Week 8 of the 2026 college football season takes the Texas A&M Aggies to "The House That Saban Built," Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama for a match against the Alabama Crimson Tide and head coach Kalen DeBoer.
The Aggies and Tide meet for the first time since the 2023 season, and for the first time, the opposing coach will not be Nick Saban, who announced his retirement in January of 2024 after 17 years at the school.
The two schools have made for memorable battles over the years, with Johnny Manziel upping the hype for his eventual Heisman Trophy awarding with a win in Tuscaloosa over the top-ranked Crimson Tide in November 2012, and kicker Seth Small drilling a field goal as time expired at Kyle Field in 2021 for another upset win over a No. 1 Alabama team.
And the last time they were pitted against one another, the Aggies almost sent the 12th Man home happy again.
Texas A&M Aggies running back Le'Veon Moss (8) runs with the ball during the second quarter against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Kyle Field. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
On October 7, 2023, in the midst of what would be Nick Saban's final season of coaching, the Tide strolled into College Station for the first time since the clutch kick off the cleat of Seth Small went through the uprights to down Alabama two years prior.
A&M returned to Kyle Field fresh off of a win over the Arkansas Razorbacks at AT&T Stadium, while Alabama came into the game undefeated in SEC play, their only season loss coming courtesy of Steve Sarkisian and the Texas Longhorns earlier in the year, the season before Texas moved to the SEC.
In front of what was then the third-largest crowd in Kyle Field's history, A&M kicker Randy Bond put the Maroon and White on the board first with a 22-yard field goal, and Alabama answered back with a field goal of their own from Will Reichard to tie the game at three apiece.
Isaiah Bond and Jalen Milroe would connect on a 52-yard play to result in the first touchdown by either team and giving the Tide their first lead of the contest before a 46-yard punt return by Ainias Smith set up the Johnson-Johnson connection that allowed quarterback Max Johnson and his brother, tight end Jake, to produce A&M's first touchdown from 22 yards out.
Running back Le'Veon Moss would tack on some support shortly before the half ended in the form of a one-yard touchdown run, giving the Aggies a 17-10 lead at the midway mark, but Milroe and wideout Jermaine Burton would hook up for touchdowns on back-to-back drives to quickly zap the Aggie lead and shift it back in Alabama's favor.
After Johnson was sacked in the end zone for a safety midway through the fourth quarter, Bond sailed another field goal through the uprights, keeping the Aggies in the game with a 26-20 score in favor of Alabama, but Saban's crew was able to advance the ball enough to where they could run out the clock and stay undefeated in conference play.
Johnson finished the contest with 14 completions on 25 attempted passes for 239 yards with a touchdown and an interception, and linebacker Edgerrin Cooper sacked Milroe three times in the loss.
Texas A&M and Alabama square off in the 2026 season at Bryant-Denny on October 24.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/tamu as What Happened Last Time Texas A&M Played the Alabama Crimson Tide? .
