What Aggie fans witnessed on Saturday in Columbia, Missouri, was coaching malpractice. A man who makes $11.5 million a season never allowed his team to win. Mike Elko marched his Aggie team into that game with no chance to win.
The book on how to beat this A&M football has been out since Arizona State. Kenny Dillingham exposed it with his Arizona State team, but he didn’t have the horses and had some bad breaks. Three big turnovers doomed Arizona State’s chances to beat the Aggies.
Dillingham knew how to do it, though.
The following week, Will Stein came into Kyle Field using the blueprint and destroyed the Aggies. Lane Kiffin further used it and embarrassed the Aggies.
Against Arkansas, I saw the Aggies change their game plan to make sure they won. I didn’t think that plan was sustainable, but I agreed with the approach. Something else needed to be tried.
However, against Missouri, Mike Elko and his staff went right back to what hasn’t worked all season.
The first offensive play of the game was a pass play. As a fitting omen for the season, it was incomplete. We got a first down on a 19-yard completion on 3rd down, but then we botched the next three plays and had to punt. On six plays, we handed the ball off once to a running back. We left the ball in Marcel Reed’s hands for five of the first six plays.
Mike Elko says we’re going to commit to the run game. The actual plays tell a different story.
On our second offensive possession, we got the ball at the Mizzou five-yard line thanks to an interception. On our first play of the series, KJ Edwards runs it for four yards—2nd and 1 at the 1. Lamont Rogers commits a false start, and now it’s 2nd and 6 at the 6. We run the ball with Jamarrion Morrow, who gains four yards—3rd and 2 at the 2.
That’s a potential run down, especially if you’re working on special goal-line stuff during the week.
We call a pass play where Marcel Reed stands in the pocket. Back-to-back four-yard carries, and we call a pass play. I get that a running play can get stuffed, but I also know Marcel Reed standing in the pocket isn’t high-percentage this season. Or any other season, if we’re being honest. Especially at the goal line.
It’s just mind-boggling the play calling when you know the results. We’re not even down big. Nobody has scored. It’s the second series of the game, and our defense gave us a gift.
It’s absolutely coaching malpractice by Mike Elko. Sure, a lot of people are going to blame Marcel Reed because it’s fun to blame Marcel Reed. I’m not saying Marcel Reed doesn’t deserve some blame, but what in the world is the coaching staff doing giving him an opportunity to do what he does best? Turn the ball over in the end zone?
Every other team in America has some special play at the goal line these days. A heavy package coming out of a sugar huddle. Slipping tight ends off blocks after a lot of motion.
Not Mike Elko’s squad. Let’s just line up like we’ve done all season and run the same damn thing that doesn’t work.
It is truly the definition of insanity.
Obviously, the game didn’t get any better from there. We took the lead after a botched punt by Mizzou, and we gained only five yards on three plays. Our big-legged kicker nailed a 53-yard field goal to take the lead.
Our offense totaled 50 yards and two first downs in the first half.
FIFTY YARDS AND TWO FIRST DOWNS IN AN ENTIRE HALF OF FOOTBALL!!!!!
I get that Marcel Reed is not a good quarterback. I get that. I don’t deny that. But how in the world can the Aggie offense only get fifty yards and two first downs when the defense is doing a pretty damn good job getting the ball back to you?
The defense had one bad series in the first half where they gave up 77 yards and a touchdown. Other than that, the defense was really limiting in the first half.
Our defense did okay the entire game, but it was inevitable they’d bust because the offense wasn’t doing anything. The defense isn’t perfect, but they showed some promise for much of the game.
We ran six total plays in the third quarter on two possessions. SIX TOTAL PLAYS ON TWO POSSESSIONS IN THE THIRD QUARTER!!!!
What in the world does the offense talk about for 20 minutes at halftime? I’m dead serious. 20 minutes of scheming and we get negative seven yards on six plays in the third quarter.
I’m telling y’all – the offensive issues go way beyond Marcel Reed at this point.
Our offense doesn’t rank in the Top 100 on any meaningful offensive metric. There are 138 FBS programs to make these rankings.
Here they are:
Yards per carry: 103rd
Runs of 20+ yards: T-105th
Passing offense: 108th
Passing yards per completion: 112th
Total offense: 113th
Red zone offense: T-113th
Completions of 20+ yards: T-125th
Passes had intercepted: T-125th
Completion %: 126th
Yards per play: 130th
Passing efficiency: 130th
Plays of 20+ yards: T-134th
Remember, 138 teams make up those rankings.
