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USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
'I tried to go up to the press box' HC Mike Elko is ready to call defensive plays
'I tried to go up to the press box' HC Mike Elko is ready to call defensive plays One of the primary reasons for Texas A&M's poor play during the final weeks of the 2024 season was the defense, mainly the lack of pass rush, while the secondary allowed too many big plays that resulted in the 1-4 finish, including consecutive losses to Texas and USC in the Las Vegas Bowl. This immediately led to most of the Aggie fan base calling for a change at defensive coordinator, as Jay Bateman became a popular name to be let go. Still, head coach Mike Elko had other plans after deciding to keep Bateman on the 2025 staff and add James Madison DC Lyle Hemphill to the staff, who served under Elko during his two-year head coaching stint at Duke. However, Elko's early lack of clarity regarding the future of defensive playcalling was finally addressed before the start of the spring football season, stating that he would become the primary play-caller in 2025 but would still rely on Bateman and now Hemphill for pre-game preparation and in-game strategy. On Wednesday, during the annual Austin Coaches' Night, Elko once again discussed his transition as the full-time playcaller, as his quote from the night provided a perfect illustration of why the veteran playcaller needs to get back in the saddle. "I tried to go up into the press box, but they wouldn't let me." "I've called plays from the sideline at different times in my career. I've done it as a head coach. … It's not something that's new or that I'm worried about. It'll be a collaborative effort." This is potentially great news for a defense that never lived up to its potential, given the talent it had last year. With 14 new additions from the transfer portal, including five players on the defensive line, I fully expect the defense to resemble Texas A&M's 2021 season performance during Elko's last year as the program's defensive coordinator. Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Cameron on X: @CameronOhnysty.
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
'We have to finish' Texas A&M HC Mike Elko speaks during Austin Coach's night
'We have to finish' Texas A&M HC Mike Elko speaks during Austin Coach's night It's officially "talk'n season" ahead of the 2025 college football season, and Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko has been making the rounds, starting with the Brazos Country Coach's night last week, followed by the SEC Spring Meetings on Thursday, while Wednesday night's Austin Coach's night saw the second-year head coach sounding as confident in his 2025 roster as you'll likely hear all offseason. Ever since the Aggies' game-losing drive against USC in the Las Vegas Bowl, Elko has made significant changes to the coaching staff and 2025 roster, starting with hiring James Madison defensive coordinator Lyle Hemphill to the defensive staff to fix the remaining issue in the secondary, which will (hopefully) prevent the blown coverage's that cost the Aggie's several games last season. From starting quarterback Marcel Reed's improvement to edge rusher Cashius Howell's likely breakout season, Elko provided several player updates that will both excite and, yes, shock the Aggie fan base as the countdown to the 2025 campaign continues. Talking for over an hour in front of Texas A&M donors and media members, here is every key detail Mike Elko provided on Wednesday night. Mike Elko on Texas A&M's bright future "We you look at some of the things in and around the program and some of the indicators of where the program is going, we're very proud of the foundation we have laid." Elko on the fan buy-in during his first season at the helm "For the second straight year, we had 100 percent attendance in the Big Event in College Station. We've been way more active in the community service aspect of our program." "We've been able to reconnect with our community so that our kids are not just viewed as athletes, but they're also viewed as Aggies." Elko on hosting several big name 2026 prospects in June "We've got a big month coming up in June. For those of you who still follow recruiting, it looks to be a big 2026 class. We'll have about 50 kids on campus in the next week and a half." Elko on Texas A&M's entire offensive line returning next season "Any time you're building a team and talking about possible success, when you bring back your top six starting offensive linemen, that's a really strong starting point." Elko on Texas A&M's deep running back room with the return of senior Le'Veon Moss "We bring back every running back that carried the football for us last year." "Watching Le'Veon Moss work this offseason and the commitment he has shown to getting back on the field has been nothing short of amazing. … We expect to have him fully ready by the start of training camp." Elko on Texas A&M's deep and improved wide receiver corps "It's a revamped group. It was an area where we had to figure out how to get playmakers to be honest, and we had to go to the transfer portal