Mike Elko met with the Texas A&M media today to debrief a little more about Saturday's heart-stopping comeback win over the South Carolina Gamecocks, as well as look forward to what's coming down the pike. The talk turned quickly to his contract extension and Heisman-contending quarterback, but he started off by recognizing the players of the week.
The linemen of the week were TJ Searcy and Chase Bisontis thanks to their steady play— despite some flashy plays from other DL in particular, Elko said that Searcy's steadiness is what gave him this award. For offense, KC Concepcion and Ashton Bethel-Roman split the award, and Dalton Brooks took home the honors on defense.
One interesting thing that stuck out was Elko's take on how the game ended up in the state that it did. He said the first two drives were really not all that bad, but the turnover that was returned for a touchdown really sent the Aggies spiraling. From there until half, Elko said it was the worst football the team had played in his tenure (even dating back to when he was defensive coordinator). However, the resolute and focused locker room is what he credited for the comeback.
Mike Elko speaks about contract extension, Marcel Reed's achievements at Monday presser
Elko spoke a little bit about playing to a program standard this week against Samford, something that he said they have not yet been good enough at doing. He described this game as a "maturity step," and also acknowledged that it would be special since it's Senior Day at Kyle.
The gratitude he expressed about the contract extension was definitely something that will warm the hearts of Aggie fans to hear:
"[The contract extension] meant a lot, meant a lot to see the commitment university had not only to me, but to the program, the staff, the support staff, the auxiliary staff, the players, making sure that we can run this program in a way that I believe will allow us to continue to chase championships year in and year out. When I came here, we weren't in a position to create that type of situation for our program. With the success that we've had, we were able to have some of those conversations, so I'm thankful..."
It's not only a raise for him, but as Elko said, valuing his assistant coaches was paramount— and he put his money where his mouth is:
"One of the biggest things we were able to get done was a bonus structure for the assistants that kind of [mirrored] the bonus structure that I had. I thought one of the things that was not right was the bonus structure that I was going to receive had we qualified for the playoffs that was not on par with what the assistants— and certainly, I'm no more valuable to this team than they are. We were able to get that done immediately and that has gone into effect immediately."
That shows just how dedicated Mike Elko is to this program and team. He's not a me-first guy, which you can tell by the way he also began to build up his Heisman-contending quarterback when asked about Marcel's performance:
"He threw for 439 yards and 3 touchdowns, and he led us to a comeback and a win. I think that probably should hold a lot of stock with Heisman voters, I would hope. I think he has elevated himself week in and week out. I think when we've needed him to step up and make plays to win football games, he's done it.
Not content with that, Mike Elko made some not-so-subtle intimations about how Reed is being perceived differently across the country than a guy like Fernando Mendoza:
"There's been a lot made of some other people across the country when they've had opportunities to step up and make plays, and they were rewarded for it. I'd like to see our quarterback rewarded for it the same way. He certainly threw for an awful lot of yards to bring us back for that victory."
Elko believes in his guys, and he believes in his program. The Aggies are lucky to have him helming the ship.
This part may have topped it all, though: when asked if Rueben Owens and Mario Craver were good to go, he responded quickly "yes"— the same answer he gave when asked if Le'Veon Moss returning in the regular season was still a possibility. The Aggies could be back to full strength soon.