How Mike Elko Knew Conner Weigman Was Ready To Return As Texas A&M Starter

The Texas A&M Aggies looked dominant on Saturday, in large part due to the play of quarterback Conner Weigman.

Oct 5, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies quarterback Conner Weigman (center) celebrates with teammates after the win over Missouri Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images. / Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

After three games and three wins with Marcel Reed under center, the Texas A&M Aggies made the choice to go back to Conner Weigman on Saturday vs. No. 9 Missouri.

And boy, did it pay off.

The Aggies went on to crush the Tigers 41-10 at Kyle Field, while Weigman completed 18 of 22 passes for 276 yards, and rushed five times for 33 yards. He was so good, in fact, that Pro Football Focus graded his performance as the third-best in the country this past weekend.

All that said, the decision still came as a bit of a surprise to some due largely to the fact that, after Weigman struggled in the season opener in an ugly loss, Reed had seemingly been an aswer for an offense that needed a spark.

Nevertheless, Texas A&M coach Mike Elko went with Weigman. And oviously, the results speak for themselves.

So what led the Aggies to ultimately decide to make the switch? According to Elko, they always believed that Weigman gave the team its best chance to win.

"We wanted to see Conner at 100%, and we felt like Conner at 100% gave us our best chance to win," Elko said Monday. "If we felt like he was going to be there, that was the direction we wanted to go. We went into practice trying to discern whether that's what we would be able to get... No matter how many weeks of practice we gave him, at some point, he was going to have to go back into a live game again for the first time. I don't know that that part of it factored in. We felt like at the end of the week, we were going to get the best version of Conner."

Of course, given that Weigman was a game-time decision, it was not always a guarantee that he was going to get the call.

After all, Weigman had missed the previous three games with an AC joint injury in his shoulder and was able to start throwing just last week.

But after a Thursday meeting between himself and Weigman, Elko was fully convinced that his QB was finally ready to return to action.

"I made him come into my office and convince me that he was ready," Elko said. "We had a conversation on Thursday afternoon. In that conversation, I got a really strong feeling that he was in the right frame of mind and ready to go. That was probably the final piece as we headed into the weekend that I was looking for. "

Now, following his performance vs. the Tigers, one would assume that Weigman will continue to see the starting reps as long as he is healthy - as he should.

Not only did Weigman prove he is truly healthy enough to make all the throws, but he also proved once again that - despite all the noise surrounding his status as the starter - he is more than capable of winning the game.

He had proven it before in 2022 as a freshman when he led the Aggies to a win over No. 5 LSU, and when he set an SEC freshman passing record in a near-upset of No. 15 Ole Miss.

And he will have a chance to do it again later this season when the Aggies face No. 13 LSU and No. 1 Texas at Kyle Field.

But then again, Elko always knew that's the kind of player Weigman was, and that he will continue to give Texas A&M the best chance to win.

"This kid is a winner," Elko said passionately after the game. "He's a competitor. He does everything that he needs to do for Texas A&M football. There's a lot of people right now that need to stand up and recognize what they've said over the last three weeks and take some ownership in it."

What's even better for the Aggies?

They will have plenty of time to get Weigman even healthier, as they enter their bye week before a matchup with Mississippi State on October 19.

And the healthier Weigman is, the better the Aggies will be for it.