If Texas A&M has proven one thing in the past year and change, it's that they've made an upgrade at the coaching position— especially considering some of the other names that were out there. Some big fish were mentioned as possible candidates, but Mike Elko seems to be just the man for the job so far— on the field and on the trail.
Time will tell, but the Aggies may have made a program-defining hire if Elko can get things turned around. We already saw some evidence of that with what he was able to do in this previous season, despite the downturn that occurred down the stretch. Accomplishing what he did with a patchwork defense and the QB carousel we saw was pretty amazing.
That's why most Aggie fans feel fine joking about the "hire" of Mark Stoops. If you're not clued in, A&M fans essentially got in the way of what was a handshake deal for Stoops to come to Aggieland after Fisher was fired.
That would have been disastrous on several accounts. Stoops struggles with a lot of the same outdated philosophical issues that were plaguing Fisher by the time he exited Aggieland, and he was doing so without the recruiting ability that Jimbo had shown. It would have been more of the same... only worse.
Unbelievable SEC coaches ranking puts Mike Elko behind Mark Stoops
That's why this ranking of SEC coaches is so puzzling. Not only is Mike Elko on the bottom half of the list, he's on the bottom half behind Mark Stoops.
Stoops over Elko is … interesting pic.twitter.com/eT6IXlHHQa
— Josh Myatt (@JDMyatt16) June 28, 2025
I think that Elko has put himself above Stoops, Drinkwitz, and Beamer pretty solidly. I've sounded off before about how Brian Kelly is overrated, but I understand he and guys like Heupel and DeBoer being in front of Elko, though.
Not Stoops, though. Especially not Stoops.
This is a sham of a ranking, and as untenable as it is right now, I think it will be even more so once we complete this upcoming season. I have a feeling the Aggies are set to leave no doubt once 2025 is over.