'Doesn't Come Easy!' Mike Elko Impressed With Aggies After Road Win In Starkville

The Aggies remained undefeated in SEC play after their victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs 34-24 Saturday.

Oct 5, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies head coach Mike Elko looks on in the first quarter against the Missouri Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images. / Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

"It's a road win, and those don't come easy."

These were the first words out of Mike Elko's mouth at his post-game press conference after his No. 14 Texas A&M Aggies defeated the Mississippi State Bulldogs 34-24 in Starkville Saturday night.

The Aggies now move to 6-1 on the season with six straight wins and an undefeated 4-0 in the SEC.

Elko spoke highly of his receivers, especially Jabre Barber, who had six catches for 91 yards, leading the Aggies in both categories.

"(Jabre's) just a dynamic player. We've been working to try and get him back into rhythm and get him some more touches," Elko said. "Obviously Noah (Thomas) has had two very strong games, and I think that that opens up some of the coverage a little bit and they start leaning a little bit more towards Noah and then leans a little bit looser in the middle and so I think Jabre was able to shake loose for a few things and went back there and obviously did a nice job."

Elko also touched on the defensive play, noting the improvement in the second half after a poor first half.

"We just got a bit loose with tackling, I thought we missed a lot of tackles on that first drive and I think we just did a poor job that entire two-minute drill. I thought that there were a lot of broken plays, and we weren't playing 'assignment football,'" Elko said. "Then in the second half, when we needed them, they really stepped up and made plays for us."

Elko and the Aggies get a bigger challenge this weekend as they return to Kyle Field to under the bright primetime lights Saturday night against the No. 8 LSU Tigers, who just finished a night of hog wrangling in Fayetteville against Arkansas in a 34-10 win.