New Texas A&M Aggies Coach Mike Elko Fits Criteria Needed For A Championship-Caliber Program
COLLEGE STATION -- As he approached the podium inside the halls of Kyle Field's Ford Hall of Champions, Texas A&M interim president Mark A. Welsh III said what countless other school presidents and athletic directors realized when looking to replace a head football coach.
"It turns out that hiring a top-tier major football coach is complicated," Welsh said to the sound of laughter. "It's hard and it's a little bit scary for the people trying to organize the search."
The choice was far from difficult when boiled down to brass tax and looking at results. Athletic director Ross Bjork watched as Mike Elko transformed A&M's defense from a middle-tier roster in the SEC to a formidable unit that created nightmares for opponents for four quarters on Saturdays.
While the road to the end zone took a few detours, it was clear Elko was the ideal candidate to replace Jimbo Fisher in Aggieland. By Saturday night, the board of regents had zeroed in on the Duke head coach as the top choice. By Sunday evening, the two sides had agreed to a deal to bring him back to College Station after a two-year stint in Durham.
"Coach Mike Elko is a modern-day and innovative football coach with a blue-collar mentality," said Bjork. "That fits perfectly here at Texas A&M."
"Coach Elko is also viewed as one of the best leaders in college football, a leader who's on the cutting edge, a leader who develops his staff to be great leaders and coaches, a leader who is constantly learning, a leader who is already a voice in this modern era of college athletics."
Elko, who inked a six-year deal through 2030 worth $7 million annually, will be tasked with bringing A&M to the same goal Fisher couldn't, though the contract isn't filled with guaranteed sums of cash. The Aggies still expect to compete for a College Football Playoff berth yearly as it expands from four teams to 12. They intend to be at the forefront of conversations for SEC titles and still dream of ending their 84-year drought of winning a national championship.
When looking through coaching candidates, Elko continued to stand out in the criteria of what A&M wanted. Bjork said following Fisher's firing earlier this month that the program was looking for the next R.C. Slocum, the last coach to win a conference title when A&M resided in the Big 12.
Slocum demanded a physical presence in trench play and excelled on defense schemes, creating the "Wrecking Crew" unit that dismantled offenses in Big 12. Elko is the first defensive-minded coach hired by A&M since Slocum was internally promoted in 1989.
Fisher's offensive-minded background carried him and Florida State to a national championship in 2013, eventually earning him a 10-year, $75 million contract by A&M in 2017. But it also garnered a persona of flash and finesse of fight and fury. When he touched down in College Station from Tallahassee, the Aggies literally rolled out the maroon carpet and live band to greet him at the airport.
Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Elko looks on before the first half of the game against Pittsburgh Panthers at Wallace Wade Stadium.
Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-USA TODAY Sports
Elko might have coached under Fisher, but there's little flare that comes with his persona. A native of New Jersey, he arrived back on campus in the early hours of Monday morning. Outside of a few media members watching from afar, a white Ford truck to take him and his family to the hotel was the only thing to greet him.
And that's the way Elko likes it. During his introduction and press conference, he mentioned countless times how everything would be "earned" under his watch, especially wins in "the best football conference in the country." Things won't come easy for his roster and the work put in behind closed doors will unveil what the program could achieve when taking the field in September against Notre Dame in the season opener.
"There is no elevator. I say this to my players all the time, 'There is no button you push to get to the top of college football,'" said Elko. "There are stairs you have to climb every single day to accomplish what you want to accomplish. Nobody will hand us anything, not in this conference, not in this country, not in this era of college football. We are going to have to go out, we are going to have to work, and we are going to have to get it."
Elko understands what it takes to win in College Station and knows A&M can achieve its end goals when appropriately handled. His defense paved the way for a 9-1 season in 2020 that culminated in an Orange Bowl win and top-five finish in the AP Poll.
Welsh said the best way to measure a defensive coach is by looking at his scoring defense. In his final year with the program, Elko's unit ranked No. 3 nationally, holding opponents to under 16 points per contest.
"The guy can flat-out coach," said Welsh. "He proved it to everyone in the country as a head coach for the last two years at Duke."
Duke is far from known for its football prowess, but Elko had multiple eyes fixated on his workings in Durham. In Year 1, he improved the Blue Devils' scoring defense from 127th to 31st nationally. As an added bonus, Duke went from 3-9 in 2021 to 9-4 in 2022, marking the second-biggest turnaround for a program in ACC history.
A&M was 34-14 with Elko on staff. It was 12-12 during the two years without him. Bjork and Welsh didn't view regression with Elko in Durham as a coincidence when diving into what makes championship-caliber programs like Alabama and Georgia prosper.
Both staffs are led by defensive-minded coaches who know how to recruit NFL-caliber talent. Both programs continue to feature explosive offenses, headlined by standout quarterbacks that elevate play. Elko's defensive mind and background in recruiting future defensive NFL prospects mirrors that of Nick Saban and Kirby Smart, and A&M already features a stable quarterback when healthy in Conner Weigman.
"We will develop men. We will graduate players, and we will win championships on the field on Saturdays," said Elko.
A&M fans have heard the sentiment before. Elko mentioned he knows the countless coaches before him have brought that up in speeches, but those wishful days are done.
Said Elko: "We are not going to talk about it anymore. We are going to be about it."
