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'Culture!' Aggies' Mike Elko Praises Marcel Reed After Return to Backup Role

The Texas A&M Aggies' quarterback saga has seemingly reached its conclusion, and coach Mike Elko took some time to acknowledge that, giving both Conner Weigman and Marcel Reed praise.

Matt Guzman

Sep 28, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies coach Mike Elko points to a player after a win over the Arkansas Razorbacks in the Southwest Classic at AT&T Stadium.
Sep 28, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies coach Mike Elko points to a player after a win over the Arkansas Razorbacks in the Southwest Classic at AT&T Stadium. / Matt Guzman-Texas A&M Aggies On SI
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A drawn-out saga at quarterback for the Texas A&M Aggies stood as their biggest question heading into Week 6 against the Missouri Tigers.

With a top-10 team coming to town, it was clear that something on the offensive end was going to have to go extremely right. Yes, the Aggies were 4-0 (3-0 with Marcel Reed as a full-time starter) since losing to Notre Dame, but some of their wins weren't convincing enough to point to an easy victory.

Somehow, that's what happened.

The Tigers rolled into College Station and left with just one touchdown on the afternoon, while the Aggies torched them on the ground and completed mostly reliable, short passes to round out what ended up being their strongest offensive showing of the year.

And even though it was Conner Weigman who made the start in his return, Aggies coach Mike Elko made sure to give both quarterbacks their flowers following the contest.

“A couple things I want to point out," Elko began in his locker-room address. "First of all, our quarterback, Conner Weigman ... (but) I’m going to say this, too:

"Marcel Reed, where you at?”

The Aggies located Reed before Elko continued. That's when his message began.

“Here is culture," the coach said. "Culture is coming in when your name is called, leading us to 3-0 ... being an unbelievable energy source, being prepared if we needed him today, and just being a great part of this program."

Elko noted how difficult a decision it was to default back to Weigman after Reed's impressive performance through three games. Ultimately, the slight inconsistency that seemingly disappeared with Weigman's return proved choosing him was the right choice, but by no means was it a slight toward Reed.

That was one of the biggest points Elko made.

"If we every go back to him, I know he’ll be ready,” the coach said.

The Aggies will now use their bye week to prepare for a road test against Mississippi State, which could result in a sixth straight win and fourth conference victory on the season.

If Weigman remains healthy and the Aggies roll out the way they did against the Tigers, that is what will likely happen. If, for some reason, Reed needs to be called up once more, they can rest easy knowing he's already done it — three times.

Whatever the decision, or outcome, Texas A&M will have a reason to be optimistic. Because if nothing else, it will fall back on its culture.

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Matt Guzman
MATT GUZMAN

Matt Guzman is a sports journalist and storyteller from Austin, Texas. He serves as a credentialed reporter and site manager for San Antonio Spurs On SI and a staff writer for multiple collegiate sites in the same network. In the world of professional sports, he is a firm believer that athletes are people, too, and intends to tell stories of players and teams’ true, behind-the-scenes character that otherwise would not be seen through strong narrative writing, hooking ledes and passionate words.

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