Aggies' Albert Regis lands East-West invite, but A&M's urgency is locked on Saturday's CFP opener.
Texas A&M's 11-1 regular season put the Aggies back in the national conversation, but the program isn't treating this week like a victory lap.
With Miami coming to Kyle Field on Saturday morning in the first round of the 2025 College Football Playoff, the tone in College Station is less celebration and more countdown.
Still, postseason honors don't wait for the bracket to finish.
Defensive lineman Albert Regis added his name to the growing list of Aggies collecting recognition when he was invited to the 2026 East-West Shrine Bowl, one of the sport's longest-running all-star showcases and a key stop on the pre-draft circuit.
For Regis, the nod is another marker in a career that's been built on staying the course.
The La Porte, Texas native has been in maroon and white since arriving in 2021, grinding through the kind of seasons that don't always make highlight reels but absolutely shape winning teams.
Now, with A&M playing its biggest games in years, the timing is perfect. Regis gets a pro football opportunity on the horizon without having to step away from the Aggies' immediate mission.
The Shrine Bowl is scheduled for Jan. 27 at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, an NFL-ready setting at the Cowboys' complex, with the event designed to put prospects in front of scouts and decision-makers.
The late-January date matters for CFP teams, too, as it leaves room for players still chasing titles to handle business first, then pivot to the next stage of their careers.
And if you were looking for any sign that Regis might be daydreaming about draft season, he shut that down quickly.
Speaking Tuesday in the lead-up to Miami, Regis made it clear the invite is appreciated, but it's not the priority right now.
"All that other stuff, that's down the road," Regis said, adding that the "sense of urgency" is about doing something for the program "that hasn't been done in a very long time."
Regis produced the best numbers of his career in 2025, setting highs in tackles (43) and sacks (two), and flashing the kind of disruptive effort that doesn't always show up in box scores until you rewatch the film.
He posted a season-high seven tackles against Notre Dame and forced a fumble late in the home win over Florida - game-swing moments from a player doing the dirty work in the middle of the action.
The reality is that A&M can accept the flowers and still keep its fists up.
The Shrine Bowl invite is proof that Regis has put himself on the radar, but the Aggies' story is still being written on Saturdays, not in late-January all-star workouts.
Miami is first. Everything else can wait.