Sponsored by Brent Campbell, Fighting Texas Aggie Class of 1998. Brent is a Commercial Real Estate Broker, serving all of Central Texas and specializing in sales, leasing & development. He leads a retail acquisition and sales team and was recognized by the Austin Business Journal as a Commercial Real Estate Heavy Hitter in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2020 & 2023.

In the last 22 years, he has closed deals with a total transactional value of over $375 million and has leased more than 4.5 million square feet. Brent currently serves as the president of the board of directors for Habitat Homes, Inc. and Pathways Youth and Family Services. He is a former president of the Heart of Round Rock Neighborhood Association and a former member of the Round Rock Zoning Advisory Committee, the Round Rock Business and Retention Committee, and the City of Round Rock Ethics Commission, which has led him to begin developing in Williamson and Travis County.

An Austin native, Brent lives in Round Rock where he and his wife have raised four boys. Brent works for Don Quick and Associates, Inc. in Round Rock, TX and can be reached at brent@donquick.com.

Yesterday, I was on Southern Sports Today with Chuck Oliver and we were discussing spring practice. And he hit me with a question: "What about Bryce Anderson? What are we expecting from him this year?"

Great question -- what about Bryce Anderson? If the Aggie secondary is going to seriously improve, he's going to have to be a big part of it. So that gave me the idea for this week's column -- 10 returning players who need to step up for the Aggies to succeed in 2025.

Yes, this was an absolute gimme. If the Aggies are going to be better this year, it will be in large part because Reed is better. He completed 61.3% of his passes last year, but has set a goal of completing 70% this season. That's a number that only Johnny Manziel has reached in recent memory -- and was actually at 69.9%. If Reed completes 70% of his passes (and is healthy the whole year) the Aggies are in the hunt for the CFP. It's that simple.

It's not really fair to look at Owens and say, "step up your play" because he really shouldn't have played at all last year. But his team needed him and he actually looked as good as he ever has in the bowl game. Hopefully he can stay healthy into the season, because there's no guarantee Le'Veon Moss will be ready and Amari Daniels will still be rounding into form at the start of the season after rehabbing his injury. Owens looks fantastic physically and, if he takes a big step towards fulfilling his potential, A&M's backfield could be the nation's best by midseason.

What returning wideout had the most receptions in 2024? Bussey did, with 17. He averaged a not-too-shabby 12.7 yards a catch, but there was always a sense that he wasn't quite where people thought he would be. We found out this spring, thanks to coach Mike Elko, that Bussey was banged up even before the season began and gutted his way through. So maybe he gets a mulligan for last season and we'll get a chance to see what he can really do this year. Hopefully, that's a lot more, because A&M needs his talent at receiver.

We heard a lot of "watch out for this guy" last summer, but Bethel-Roman only ended up with four catches for 44 yards and a touchdown. With the veterans from last year's team gone, the opportunity for him to be a major contributor is wide open. He's one of the bigger receivers on the roster at 6-foot-1, so the Aggies would definitely be pleased if he can respond to increased playing time with increased production.

Remember, Hicks was the number three player in the nation in the 2023 class, so he came in with a lot of attention. While he hasn't been bad, he hasn't been great either -- 17 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks last season. This year, there isn't going to be any backup role for Hicks; he's in the starting lineup and, with a very young group of defensive tackles, the onus is going to be on him to step up his game. He looks like he's lost some of the baby fat he had the first two seasons and has muscled up, so hopefully he's on the verge of a breakout campaign.

With Cashius Howell moving to defensive end full time, there's going to be a spot for Kennedy to take advantage of, be it as a JACK or as the backup behind Howell at end. The Aggies want speed on the field to get after the quarterback, and Kennedy was recruited specifically for that purpose. He wasn't bad as a sophomore -- 20 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 1.5 sacks -- but with more experience and more playing time, those numbers need to go up. Especially the last one.

A&M's starters are set with Taurean York and Scooby Williams, but Sanford is going to be the first man off the bench at both spots and should get as many snaps as most starters. He was pretty solid as a sophomore getting his first real taste of playing time -- 33 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, a sack and four passes broken up -- but had some troubles getting opponents on the ground. The Aggies need better tackling to go with his aggressive approach in 2025.

Well, you knew it was coming, right?

Anderson had a strong start to last season, which included a pick six against Florida to essentially seal the game. But he then suffered a shoulder injury that seriously hampered his ability to tackle, and that became a major issue as the season went on. Anderson has great speed for a safety and has no problems playing physical -- if he's healthy. If the Aggie secondary is going to improve after two subpar to really bad seasons, he's going to have to be a major part of it.

Ricks played in every game last year and, while he was better than whatever was put out on the field in 2023, still was picked on badly -- especially in the bowl game. Ricks has a ton of natural talent and 2024 was his first real taste of playing cornerback in major college football, so there's certainly reason to think he will be better this season. A&M brought in Julian Humphrey to push him for the starting job, but he's still going to play a lot. The normal progression from year one to year two -- and maybe more -- is critical.

Like Owens, this is more of "please get healthy and stay healthy". Chappell made the transition to nickel last season and was excellent early on, playing a fantastic game against Notre Dame before disaster struck before week 3. He's still rehabbing his knee injury, but the defense looked very different with him on the field last year. They need him back and need him at 100% for a full season. If that happens, they'll have plenty of experience with Chappell, Will Lee and Anderson in the secondary.