New Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko used to joke in interviews that as the defensive coordinator, he was responsible for 50 percent of the program. After two years doing the job as the head coach at Duke, he no longer makes that joke.
“You get into the head coach chair and realize the defense is like 5 percent of the program,” Elko said. “The magnitude of what it means to be the CEO can’t be understood until you’re doing it. You wear a lot of different hats in this role and the two years of doing it (at Duke) opened my eyes to what this job requires from me.”
To carry his analogy, Elko became CEO of one of the biggest companies in college football in December when he replaced Jimbo Fisher, who was paid nearly $80 million to go away. His budget is nearly limitless. His staff is ever-expanding. The resources and NIL war chest measure up with any program in the country. Elko gladly accepts the help, but that doesn’t mean he’s used to it.
Elko, who turns 47 before the start of the 2024 season, took an interesting path to the top of the sport. After his playing days at Penn, Elko took a GA job at Stony Brook. He took his first defensive coordinator job at the United States Merchant Marine Academy in 2001 and then spent time at Fordham, Richmond, Hofstra, and Bowling Green. Elko didn’t receive his first shot as a Power Five coordinator until 2017 – 18 seasons into his career – when Notre Dame gave him a chance.
“In everything, your path sets your future,” Elko said. “What makes my path unique is that I was at places that required me to be a worker. I was the defensive coordinator, but I was also breaking the film down, drawing the cards, scripting the plays. Coming up the way I came up created some level of work ethic that is hard to turn off.”
Fisher was a splash hire who made more waves off the field in recruiting and celebrating future national championships that never arrived than he did at Kyle Field. He ended his six-year tenure with a 45-25 record. But that mark was 34-14 in the four years Elko served as his defensive coordinator.
The splash failed. So, the Aggies reflected on the past. The last consistently successful coach at Texas A&M was R.C. Slocum, who won 123 games and appeared in 11 bowls in 14 seasons as a head coach. He was hired after the Jackie Sherrill drama in the 1980s after serving as defensive coordinator of the Wrecking Crew. Sound familiar?
The move to the SEC and the Heisman Trophy winning season by Johnny Manziel ratcheted up expectations in Aggieland. The arrival of the Longhorns and the investment to push Fisher to pasture only raises them higher. Elko won’t get a free win in Week 1 to start his tenure and ease into the head chair. His Aggies host Notre Dame at home in Week 1. Kyle Field also plays host to Mizzou, LSU, and Texas in 2024.
The good news is that he isn’t exactly conquering new lands. He was second in command at Texas A&M for four seasons and walked back into a locker room that included players he recruited to College Station years earlier, and even a few he tried to unsuccessfully recruit to Duke like defensive captain Taurean York. That familiarity might not score points on Saturdays in the fall, but it sure helped speed up the acclimation process in Elko’s first offseason in charge.
Both York and starting left tackle Trey Zuhn mentioned discipline when asked what’s changed since Elko arrived as head coach. He made the team eat breakfast and dinner together with timeliness taking center stage. Some might think student athletes in the NIL age don’t crave discipline and structure, but they’d disagree.
“We were letting too many things slide in the past,” Zuhn said. “More discipline was 100 percent what we needed. It sets an expectation. Now, people know what is expected and we can fall in line. That’s how a winning culture works.”
OFFENSE
MVP – OT Trey Zuhn anchors an Aggies offensive line that must improve in 2024.
Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko hired former Kansas State quarterback and offensive coordinator Collin Klein to lead the Aggies offense. His Wildcats ranked 10th in the FBS in scoring offense last season with an average of 37.1 points per game. They were 12th in rushing yards per game (204.08) and 54th in passing yards per game (241.2).
“We focused on pushing the tempo and putting the defense at a disadvantage in the spring,” starting left tackle Trey Zuhn said in April. “We’ve also gone back to basics and focused on the details as we’ve installed the new system.”
Klein inherits a talented and crowded quarterback room headlined by Conner Weigman, who entered the past two seasons as Texas A&M’s starting quarterback before injuries cost him significant portions of the season. Marcel Reed and Jaylen Henderson are talented players with experience and a skillset reminiscent of quarterbacks Klein coached at Kansas State.
The wide receiver room returns a trio of experienced performers in Noah Thomas, Jahdae Walker, and Moose Muhammad. Micah Tease is also back. The Aggies added transfers Cyrus Allen and Jabre Barber to the room, but Barber was hurt in spring and a return for the 2024 season is questionable. A healthy Donovan Green headlines a tight end room that includes transfers Garrett Miller and Tre Watson.
The running back trio of Le’Veon Moss, Rueben Owens, and Amari Daniels provides Klein with a talented stable of running backs. The biggest question on the entire team is the unit opening holes for those running backs. Zuhn is the clearcut starter at left tackle. Utah transfer Koli Faaiu figures to replace Bryce Foster at center. Chase Bisontis is sliding inside to guard. A battle at right tackle between Reuben Fatheree II and Dametrious Crownover is one to watch.