Also remember, through six games, our offense has ONE single play over 50 yards. That includes the Missouri State. We had a 54-yard pass to a tight end thanks to two busted plays by Arkansas defenders. It’s just an anemic offense.
For the Missouri game, the Aggies attempted 40 passes. Marcel Reed is credited with 7 runs, but three of those were sacks. I feel like the other four were scrambles of some variety. The running backs had 16 carries. So 47ish pass plays to 16 true handoffs.
Commitment to the running game, you say, Mike?
Meanwhile, Mizzou ran 28 passing attempts to 38 true rushing attempts, and their running backs amassed 230 rushing yards. That’s about 6.0 yards per carry. The Aggies averaged around 2.9 yards per carry.
That’s about all I’m going to analyze in this game, but it’s crystal clear: if you want to beat the Aggies, you only need to do the following things:
1) Stack the box to limit the run and give the OC and Marcel Reed looks that make passing opportunities enticing. Thanks to the game plan and quarterback issues, there aren’t any passing opportunities.
2) Just let the Aggie offense self-destruct on its own. Even if they start moving the ball on the ground, be patient. The urge to pass will come over them, and they’ll botch it.
3) As for the Aggie defense, keep pounding the middle with the run. Since their offense is so bad, you can afford to delay scoring opportunities. At some point, you’ll string together a few good runs or a big run where the Aggie defense either busts several assignments and/or makes botched tackles.
4) Take a few shots in the passing game against defenders not named Dezz Ricks. At some point, someone will bust coverage, and you’ll get a big chunk play.
Just be patient and stick to those four points. If you have decent enough athletes and your coaching staff can stick to these four points, there’s a 90% chance you’ll beat the Aggies even if you turn the ball over a time or two.
It really is that simple.
And I don’t think Mike Elko can see that.
We Gonna Make a Bowl?:
Right now I’d say it’s not likely. Obviously we’ll be 4-3 after The Citadel this weekend.
Then we go on the road to Alabama, so we’ll be 4-4 headed into our bye.
Back on the road to South Carolina, and I think we lose that game. Despite their record, the South Carolina offense has been pretty good this season. I think Kendall Briles will score enough points to beat us. 4-5.
Then we come home against Tennessee. Based on how Tennessee is playing right now, I think this is a true coin flip game. I’d actually give the Aggies the nod at Kyle. 5-5.
Next up is Oklahoma. Don’t let their win over Texas fool you. They’re still a highly flawed football team, but they played well enough for Texas to make mistakes, and Oklahoma took advantage. If Mike Elko decides to do something different this game, we can absolutely beat the Sooners and become bowl-eligible. I’m not sure Mike can, though.
I don’t see how we beat Texas. I get OU just beat them and Arch is a turnover machine himself, but I don’t think Sark gives Arch a chance to lose this game. I think Sark follows the proven formula I laid out above. Muschamp’s defense will completely shut down our offense. Sark will pound the rock, and they’ll win.
We’re really only playing for two things at this point in the season:
1) Bowl eligibility
2) Upset of Texas
They’re both tall orders in my book, but we’ll see what Elko can do.
Would I Sit Marcel?:
At this point, it doesn’t look like Elko and Wiggins will change their offensive plan for the season. It’s also clear Marcel can’t execute it.
I’ve been against sitting Marcel simply because I do think an offense that utilizes Marcel’s athletic ability would be the best offense to run. Don’t make him a pocket passer and keep him moving.
I don’t know if Elko and Wiggins can’t see that, or if they’re just being stubborn and think things will change.
Since it appears they’re not going to change their offensive philosophy, it would be criminal to run Marcel out there under center again.
I think this whole offensive system has massive flaws, and Brady Hart won’t do much better, but at this point, you have nothing to lose.
So you either commit more to the run with Marcel under center, or you run Hart out there against The Citadel to see if he can execute this pass-happy offense Elko and Wiggins are hell-bent on running.
I’d run Hart out there to see if Wiggins has any chance of hanging around next season.
I think I know the answer, and the whole offensive staff will need to be dismissed, but might as well give Wiggins a chance to prove himself.