to find them." "We're really happy with our young group. Our young group took a really, really big step forward." Elko's sounds confident that the 2025 tight end has more juice "The tight end room, we felt we had to get a little more stout, a little more physical." Elko on QB Marcel Reed's mental advantage after taking over as the starter last season We're excited about Marcel (Reed). He got thrust into some situations last year that he wasn't maybe ready for, and you saw him take really big steps forward." Elko on QB Marcel Reed's improvement this offseason "He's an electric playmaker. He has really, really quick-twitch athleticism, and he's taking some major strides in his ability to deliver the football." Elko on backup QB Miles O'Neill's future with the program Miles O'Neill is a really young quarterback in our program that I think is going to be really, really good." "He brings some different ability in the throw game and his ability to push the ball downfield … We're excited about him and his development." Elko on Texas A&M's secondary, highlighting the return of senior CB Tyreek Chappell "We brought back every kid that played in the backend of our secondary last year…or kids that should have played." "Tyreek Chappell was probably our best DB last year, and losing him early was a big loss… He'll be back (this year)." Elko reveals that Texas A&M LB Scooby Williams played through a torn meniscus throughout the season "One of the things that we didn't tell anybody about Scooby (Williams) because you can't tell this story is that on the first drive of the Notre Dame game, he tore his meniscus." "Him and Taurean (York) make a really strong pair." Elko's confident senior Edge Cashius Howell is set to break out in 2025 "Cashius Howell coming back was really, really big. I don't think people understand how high of an NFL Draft prospect he really is." "I think he has unbelievable potential to have a really strong year." Like Cashius Howell, junior Edge Rylan Kennedy is poised to become reliable pass rusher "Rylan Kennedy showed out last year and made a lot of plays, and for anybody who paid attention to the spring game, Marco Jones might have had one of the best freshman spring games out of anybody we've ever had." Elko on Texas A&M's "experienced" offensive and defensive line "We have an older, experienced group, and we have that on both sides of the line." "We're excited about where we're going. We're excited about the direction we're heading." Elko on the Texas A&M's culture, and the resilence and passion seen throughout the roster "We're here to build a championship program. It starts with laying the foundation and building the culture." "This program is resilient. These kids are resilient. They believe in this program, and they believe in where we're going." Elko on Texas A&M's veteran specialist group, led by senior kicker Randy Bond "They're all back. One of the things as a head coach is that when the specialists go to the back of your mind, it's a good place to be because you don't worry about them." "Every kid who kicked the ball or snapped the ball on special teams last year returns. That group is in really good shape." Elko on calling a majority of the defensive plays in 2025 "I tried to go up into the press box, but they wouldn't let me." "I've called plays from the sideline at different times in my career. I've done it as a head coach. … It's not something that's new or that I'm worried about. It'll be a collaborative effort." Elko on his his roster has handled NIL opportunities "Given the rules and circumstances, our kids do a really good job of handling NIL." "We don't have a lot of horror stories. … We don't have kids demanding this or demanding that. … I credit our kids for handling the situation really well. Kids these days get a really bad rap for a situation that adults have handled really poorly." Elko on keeping the same coaching staff heading into Year 2 "When you have consistency of staff, you have consistency of messaging. That's really important for young people." "I'm thankful for the staff we have because we have a phenomenal staff." Texas A&M's offense line will likely determine the Aggies' success in 2025 "We're really excited about the offensive line. When I stood on this podium last year, that was question mark No. 1." "You've established that offensive line group, who those guys are and what they're all about." Elko ended the night with a quote that will define the Aggies through every win and loss in 2025 "We did move forward in our win total from where we were last year. I know that's now our expectation and what's acceptable, but we are moving forward." "We learned valuable lessons down the stretch last year. I did. Our team did. Our staff did. … We'll be confident when the season starts. We'll be confident through every win. We'll be confident through every lost. We'll be confident throughout the entire season until they tell us we can't play anymore." Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Cameron on X: @CameronOhnysty.
USA Today
24-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Where is Texas A&M HC Mike Elko ranked in CBS Sports 2025 Head coach rankings?
