'Those kids are under fire every day': Mike Elko sees Texas A&M football OL improving thanks to tough task of blocking Aggie DL in practice
You don't have to know too much about this Texas A&M football team to be aware of the fact that their defensive line will be one of their top units. Likewise, you don't need to know much about this Texas A&M football team to have caught wind of the fact that offensive line has been something of a concern.
These themes, of course, have persisted over the last couple of years. 2020 saw a stellar year out of the OL and a good year from the defensive front; ever since then, the OL has been middling to bad and the DL has been either great or otherworldly.
Mike Elko, with the vantage point of one seeing the day-to-day changes in each unit, seems to like what he's been witnessing out of the Maroon Goons as of recent, however.
"If the first half of camp was strongly tilted towards the defensive line having more success, I think it's become a lot more balanced the last week of camp," Elko told reporters yesterday.
Lest we forget the kind of competition these offensive linemen are facing, though, Elko continues: "I think those kids are under fire every day, which is great for them. I think learning how to block that group every day is great for them in terms of building toughness."
There's an argument to be made that what the Aggie offensive linemen see in practice along the defensive front, as a unit, is better than anything they'll see in a game this year. Notre Dame, their week 1 opponent, will have something to say in that regard, but they still may not turn out like what Scourton, Turner, Stewart, and Hicks will do this year.
Elko closed his answer in an optimistic way, if somewhat trying to temper it at the end: "I think we've gotten significantly better through fourteen practices. We'll kind of see where we're out when we get out and get ready to play."
Here's hoping the Aggies' trial by fire here in fall camp pays off come August 31.