Mike Elko’s Media Comments:
I’m sure you’re aware of Mike Elko’s comments after the Missouri loss, calling a group of fans a cesspool. Specifically, he was referring to TexAgs and their main content creator, Billy Liucci.
Elko was asked if he had a message to fans who might be losing faith.
Here’s the specific quote from Elko:
“There’s a difference to me between the fan base and social media, and so there’s one group that I really don’t care much about. Billy [Liucci’s] cesspool can go be Billy’s cesspool. Our fan base: Stay with us. Be behind us. We’re going to build something. That’s what we told you we were going to build. We’re in a really bad spot right now, but we’ll work our way out of it,” Elko said.
I can’t even begin to describe how moronic this answer is. He specifically attacked a portion of his fanbase, then shifted to the positive part of his answer and asked fans to stand behind the team.
While I think his answer is concerning because it’s bad form, I actually have two other questions that are really serious for Elko as a head coach:
1) Why are TexAgs and Billy Liucci top of mind after a loss like this? Liucci is usually on the sideline, but he’s far away from Elko, and he isn’t even in the post-game press conferences. I don’t think Elko even sees Liucci during and after the game. He might see him before the game during warm-ups, but that’s it. Why in the world is a fan message board and someone who’s not even in the room top of mind in that moment? What’s even crazier is that Liucci is the biggest sunshine-pumping media member for Texas A&M. That dude makes maroon Kool-Aid by the 55-gallon drum and serves it up to the fan base. TexAgs has clearly been weighing on Mike’s mind for some time. The actual response is a concern, but why TexAgs was top of mind in that moment is a bigger concern to me.
2) For Elko to make that comment, it’s clear he’s reading TexAgs. So here’s my biggest concern – WHY IS OUR HEAD FOOTBALL COACH SPENDING TIME ON TEXAGS DURING THE FOOTBALL SEASON??? Seriously. Why is he wasting any time on TexAgs during the football season? It’s a complete waste of his time and energy. Even worse when he takes some of the comments to heart and lets them eat at him. The man makes $11.5 million a year. He’s worried about what idiots on the Internet are saying about his football program? You think Nick Saban or Kirby Smart ever spend time on a message board? Lane Kiffin might, but only to troll people because that’s how his brain works. He’s doing it for a laugh. Elko is taking what random people say on the Internet personally.
Put those two questions together, and it’s clear that when A&M loses a game, his brain is using some level of space thinking about what the cesspool on TexAgs is going to say about the loss.
It’s concerning that it’s taking up space in his brain. He’s got enough to worry about with his football team in its current state. If I’m Trev Alberts, I have IT block TexAgs from Coach Elko’s computer and work-issued phone. I’m not kidding.
This leads me to another quote from his Monday press conference before the Mizzou game.
Here’s what was said:
Texas A&M coach Mike Elko said he told his team a couple weeks ago his plans for retirement: “What I’m going to do is, I’m going to go debate all the talking heads in college football, just to really make it clear to everybody who knows things about football and who doesn’t.”
When I read it, I found it odd. Why is he even thinking about retirement while talking to his players about it? Even worse, he has this mission of telling people who know ball and who don’t. His team is in a negative spiral, and he’s thinking about telling people who know ball and who don’t? What good is that right now?
Couple that with his comments about TexAgs, and it’s crystal clear he has no clue how to fix this Aggie Football team. He’s more worried about external perception than actually fixing the issues at hand. That’s a bad place to be as a leader when you’re more concerned with the noise than fixing the issue at hand. Fixing the issues at hand fixes the noise.
There was another quote from the post-game that caught my ear:
“I gave up play-calling on defense a few weeks ago to try to step back and be more of a CEO, and see if I could be involved and help in all areas… We’ve got to find ways to create opportunities for success in practice. Different scenarios, different situations. Because right now, what we’re doing is not working well enough.”
The man is midway through his fifth season as a head coach, making $11.5 million a year, and he doesn’t know where to spend his time best for this team. You think Kirby Smart or Curt Cignetti are wondering this?
If I’m to understand this correctly, he’s going to see if he can help our offense since he’s not calling the defense anymore. So our head coach, who I presumably spent the offseason focused on calling defensive plays, is now going to help our first-year offensive coordinator. Mike Elko is a defensive coach. Does he really know how to run an offense?
This is like the CEO who used to be the CFO going down to the Chief Sales Officer’s office asking if he can get involved in the sales process.