Position Group Ratings
QB: B
RB: B+
WR/TE: B+
OL: C+
Breakout Candidates
WR Cyrus Allen – The La Tech transfer started 11 games last season and hauled in 46 receptions for 778 yards and four touchdowns. He topped the 100-yard mark three times.
TE Garrett Miller – After missing the 2022 season with injury, Miller returned as a difference maker for Purdue in 2023 with 30 catches for 243 yards and two scores.
QB Marcel Reed – The former four-star recruit was the star of the spring game after showing glimpses of his high ceiling in three appearances as a freshman.
OL Ar’maj Reed-Adams – A DeSoto native, who began his collegiate career at Kansas, returns to Texas and figures to be a key piece at guard for the Aggies.
Keep An Eye On
Texas A&M struggled to keep starting quarterbacks healthy in the last three seasons of the Jimbo Fisher era. The last starter to make it through a whole season without missing significant time was Kellen Mond in 2020 when the Aggies finished 9-1. In 2021, Haynes King lasted six quarters. In 2022, King and Max Johnson were lost to injury. Weigman was the victim last year. Keeping a starting quarterback upright must be priority No. 1 for Klein and the new offensive staff. That’ll take improvements along the offensive line, especially in pass pro.
Projected Starters
QB: 15 Conner Weigman Soph.
RB: 8 Le’Veon Moss Jr.
WR: 7 Moose Muhammad III Sr.
WR: 3 Noah Thomas Jr.
WR: 9 Jahdae Walker Sr.
TE: 18 Donovan Green Soph.
LT: 60 Trey Zuhn Jr.
LG: 71 Chase Bisontis Soph.
C: X Koli Faaiu Jr.
RG: 75 Kam Dewberry Jr.
RT: 78 Dametrious Crownover Jr.
DEFENSE
MVP – DB Bryce Anderson is the leader of the Wrecking Crew secondary.
The last time Mike Elko roamed the sidelines at Kyle Field his Wrecking Crew defense finished the 2021 season ranked third nationally in scoring defense with 15.9 points allowed per game. Only Georgia and Clemson allowed fewer points that season.
Elko left after 2021 to become the head coach at Duke and the Aggies struggled to adjust. The unit was 25th in points allowed per game in 2022 and 36th last year. Not awful, but not up to standard, either.
Elko returns to a locker room with a few familiar faces. One is defensive end Shemar Stewart. He’ll team with Purdue transfer Nic Scourton, who led the Big 10 in sacks last season, to terrorize opposing quarterbacks. Former five-star talent DJ Hicks looks ready to step into the limelight at defensive tackle alongside potential first-round draft pick Shemar Turner. They’ll be flanked by Albert Regis and Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy. UCF transfer Josh Celiscar was added after the spring for more help off the edge.
Taurean York burst onto the scene as a true freshman. He’s now the captain as a sophomore with Edgerrin Cooper in the NFL. The spot next to York is a position battle between transfers Scooby Williams and Solomon DeShields, who didn’t arrive until the summer.
“We picked up the defense quickly in the spring,” York said. “Once we’re all on the same page, we’ll be dangerous.”
Elko is a safety coach by trade and immediately went to work replenishing the ranks in the secondary. Texas A&M added eight defensive backs through the portal, including cornerbacks BJ Mayes and Will Lee III, as well as safeties De’Rickey Wright and Marcus Ratcliffe. Bryce Anderson was moved to deep safety from nickel when Elko & Co. arrived in College Station. Transfer Jaydon Hill is the favorite to start at nickel this season.
Position Group Ratings
DL: B+
LB: A-
DB: B
ST: A-
Breakout Candidates
DE Cashius Howell – A Bowling Green transfer who was tied for the MAC lead in sacks with 9.5 last season. Howell was a third-team All-MAC selection with two years of eligibility remaining.
DT Albert Regis – The junior from La Porte was a reserve defensive tackle for the Aggies the past two seasons who should see his role increased with the new staff and transfer losses at defensive tackle.
CB Dezz Ricks – A former five-star recruit who left Alabama after Nick Saban retired. Ricks isn’t as experienced as the other cornerback transfers, but his ceiling might be the highest.
S Dalton Brooks – A bunch of new defensive backs arrived in College Station, but don’t forget about the former four-star from Shiner. He won’t give up his spot in the pecking order without a fight.
Keep An Eye On
Texas A&M brought in experienced talent at nearly every position group on the defensive side of the ball and head coach Mike Elko is known as a defensive wizard. Still, the Wrecking Crew must replace a lot of production and experience. That starts with linebacker Edgerrin Cooper, who led the Aggies with 83 tackles, 17 TFL, and 8 sacks. The Aggies must also replace long-time safety Demani Richardson. And that’s before mentioning defensive linemen like Walter Nolen and Fadil Diggs. A new crop of players and a first-year coaching staff might lead to defensive miscommunication, especially early in the year.
