The NCAA released the roster cost of each CFP school this season, which reveals that the most expensive program ended up in the very first game of the postseason run. According to the NCAA’s report of the College Football Playoff teams, Texas A&M has spent an estimated amount of $34.27 million on its roster this season.

The term ‘roster cost’ reveals the actual money spent on their student athletes in the 2025-2026 cycle. This is $3.27 million more than they spent last season and $8.27 million more than the NCAA estimated average per team ($26 million). 

Despite spending the most money on the roster, what stings the Aggies is that they’ve been kicked out by the school that spent approximately $10 million less than their roster, in the first round of the College Football Playoff.

Texas A&M, led by second-season HC Mike Elko, put together a football season for the ages and led the program to a historic season.

The Aggies won 11 regular-season games for the first time since 1994, when they were part of the Southwest Conference. They pulled off the biggest comeback in school history against South Carolina and hauled a historic win over Notre Dame with a thrilling fourth-and-13 touchdown pass, which led to a 40-41 win.

Their highly prized regular-season success helped the Aggies reach the College Football Playoff as a No. 7 CFP seed. However, their postseason run ended abruptly with an ugly 10-3 loss to No. 10 Miami in the first round in front of a 100K+ home crowd at College Station. 

The Aggies wrapped the campaign 11-2, tying the school’s 1939, 1998, and 2012 records for the second-most wins in program history, only behind the 1992 squad that finished 12-1. While the way it ended might be disappointing, the cost spent on the roster that took them this far proves promising.

Mike Elko on Texas A&M’s 2025 campaign

Texas A&M finished their season far earlier than they expected; however, Mike Elko promised that they’ll bounce back stronger for the next season.

“It hurt for those kids because you know how hard they work and how much they put into things,” Elko said after losing to Miami in the first round CFP game. “I hurt for them. It’s a great group that I enjoy being around. I’m going to miss going into work every day with that group.”

Elko was unsure if they’re received positively, but was confident that they are trending as an 11-win team. He promised that they would come back stronger the coming fall.

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“I don’t hope it’s trending positively. I see it’s trending. Eight wins to eleven wins. We’re going to finish the season ranked, which hasn’t happened here in a while. We’ve got to continue to elevate. We’re battling to become a championship program. We’ve got work to do to develop this program into what it needs to become.”

With that being said, the championship pursuit seemingly began with the 2026 class, as Elko landed some top stars for the roster. However, it would be no surprise if they surpass this season’s roster cost.