Aye, caramba.
While I admire that he’s done this hoping to make a change, nothing has changed. If I watched the Arizona State, Kentucky, LSU, and Missouri games, I wouldn’t see anything different in how Texas A&M is approaching their game plans this season. It’s the same basic plan of attack for all four games. Sure, Arkansas was different, but we know why that game plan was like it was.
I can only judge Elko from the games themselves. I actually try to block out comments he makes during press conferences because I think they’re worthless. At least they should be. What matters is what happens in games, not the words said around them.
I’m not going to put a ton of concerns and issues into these comments, but they do give me pause. Is he creating external pressure on himself that he doesn’t need? I’m concerned that he does.
I don’t think he has any idea what issues and corrective measures are needed.
That is why IT needs to block TexAgs on his office computer and school-issued phone. He’s sure not going to find them there.
Can We Fire Elko?:
Short answer – NO
Long depressing answer – Read on…
The depressing part is if we hadn’t extended Elko, we could have fired him for $15.75 million at the end of this season. If we fired him under his new contract at the end of this season, it would cost $54.62 million. ALMOST FORTY MILLION DOLLARS DIFFERENCE!!!
I’m not advocating firing Elko, but the financial flexibility would be nice to consider, at least if there’s someone else out there with more promise as a head coach. Sure would be nice to use that money for NIL or a new offensive staff.
I’ve talked about the massive error that contract extension was, but that forty million difference should put it all in perspective. We’ve completely hamstrung ourselves by keeping Mike Elko as our head coach.
If we were to fire him after the 2029 season, we’d still owe him a little more than $20 million. That’s three more seasons after this one. $5 million more than what we would have had to pay him if we fired him after this season under the old contract.
The error of that contract can’t be overstated just how foolish it was.
To make matters worse, we extended Trev Alberts’ contract by six years and a total of $19.2 million.
Over the next five years, we owe Jimbo around $7 million a year, Elko around $11.5 million a year, and Alberts around $3 million per year. The actual total is $111,100,000 over the next five years. So, a little over $22 million a year to three men for the next five years.
If we were to terminate Elko and Alberts after this year, we would still owe $107,470,000 and then have to hire another Head Coach and Athletic Director.
So their terminations ain’t happening anytime soon. In fact, I can’t see us firing Elko until after the 2029 season at the earliest.
Massive kudos to Elko, Alberts, and their agents for milking the Aggie Money Machine. Maybe we should change the logo from aTm to ATM.
So What’s Our Hope?:
I’ve written about this already, but the only hope I see is Elko firing the whole offensive staff to hire an elite, experienced offensive coordinator to build the offense how the offensive coordinator wants it.
Not how Mike Elko wants it. Elko’s idea of an offense in modern college football is not there. Even the Klein hire was marginal at best. It just looks like an amazing hire compared to Wiggins right now.
As we’ve seen in college football, all it takes is an ace coordinator opposite the strength of the head coach, along with a transcendent quarterback to win a national championship. Heck, look at what Kentucky is doing with Notre Dame’s backup quarterback from the past two seasons.
It seriously can be done in short order if a coach is willing to make the necessary decisions.
Mike Elko is also going to have to get uncomfortable and realize much of the criticism of him as a head coach is just. I’m not talking about the cesspool stuff. I’m talking about the legit criticism he’s getting right now. He’s getting his rear end handed to him in the SEC when he doesn’t have KC Concepcion and a weak schedule. Maybe he doesn’t know ball like he thinks he knows ball.
Forget everything he learned under Brian Kelly and Jimbo Fisher. Read some books on Nick Saban and watch the Saban documentary. Study what Curt Cignetti is doing, too.
I’m half-joking about the Saban stuff, but I’m also serious; he needs to broaden his view of what makes a great head coach.
I’m not joking about forgetting EVERYTHING he learned on how to be a head coach from Brian Kelly and Jimbo Fisher. Lobotomy that stuff. That information is worthless unless you want to rank up there with the biggest buyouts ever in college football.
Set your ego aside and learn how to be a great coach. Stubbornness and fear of change ruined Jimbo’s outcome at Texas A&M. It’ll do the same to you if you want to follow that path.
As for the rest of us – Enjoy that win over The Citadel.
It may be the last one we see all season, and that’s not hyperbole…
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