Projected Starters
DE: 11 Nic Scourton Jr.
NT: 13 DJ Hicks Soph.
DT: 5 Shemar Turner Sr.
DE: 4 Shemar Stewart Jr.
LB: 21 Taurean York Soph.
LB: 0 Scooby Williams Jr.
NB: 8 Jaydon Hill Sr.
CB: 7 Tyreek Chappell Sr.
CB: 26 Will Lee III Jr.
FS: 1 Bryce Anderson Jr.
SS: Trey Jones Sr.
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT
Anyone who knew Taurean York during his playing days at Temple High School wasn’t surprised when he was elected captain at Texas A&M before his 19th birthday. The sophomore linebacker used to show up to summer workouts at 4:45 a.m. – hours before it officially started at 7. He’d be in a full sweat by the time his teammates wiped the sleep boogers out of their eyes.
“Whoever was my bench partner hated it because I was in a full sweat before their first rep,” York joked. “Some of them started carrying paper towels with them so they could wipe the bench off after I went so it wasn’t so icky.”
A unique competitive desire burns deep inside of York. His role model is Tom Brady. York even taped a quote from Brady in his bedroom mirror in high school that read, “I’m the baddest motherf***** on the planet.” He did 538 sit ups every day because that’s the number he was wearing at a summer camp when a college coach suggested he move to defensive end because of a soft core. His high school coaches had to pull him out of drills and tell him to relax as an upperclassman.
“I want to be the best in the world and that drives me,” York said. “I hate to lose. It is a terrible feeling, but I also don’t want to hear people talking trash after.”
The plan when York backed away from his Baylor commitment was to play at Duke for Mike Elko. That plan changed when then-Texas A&M linebacker coach Tyler Santucci alerted York that he and Aggie defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin would come by his high school the day after that decommitment. But an offer didn’t come.
“They were dragging their feet,” York recalled. “I was hours away from announcing my commitment to Duke.”
Instead, Durkin called at the last minute to say Jimbo Fisher cleared the offer. York set up a visit and committed to the Aggies shortly after. As it turns out, York didn’t need to pick between playing at his dream school or playing for his preferred coach. Elko was named the head coach at Texas A&M after the 2023 season.
“Life is funny how it puts you on paths that you don’t understand in the moment,” York said. “I focus on what I can control, and that’s competing in everything I do.”
CEILING/FLOOR
Ceiling – 10-2
Call us crazy but a 10-win season and a trip to the College Football Playoff is on the table for the Aggies because of a favorable schedule. Their four toughest games – Notre Dame, Missouri, LSU, and Texas – are all at Kyle Field. The SEC road games are winnable.
Floor – 6-6
Old habits die hard and turning around a culture of underperforming might take Mike Elko & Co. more than one offseason. With a whole new staff and over 40 new faces on the roster, the Aggies could be inconsistent and underwhelming in 2024. Reaching a bowl game is the minimum requirement.
SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
No group of season ticket holders received a better slate of home games in 2024 than the 12th Man. The only true road games are against Florida, Mississippi State, and Auburn. The big ticket is the Thanksgiving weekend clash with Texas, but the Week 1 contest at Kyle Field against the Fighting Irish sets the tone for the entire season. The Aggies also host LSU and Missouri. They travel to Arlington to play Arkansas in the pair’s final neutral site game at AT&T Stadium. Home games against McNeese and New Mexico State round out the non-conference schedule.
2023 SCHEDULE
DATE OPPONENT RESULT
Sept. 2 New Mexico W, 52-10
Sept. 9 at Miami L, 48-33
Sept. 16 Louisiana-Monroe W, 47-3
Sept. 23 Auburn W, 27-10
Sept. 30 Arkansas (Arlington) W, 34-22
Oct. 7 Alabama L, 26-20
Oct. 14 at Tennessee L, 20-13
Oct. 28 South Carolina W, 30-17
Nov. 4 at Ole Miss L, 38-35
Nov. 11 Mississippi State W, 51-10
Nov. 18 Abilene Christian W, 38-10
Nov. 25 at LSU L, 42-30
Dec. 27 Oklahoma State (Texas Bowl) L, 31-23
Record: 7-6 (4-4)
2024 PREDICTIONS
DATE OPPONENT RESULT
Aug. 31 Notre Dame L
Sept. 7 McNeese W
Sept. 14 at Florida W
Sept. 21 Bowling Green W
Sept. 28 Arkansas (Arlington) W
Oct. 5 Missouri L
Oct. 19 at Mississippi State W
Oct. 26 LSU L
Nov. 2 at South Carolina W
Nov. 16 New Mexico State W
Nov. 23 at Auburn W
Nov. 30 Texas L
Record: 8-4 (6-3)