Where is Texas A&M HC Mike Elko ranked in CBS Sports 2025 Head coach rankings? With the 2025 college football season less than 100 days away, varous outlets, including CBS Sports have released various head coach rankings to stir the pot and provide plenty of offseason talking points, especially in the SEC. For Texas A&M coach Mike Elko, who enters his second season at the helm, hasn't earned a ton of respect from the national media. After starting 7-1, and ending 1-4 with consecutive losses to Texas and USC in the Las Vegas Bowl, any praise Elko previously received took a tumble, but it's widely agreed upon that he deserves some grace after one season, and based on putting the work in to improve, adding 14 players from the transfer portal while former James Madison defensive coordinator Lyle Hemphill has joined the defensive staff it certainly something to respect. This week, CBS Sports writer Tom Fornelli released his Top 68 head coach rankings, placing Mike Elko just outside the Top 25 at No. 29, rising three spots compared to his 2024 ranking. Here's what Fornelli had to say regarding his ranking. "Elko's greatest attribute at Texas A&M last year was that he wasn't Jimbo Fisher. If Jimbo had gone 8-5 while looking mostly outclassed in losses to Notre Dame, South Carolina and Texas, it would've been ugly. But it was only Elko's first season, and we're still in the honeymoon era. I don't say this as a knock because I believe Elko was the right hire for the Aggies. I just think some folks were a little too impressed by wins over mostly mediocre teams." Ranked one spot below South Carolina coach Shane Beamer, the Gamecock's blowout win over the Aggies was the start of Texas A&M's downfall, mainly due to star running back Le'Veon Moss being lost for the rest of the season. Fornelli is right in stating that judging Elko after one season is premature, but the loss to Notre Dame mainly had to due with former starting QB Conner Weigman's shoulder injury, while defensive lapses and quarterback Marcel Reed's lack of experience as a pocket passer led to poor play down the stretch. This is a accurate ranking, both respecting Elko's ability to build a program, while noting the need to get past the eight win barrier and, finally earn a big to the College Football Playoff over the next two seasons. Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Cameron on X: @CameronOhnysty.
USA Today
22-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
'They believe in what we're building here' Mike Elko is bullish on Texas A&M's 2025 season
'They believe in what we're building here' Mike Elko is bullish on Texas A&M's 2025 season Wednesday night's Brazos Country Coach's Night saw Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko, ahead his second season at the helm, preview what fans and media should expect from the Aggies after the small sample size presented during the Maroon & White spring game. Starting off the night with a bang, Elko revealed that star senior running back Le'Veon Moss, whose season ending knee injury led to the Aggies' poor play down the stretch last season, is 100% healthy after spending the latter half of the 2024 campaign recovering, while his rehab this spring was faster than expected. Overall, Elko is very bullish regarding the offense and defense improving next season, mainly due to roster retention and key leaders returning on both sides. "The core of our roster has battled through a lot of adversity here. They're here because they believe in Texas A&M. They believe in what we're building here. I believe we have kids who are truly committed to Texas A&M and what it stands for." On defense, Elko brought in James Madison defensive coordinator Lyle Hemphill to help fix the technical issues in the secondary, which included three horrific performances against Auburn, Texas, and USC in the Las Vegas Bowl, all resulting in losses. "We all understand how we finished the year. We played three bad games of defense to finish the year. We're all aware of that. That's not how we play defense at Texas A&M. We have to have a better commitment for getting the job done at a higher level." Again, "show, don't tell" is the theme for most of the Aggie fan base, but trusting Elko's defensive mindset is key, knowing that he is taking a bigger hand in the playcalling and overall structure compared to Jay Bateman's full control last season. Texas A&M's defense is relatively deep at nearly every position, and trusting Elko and his staff fix the remaining issues is all anyone can do, knowing that they at least have film to go off of compared to entering the 2024 season without anything to go off of. Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Cameron on X: @CameronOhnysty.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Historic Big Ten Program is Dominating 2026 Recruiting
As the 2025 college football season is beginning with spring practices and training camps underway, we get a glimpse at who may emerge as future stars in college. The USC Trojans had a stellar 2025 recruiting campaign, securing one five-star quarterback and claiming the No. 15 overall class in the country, according to On3. Advertisement Beyond the expectations of improving this season, looking ahead to the 2026 season for the Trojans is understandable, as they have hit the ground running for their recruiting. As of May 1, the Trojans currently have the No. 1 recruiting class in the country, with seven players in the top-100. Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Lee-Imagn Images The Lincoln Riley effect is nothing to look over, as he is bringing in top recruits all over the field in the 2026 class. With two five-stars currently committed on the defensive side of the football, they look to balance their team to be one of the top teams in the country. Their first season in the Big 10 was disappointing to their standards with a 7-6 finish, which ended with a victory in the Las Vegas Bowl against the Texas A&M Aggies. Advertisement As a college coach, it is the worst record Riley has had, and the second time he has not been in the AP's top 25 at the conclusion of the year. With a stellar roster heading into 2025, and an incredibly strong start to their 2026 class, Riley looks to turn the USC program back around to become one of the powerhouses of college football once again. Related: Falcons Make Huge Decision on Former USC WR Drake London
