Texas A&M Football: 3 breakout candidates for 2021 season

Jimbo Fisher almost silenced all of his doubters in 2020 as Texas A&M football finished 9-1, including eight straight wins to end the season, including an Orange Bowl win over North Carolina.

The Aggies nearly made the playoff and that should set them up for a nice run at the national semifinal in 2021 and beyond. The talent is piling up on the Texas A&M football roster and ground is being made up with Alabama and Georgia in the SEC.

Texas A&M could make it to the playoff in 2021 but the Aggies will need some guys to step up and others to truly break out.

Which Aggies could become household names this season?

Texas A&M returns nine starters on the defensive side of the ball but McKinnley Jackson is not one of them. He played backup at the defensive tackle position last year after coming in with the 2020 class as one of the best prospects in the country at his position.

In fact, Jackson was ranked the No. 62 overall recruit and ninth-best defensive tackle, and No. 1 recruit from the state of Mississippi, according to the composite.

Jackson played sparingly in a backup role, accounting for 13 total tackles, two tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks in nine games. But now he’s a projected starter and it’s going to be tough for opposing offensive lines to stop his 6-2, 335-pound frame.

The talented sophomore defensive tackle joins a solid unit with DeMarvin Leal, Tyree Johnson, and Jayden Peevy, so he’s not going to be focused which means he might go off this season.

I expect big things from Jackson in 2021.