‘We want to be extremely tough, mentally and physically’ Texas A&M HC Mike Elko speaks on TexAgs Radio
Texas A&M’s 2024 football season may be seven months away, but new head coach Mike Elko makes the media rounds whenever possible, helping preview what’s to come during his inaugural campaign.
On Wednesday, Elko, for the first time this year, sat down with TexAgs Radio host David Nuño and Billy Liucci to discuss his transition from Duke after two seasons as the Bluedevils’ head coach while discussing his recent staff hires, recruiting success and the 22 players acquired through the transfer portal this offseason.
Due to the current offseason success, Texas A&M has received a bit of preseason hype from ESPN’s “Way-Too-Early” 2024 Top 25, coming in at, yes, No. 25 due to the returning production led by quarterback Conner Weigman and senior defensive lineman Shemar Turner.
Elko’s past employment with the program, serving as the Aggie’s defensive coordinator from 2018-2021, has provided A&M fans a pathway toward realistic expectations from the jump, especially knowing that under Elko and new D-coordinator Jay Bateman, Texas A&M defense could be borderline elite in 2024.
In one of the better interviews you’ll hear this month, here is everything Mike Elko had to say in his interview with TexAgs radio.
Mike Elko on his brief stint at Duke compared to his transition to Texas A&M
“When I got hired at Duke, it was like three days before the dead period began in December… You got to spend a solid three weeks in the office, plus the portal hadn’t really opened up.”
“When I got here, it was right at the beginning of the recruiting period, so not only were you trying to out to see the 2024 prospects, the 2025 prospects, kids in the portal and your own kids. It was everything coming together all at once.”
Elko on his familiarity with the Aggies' current roster during his time as the programs defensive coordinator
“There were a handful of guys that had played for me. The vast majority, I knew through recruiting, but I left before they were on the roster.”
Elko on his excitement to return to College Station
“When you’re here for four years, it’s not hard to figure out how special of a place this is. My family and I love it here. You guys know we turned down a lot of opportunities to stay here.” “This place is special. We, as a family, believe that. Everybody in this community believes that.”
Elko on the mentality he plans to instill this offseason
“We want to be extremely tough, mentally and physically. We want to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. We want to walk off the field being that we’re the team that played the hardest.”
Elko on the importance to recruiting NFL-caliber talent consistently compete for a National Championship
“What you have to do in recruiting is that you have to identify future NFL talent.”
“There are a lot of intangibles into what makes an NFL Draft pick, so if you’re going to evaluate our recruiting, I want you to do it through the NFL Draft.”
“We want to win it all. If we’re going to win it all, you have to have a roster of 17 or 18 NFL players on it.”
Elko on the importance of hiring a competent offensive coordinator in today's football landscape
“Obviously, I think the offensive coordinator position is the more important one from a hiring standpoint because he’s going to have to carry 85-90 percent of the schematic standpoint, but the harder hire was the defensive coordinator.”
Elko on his long time relationship with new defensive coordinator Jay Bateman
“When you point out the relationship, the relationship has continued for 20 years. … When you work with somebody and you respect the person you work with and stay in connection with them for a long time, that created a lot of familiarity with Jay (Bateman). Philosophically, we’ve had a lot of conversations over the years.”
Elko on Texas A&M's new offensive coordinator Collin Klein
“He’s extremely intelligent. I think he’s a phenomenal human. When you put those two things together, you can get a lot of success. He has already connected with our kids.”
Elko on the veterans he and his staff has brought in from the transfer portal this offseason
“Everybody that we bring here, their jaw hits the floor because it’s so amazing.”
“We’re all in the same spot. You see what it should be. Now, how do we get it there?”
“There was not a lot of margin for error. That week, we had to hit at a really high rate to get where we wanted to go.” “We were able to have an awful lot of success given what we were able to put together with the restrictions in place.”
Elko on potentially adding more players during the spring portal opening window
“You’re going to continue to look for pieces that make this roster better. Maybe there will be, or maybe there won’t be in the spring portal window.”
Elko on building the program the "right way"
“We have everything we need to build this program the way we want it, which is a great feeling as a coach because it means you just have to build it the right way.”
Elko on the search for Texas A&M's next Athletic Director
“I’ve been fortunate enough to have had some conversations with Mark Welsh, and he respects my opinion in what we’re looking for from a football perspective.”
Mike Elko on keeping a low profile to focus on building the program
“I can keep a low profile and just mind my own business.” “When we were here, we integrated into the community. We certainly don’t want to do anything different. The people here just leave you alone and let you do your own thing. I’ve always respected College Station for that.”
Elko on his the transition is affecting his family thus far
“We’re still in the midst of trying to figure everything out. I have an 11th-grade son that’s probably going to finish high school (in Durham).”
“We’re still getting that all situated.”
“People don’t think about this, but we spent more time here than we did in Durham. My daughter did third grade through seventh grade here. A lot of her friend group is still here.”
Elko on his new found use of social media regarding recruiting
“I should let everyone know that it actually is me instead of one of these coaches who hands their phone off.”
Elko on the ever-growing state of NIL (Name, Image and Likeness)
“The message is that it’s here, and it’s here to stay. We can talk about our opinions on it, but none of that really matters.” “A lot of what NIL goes towards for these young men is not these extravagant purchases. A lot of our young men are taking NIL and sending it back to their families.”
“There is a level of value that kids have earned in this day and age through NIL, and we have to understand that… You want people in your building to feel like you value who they are.”
Elko on the current roster "buy in" so far this offseason
“We have a lot of really good kids and kids that are listening to the message and moving in the direction that we want them to.” “We got into our first workout yesterday in which the coaches were allowed to be out there. … It was good to see our kids dive in with teammates and push and encourage to help drive guys where they want to go. It was a lot of fun to watch some of that.”
Elko on what a "successful' 2024 season will look like from his perspective
“Everyone always asks those questions, and this is how I look at it…”
“We want to become the absolute best version of this team that we can become. If we can do that, everybody understands that results will come.”
Elko on if he prefers to face the Texas Longhorns on Saturdays or Thursdays
“Just put a ball down somewhere, and we’ll be there, and we’ll play.”
“You put a ball down, and I’ll play anyone. You put a ball down against them, and we’ll be there.”
