025 season 0-2 after the historic 11-0 start.
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With star wide receiver KC Concepcion off to the NFL, Mario Craver finished two yards shy of his receiving counterpart with 917 yards and four touchdowns, and, outside of Ashton Bethel-Roman and Isaiah Horton, will be Marcel Reed’s go-to target given his elite speed and separation in coverage.
On Saturday, On3 writer Clark Brooks released his Top 100 college football players list ahead of the 2026 season, and, unsurprisingly, Mario Craver came in at No. 33, while, surprising to come, incoming senior safety Marcus Ratcliffe, who re-signed with the program earlier this month, and came in at No. 25 due to his elite versatility, especially in coverage.
“Mike Elko’s defense will have a lot of good players, but Marcus Ratcliffe might be the most impactful this fall. He’s one of the rare defensive backs to sport a plus-74 man coverage, zone coverage, and run defense grade, per PFF. Stingy and dependable, his 0.1 yards/coverage snap allowed was the lowest mark in the country. Additionally, his 5.9 yards/catch is the second-best figure among high volume returning college football players.”
Based on his elite Pro Football Focus grades, including an 81.7 coverage mark, Ratcliffe logged 685 snaps last season and was basically a shut-down defender in coverage. Combined with Dalton Brooks returning, paired with transfer safety Tawfiq Byard now on the roster, who is equally elite in coverage, Texas A&M’s 2026 safety room will be hard to beat.
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: Two Texas A&M players make On3’s Top 100 CFB player rankings
