Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 50-0vs Missouri State | 5 | 41 | 8.2 | 1 | 12 | Season-high 41 yds |
| Wk 2 | W 48-20vs Arizona State | 3 | 34 | 11.3 | 1 | 33 | |
| Total | 8 | 75 | 9.8 | 2 | 33 |
#1
Mario Craver
Mario Craver is 5-9, 165 pounds, and a nightmare for safeties. He dropped 207 yards on Notre Dame in the Playoff and became the highest-paid receiver in Texas A&M history. Small, fast, and back for more.
5′9″ · 180 lb · Birmingham, AL · Clay-Chalkville
CFB Index 78 · #45 of 485 WRsHigh confidenceReturning to Texas A&M for 2026
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
75
receiving yards · 2026
8 catches · 2 TD · 9.4 per catch
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 3 rec, 34 yds, 1 TD, vs Arizona State
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Mario Craver is 5-9, 165 pounds, and a nightmare for safeties. He dropped 207 yards on Notre Dame in the Playoff and became the highest-paid receiver in Texas A&M history. Small, fast, and back for more.
- Signed as a 4-star recruit to Mississippi State in 2024.
- Transferred from Mississippi State to Texas A&M in 2025.
Buzz vs Tape
Rivals warmer than fans
The rival fanbase is unexpectedly warm on him relative to his own.
24.3own fans
70rival fans
Texas A&M Aggies see true freshman Aaron Gregory electrify spring camp, raising hopes for a breakout season at wide receiver. With Ashton Bethel-Roman sidelined by injury, Matt Galatzan and Zach Dimmitt examine Gregory’s standout…
Also worth knowing:
In Their Words
104 windows · 2026 fan posts
mario×325.7texas×18.1coleman×28.4
“If we just run a boatload of PA/QB rollouts then Mario Craver is explosive enough that he still might find his way to NY.”
reddit/CFB · fan post, verbatim
The story
Craver's 2025 was a deep-ball highlight reel -- 59 catches for 917 yards, a 207-yard explosion against Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff, and a yards-per-route mark (3.25) that ranked third in the entire Power Four. At 5-9, 165, he wins the way small receivers have to: with separation speed and after-the-catch wiggle (22 forced missed tackles). Texas A&M made him the highest-paid receiver in program history to keep him. The forward stakes are a featured role in a passing game expected to throw more in 2026 -- the runway for a burner like this to go from very good to the SEC's most dangerous deep threat. For Craver, the size was always the doubt and the speed was always the answer; 2026 is where he settles it.
His career
He arrived as a blue-chip recruit and played like one.
The week the volume broke through — put up 207 yds at Notre Dame.Notre Dame · W 41-402025
Craver is pure juice -- a vertical and after-the-catch weapon whose tape and our data agree. The play-by-play is loud: a 94th-percentile yards-per-catch, a 93rd-percentile explosive-catch rate, and a 88th-percentile EPA per target -- the chunk-play profile of a true field-stretcher, backed by a solid (65th-percentile) catch rate that says he's more than a track guy running fly routes. The 22 forced missed tackles are the YAC element: catch a five-yard slant, make the first man miss, and it's a 40-yard touchdown. At his size he's not a contested-catch or red-zone bully -- he's the speed that bends a defense's whole structure, the receiver a safety has to honor on every snap. Give him a step, and the game changes.
Written by our staff.
20248 games
- Signed with Mississippi State4-star out of Clay-Chalkville
202512 games
- Entered the portal
- All-SECthird
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
🎖
ALL-SEC
All-SEC mention (2025)
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coach2024–2026
Texas A&M
Played his entire career under Mike Elko.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2024Mississippi State2-10HC: Jeff Lebby · Run-leaning
2025Texas A&M11-2HC: Mike Elko · Run-leaning
2026Texas A&M2-0HC: Mike Elko · Run-leaning
Where this profile ranks vs the WR cohort
Box-score percentiles
High confidenceBreakout
Concern: rec yards (0th percentile).
Box-score rates (5)
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 4.0 REC/g, 37.5 YDS/g, 9.8 YPR, 1.0 TD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Mike Elko
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
2026 outlook
In the mix to repeat All-SEC
Based on 2025: #8 of 58 SEC WRs
How the All-SEC estimate is computed
35% estimated, 95% confidence interval 31–38%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player.
