There were plenty of playmakers across the country in the 2025 season, but few were as efficient as electric as wide receiver/return specialist KC Concepcion or edge rusher Cashius Howell for the Texas A&M Aggies.
Concepcion’s elusiveness and speed as a receiver and a returner and Howell’s relentless motor on the edge have made them two of the most prominent pieces of Texas A&M’s team that is currently contending for a national championship.
And for that prominence, their recognition on a national scale has been immaculate, and now it’s reached the honor of honors.
Concepcion, Howell Named Consensus All-Americans
For their skills displayed on the field during the season, Concepcion and Howell were voted as consensus All-Americans as a return specialist and edge rusher, respectively.
Texas A&M Aggies defensive end Cashius Howell (9) reacts after a defensive play during the first quarter against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
This honor comes shortly after both players were awarded first-team All-SEC honors and in Concepcion’s case, the Paul Hornung Award, celebrating his versatile abilities on the field.
Concepcion was the first player from Texas A&M to win the award, and the first player from the SEC since Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver DeVonta Smith won the award during his Heisman Trophy season in 2020.
In the receiving game, Concepcion led the Aggies in all three major categories with 57 catches for 886 yards and nine touchdowns.
As electric of a receiver as he was in the season,his punt returning skills were other-worldly compared to other components of his game, as he returned 24 punts for a total of 460 yards and even took two of them back to the house for touchdowns, including one in the first game of the season against the UTSA Roadrunners and another in the win against the LSU Tigers.
Howell also got his flowers aside from the teams, being named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, the very Texas A&M player to be graced with the award despite Myles Garrett and Nnamdi Madubuike coming through College Station since 2012.
Howell’s 11.5 sacks are also the most by an A&M player in a single season since Landis Durham’s 10.5 effort back in 2017.
Head coach Mike Elko hasn’t hid his acclamation for Howell in the slightest, even going as far as to call him one of the team’s “OGs”
“Yeah, I think it’s awesome. I think it is,” Elko said. “I think for him to be a kid that we recruited very early on, I’d referenced him at times as the “OG” on this defense because he was one of the first kids to believe and buy into, him and Will (Lee), what we were doing here and what we wanted to be about. I think he came here to grow and develop and challenge himself, and then to see him rise to those challenges.”
Concepcion and Howell will get at least one more game to showcase their skills while the Aggies host the Miami Hurricanes in round one of the College Football Playoff Saturday morning.
