Mike Elko, Texas A&M Aggies find perfect Cashius Howell replacement to reinforce key need for another College Football Playoff run
Northwestern transfer Anto Saka has committed to the Texas A&M Aggies to fill the void left behind by Cashius Howell.
The Texas A&M Aggies enjoyed a successful 2025 season in a vacuum, but clearly weren’t satisfied with the way it ended after their disappointing loss in the first round of the College Football Playoff. They’ve been gunning hard in the transfer portal to shore up key areas of need, but they might have just pulled their biggest name yet.
At defensive end, the Aggies will lose both Cashius Howell and Dayon Hayes, their two most productive pass rushers from this past season. However, they’ve just added in one of the most talented pass rushers in the transfer portal, and he could be a seamless replacement to fill that void left behind by their departures.
Anto Saka a perfect weapon for Mike Elko to develop
A player from Northwestern might not draw all the headlines, but newest Aggie Anto Saka has had the attention of NFL scouts for years now. He is one of the most explosive pass rushers in the country, and adding him with this staff that head coach Mike Elko has built could be one of the biggest moves of the entire transfer portal cycle.
If you don’t believe me, A to Z Sports NFL Draft expert Ryan Roberts weighed in on Saka:
“Heading into the 2025 college football season, many anticipated that Saka could end up being a part of the 2026 NFL Draft class. Unfortunately for the Maryland native, he didn’t take the step that most had hoped for. At 6-4 and 255 pounds, Saka is an incredibly explosive defensive end who is a tough player to handle in 1-on-1 situations. The explosion he has coming off the line of scrimmage allows Saka to convert speed to power at the top of the track. His hands are strong, and he has some impressive shock when he has proper hand placement. While the raw tools are impressive, Saka is still sloppy from a technical perspective and has an inconsistent plan of attack as a pass rusher. If the Aggies are able to get the best out of him, Saka has the chance to boom at his next stop. There is some boom or bust upside to Saka’s game, but taking that risk is certainly worth it. All the raw tools are there.” – Roberts
We’ve already seen this A&M coaching staff produce some tremendous players along the defensive line, particularly at defensive end, with Shemar Stewart, Nic Scourton, Cashius Howell, and Dayon Hayes all taking significant strides under Elko and company.
If Saka can take a similar step, this could be one of the biggest pickups in the entire cycle for any school.
Texas A&M Aggies News
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