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Texas A&M | 8 | 75 | 9.4 | 2 | -- |
| 2025 | Texas A&M | 58 | 911 | 15.7 | 4 | -- |
| 2024 | Mississippi State | 17 | 368 | 21.6 | 3 | -- |
| Career | 83 | 1,354 | 16.3 | 9 | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Texas A&M | -- | -- | -- | 27 | -- |
| 2025 | Texas A&M | 11 | 81 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2024 | Mississippi State | 3 | 7 | -- | -- | 1 |
| Career | 14 | 88 | -- | 27 | 1 |
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2026
W 48–20
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 2 · Arizona State · 1&10 · Q4 · EPA +2.90(14:28) No Huddle-Shotgun #10 M.Reed pass complete deep right to #1 M.Craver caught at ASU10, for 33 yards to the ASU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 14:20, 1ST DOWN #24 D.Olano kick attempt good (H: #37 T.White, LS: #31 S.Freibaum)
- Week 1 · Missouri State · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA +2.53Mario Craver 12 Yd pass from Marcel Reed (David Olano Kick)
- Week 1 · Missouri State · 2&10 · Q3 · EPA +1.90(14:55) No Huddle-Shotgun #10 M.Reed pass complete short right to #1 M.Craver caught at TAMU34, for 11 yards to the TAMU41 (#8 J.Kpassou), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Missouri State · 2&3 · Q1 · EPA +0.52(13:00) No Huddle-Shotgun #10 M.Reed pass complete short right to #1 M.Craver caught at TAMU47, for 8 yards to the MSU43 (#12 J.Boamah), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Arizona State · 2&9 · Q2 · EPA -0.39(05:33) No Huddle-Shotgun #10 M.Reed pass complete short right to #1 M.Craver caught at TAMU11, for 5 yards loss to the TAMU13 (#1 A.Stamps)
- Week 1 · Missouri State · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA +0.22(12:05) No Huddle-Shotgun #10 M.Reed pass complete short right to #1 M.Craver caught at MSU40, for 6 yards to the MSU27 (#0 J.Lloyd)
- Week 2 · Arizona State · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA +0.20(01:36) No Huddle-Shotgun #10 M.Reed pass complete short right to #1 M.Craver caught at ASU30, for 6 yards to the ASU20 (#8 M.Hughes), out of bounds
- Week 1 · Missouri State · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA -0.11(06:27) No Huddle-Shotgun #10 M.Reed pass complete short right to #1 M.Craver caught at MSU47, for 4 yards to the MSU40 (#8 J.Kpassou)
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Craver is pure juice -- a vertical and after-the-catch weapon whose tape and our data agree. The play-by-play is loud: a 94th-percentile yards-per-catch, a 93rd-percentile explosive-catch rate, and a 88th-percentile EPA per target -- the chunk-play profile of a true field-stretcher, backed by a solid (65th-percentile) catch rate that says he's more than a track guy running fly routes. The 22 forced missed tackles are the YAC element: catch a five-yard slant, make the first man miss, and it's a 40-yard touchdown. At his size he's not a contested-catch or red-zone bully -- he's the speed that bends a defense's whole structure, the receiver a safety has to honor on every snap. Give him a step, and the game changes.
Our classifier reads him the same way: beats you over the top.
2026 Outlook
Texas A&M
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Wide receiver · Texas A&M
Returning around him
- 73% of 2024 offensive production back (Strong continuity)
- 10 Texas A&M players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -2 net (19 in / 21 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Texas A&M · Last season: 11-2 (AP #7) · Talent rank #7 · 2026 recruiting class #10
DNA match
Player DNA
Deep Threat
Stretches the field vertically. Every snap is a potential big play.
WR
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Calvin Austin III’s 2021 season.
82%match
All-AACNFL Rd 4
Matches Calvin on
Total EPA (college ability)
Weight
TD rate
Differs from Calvin on
Reception volume (lower)
Class year (higher)
Through 3 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Jalen Coker’s path through Holy Cross.
Jalen Coker
97%match
#4
Beau Kelly
90%
Matches Jalen on
Yards per reception
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Kalil Pimpleton's sophomore season at Central Michigan (2021).
77%match
All-MAC
Matches Kalil on
Yards / reception
EPA / play (adj)
Weight
Differs from Kalil on
Class year (lower)
Player DNA
Players who play like Mario Craver
Heisman trajectory
Heisman Trajectory · 2026
Peak #187
Peaked at #187 this season.
Background
PRIOR TO TEXAS A&M: Ranked No. 2 in the SEC with 21.6 yards per catch among players with at least 15 catches in his freshman season at Mississippi State in nine games, while making three starts ... Caught 17 passes for 368 yards and three touchdowns, while averaging 40.9 yards per game ... Scored...
The receiver room · Texas A&M
- #1Mario Craver911 receiving yards · 2025
- #7Isaiah Horton511 receiving yards · 2025
- #8Ashton Bethel-Roman503 receiving yards · 2025
- #6Terry Bussey195 receiving yards · 2025
- #18TK Norman39 receiving yards · 2025
11 more on the roster · Texas A&M team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology