Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko met with the media on Monday to look back at the Aggies\u2019 win over LSU and begin to preview the team\u2019s upcoming matchup with South Carolina on Saturday. Here\u2019s everything he had to say.<\/p>\n
[See what Gamecock fans are saying on The Insiders Forum!]<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Opening statement<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cRecapping the LSU game, again, I think, even two days later, still a thank you to the 12th Man. It seems worth it \u2013 it really was. It was a great night in Kyle Field and uh an unbelievable atmosphere.<\/p>\n \u201cI think our players of the game \u2013 O-line, we gave it to Trey Zuhn and Dametrious Crownover. I thought that was Dametrious Crownover\u2019s best game of the week, for sure. <\/p>\n \u201cDefensive line-wise, we gave it to Shemar Turner and DJ Hicks. (I\u2019m) really proud of DJ. I think he\u2019s really starting to come into his own. Probably, the last three weeks, I think you\u2019ve seen a real upward trajectory from him. And (he\u2019s) starting to really play the way he\u2019s capable of. (He\u2019s) an extremely productive player for us, so it\u2019s been great to see his development.<\/p>\n \u201cOffensively, we gave it to Marcel Reed. Obviously, the big spark that he provided coming in off the bench with three touchdowns. He was also named SEC Freshman of the Week. So, (I\u2019m excited for him. (I) also gave a shout out though to Amari Daniels. I thought that was his best game of the year here \u2013 the way he ran the ball and the way he carried himself. And (I) thought that was great.<\/p>\n \u201cDefensively we gave it to BJ Mayes. Two interceptions obviously shifted the game completely \u2013 we talked about that after the game. <\/p>\n \u201cAnd then, the one guy that I didn\u2019t talk about after the game who certainly needs some mentioning is Tyler White. Again, he was our special teams player of the game. He was also the SEC Special Teams Player of the Week again for the third time. He had five punts last week \u2013 three of them netted over 50 yards, one of them was pinned on the seven-yard line. So, he just continues to be a weapon for us.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you look at the game, I think it comes down to the critical factors. I think we won the critical factors. We won the turnover margin 3-1 \u2013 that\u2019s always going to be a really good indicator. We won on special teams \u2013 we were plus-seven on our special teams game changers chart. A lot of that was how we did punting the football. So, at the times when we weren\u2019t playing the way we necessarily wanted to, we were able to control field position and flip the field with some great net punts. We won the fourth quarter 17-6. And when you do that, that\u2019s going to win you a lot of football games. I just think the line-of-scrimmage running game in this league still matters. When you can out-rush a team by close to 200 yards, it\u2019s going to lead to a successful night.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, we\u2019re excited with where we\u2019re at, and now we kind of turn our attention ahead to to an extremely big challenge. I think this will be the biggest challenge of the year to date. This (South Carolina) is going to be an extremely talented team \u2013 4-3 coming off of a bye week, certainly could be 6-1 easily. I just think they\u2019re a team that has grown every week. They\u2019re playing a lot of really talented young guys mixed in with a blend of talented veterans. This is going to be an enormous challenge for our program; so, it\u2019s back to work. It\u2019s, \u2018Do the things we got to do this week to prepare to give ourselves the best chance to kind of move forward and and kind of go where we want to to go as a program.\u2019<\/p>\n [Win two tickets to the South Carolina-Texas<\/strong> <\/strong>A&M football game]<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n The last thing \u2013 and this is comical that I actually have to do this, but it\u2019s necessary \u2013 in the postgame, I was asked to kind of give a synopsis on how we sell culture to our program. In doing so, I made a statement that seemed like a very benign statement that somehow managed to be taken as a shot directly at people. You guys gave me multiple opportunities in nine months to take shots at people, and I\u2019ve never done it. <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve nothing but respect for Coach (Jimbo) Fisher. I\u2019ve said nothing but positive things about Coach Fisher. I\u2019m the head coach at Texas A&M because of Coach Fischer. I appreciate who he is, everything that he\u2019s done. And for anybody in the media to think that that was what I was doing post-LSU is \u2013 I mean, it\u2019s asinine. And for it to be about any other head coach who gave me an opportunity and hired me, that\u2019s not who I am. I\u2019ve never been that person. It\u2019s ridiculous, but it is what it is. So, I wanted to make sure that everybody knows I wasn\u2019t talking to anybody directly.\u201d<\/p>\n On how\/whether Elko has made a decision at quarterback<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI think the possibility is there for a lot of things. I think we\u2019re going to look at, this week, kind of figure out what we think the right thing is for us, what we think gives us the best chance to win moving forward. It\u2019s probably too early in our mind to kind of make that decision. And even if we did, we probably wouldn\u2019t tell you right now, anyway.<\/p>\n \u201cBut no, I think we just want to see how this week plays out, kind of see what we think gives us the best shot to go into this environment and be successful, and then, then kind of go forward from there.\u201d<\/p>\n On the Aggies\u2019 ability to refocus after big wins and losses<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI like what I hear from them when they talk to you \u2013 I think that means the messaging is getting through. I think we\u2019ve tried to attack this thing from a mindset of, \u2018We need to improve every week, we need to get better every week. We need to approach every challenge and and give ourselves the opportunity to earn success every week.\u2019 You say those things a lot. Sometimes, they get up, and you hear them talk. And you don\u2019t hear those those words come from them, right?<\/p>\n \u201cI saw Albert (Regis) today. You hear even guys like Marcel and BJ on national TV after the game talking about the next opportunity. So, yeah, I think they\u2019re locked in and focused on what we\u2019re capable of. And I think what we\u2019re capable of is has got to be the next step \u2013 growth, development \u2013 because I think, if we finished 5-3 in the SEC, I don\u2019t think anyone in our locker room would be real happy with that.\u201d<\/p>\n On Chase Bisontis\u2019 status<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI mean, he was out last week. He\u2019s probably going to be out for a couple weeks until we get him back. We\u2019ll kind of see where that one progresses coming out of the bye week.\u201d<\/p>\n On mixing aggressiveness with discipline and a pre-game incident<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI got nothing on the pre-game thing. Obviously, that\u2019s something we\u2019ll handle internally and make sure that doesn\u2019t become an issue.<\/p>\n [Join GamecockCentral for fast, accurate, and in-depth coverage of Gamecock sports and recruiting]<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe penalties are a concern. We addressed it again this morning. We continue address it \u2013 we address it every day. But until you get it fixed and corrected, you\u2019re not doing it the right way. So, as a staff, I think we got to look at ourselves and figure out ways (to fix this). And the two areas that are most concerning and most frustrating to me are pre-snap and post-snap (penalties). <\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re going to play football in the SEC, and there\u2019s going to be a holding penalty. There\u2019s going to be a defensive PI. Those things are going to happen. You don\u2019t want a lot of them, but they\u2019re not going to completely ever go away. Our pre-snap procedural penalties on offense and our post-snap penalties are going to kill us, so we\u2019ve got to do a better job, as a staff, making sure that our players understand that. We certainly try, but we\u2019re not getting it done. So, we got to get it done.\u201d<\/p>\n On the Aggies\u2019 ability to dominate the line of scrimmage<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI think, one, it\u2019d be hard-pressed to not give a shout out to (director of strength and conditioning) Tommy Moffitt in that regard and what our kids did with him. It\u2019s certainly a mindset in terms of how we practice and talking a lot about stressing, straining and effort throughout the course of practice. We make a huge emphasis on the last team period of practice every time we go out there.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd then, I think it\u2019s just a credit to our kids. I think, when you look at us, we\u2019re playing the game in a way that we\u2019re playing very level. We\u2019re not an emotional roller coaster. We\u2019re not starting like a fire plug, and then, all of a sudden, we kind of fade away \u2013 we\u2019re coming in prepared for a three-and-a-half hour fight. And I think that maybe has shown itself a little bit in the fourth quarter. There hasn\u2019t been panic. There\u2019s just been a stick-to-itiveness to just stay with what we\u2019re doing, and maybe, find a way to elevate it and do it a little bit better.<\/p>\n On South Carolina\u2019s defense<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re extremely talented. Their front is phenomenal. The two kids on the edge \u2013 they got the transfer from Georgia Tech (Kyle Kennard<\/a><\/strong>) and then the freshman (Dylan Stewart<\/a><\/strong>) playing for him on the edge. Both those kids are going to be first-round draft picks \u2013 if not, top-10, five picks in the draft. They\u2019ve got an interior kid who\u2019s extremely dominant, plays very physical. They\u2019re athletic at the second level. They got a first-round safety (Nick Emmanwori<\/a><\/strong>) who\u2019s 6-foot-3, 225 pounds back there.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I apologize right now \u2013 it\u2019s a lot of numbers in my head, not a lot of names. But watching them, they allow their defensive line to impact the game. When you look at them, what they\u2019ve done is successfully turn people over and create opportunities for their offense. In the games that they\u2019ve been really successful, the defense has taken the game over in so many ways. I think it\u2019s by far the best group that we\u2019ve played to date. And playing them coming off of a bye, where they extra preparation and are going to be really dialed in on what they want to do against us, it\u2019s going to be a huge challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n On whether Reed\u2019s performances raised Elko\u2019s confidence in him<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI would say a lot. I think there was questions asked in the opener. And I don\u2019t know that it ever crossed our mind in the opener, for a variety of reasons. But probably just because that\u2019s not the right place to put a young kid in. When you see him go out and play the way he does \u2013 we talked after the Missouri game. He made it an extremely challenging decision. It was not an easy decision where to go with this thing. <\/p>\n \u201cWe think we have two very quality quarterbacks. You know Marcel can do, and it was not on Conner (Weigman) completely. It wasn\u2019t. There were a lot of faults on our offensive failures on Saturday night, from coaching to play-calling, to me, to Colin (Strittmatter), to our O-line, to our wideouts. It was everywhere, and, certainly, Connor played a piece of it. But you know you have this guy who is an extremely quality, capable kid and is a different dynamic. So, when the opportunity presents itself to make a change and try to inject some life into it, you\u2019re certainly comfortable that he can do it.\u201d<\/p>\n [On3 App: Get South Carolina push notifications from GamecockCentral]<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n On what Elko wants Texas A&M\u2019s offense to improve upon<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re still just looking for some consistency in the throw game. It feels like we\u2019re still working through a lot of the timing elements of it. That sounds like coach speak, but it\u2019s the reality. We\u2019re not in a really good timing rhythm of the quarterback going through his progressions in the right timing, the wideouts being in the right windows in the right timing. And then, when all of those things are happening, then, sometimes, the O-lines fail. That happened more Saturday night than it has in previous weeks. But then, all of a sudden, \u2018Okay, we we\u2019ve got it, and the quarterback\u2019s about to throw it.\u2019 And then, we get sacked. I just think we have to get our passing game working in a rhythm \u2013 that it can be more productive and more efficient for if we wanted to go down the road the way we want to.\u201d <\/p>\n On what went into the decision to switch out quarterbacks in the third quarter against LSU<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cUltimately, it\u2019s my decision. I think (offensive coordinator Collin Klein) and I kind of go into every week. He comes up with the plans, but I think we have to have a plan for Marcel ready at all times because you never know, injury-wise, how the game is going to play. We go into the game and Conner is our starter, and we develop a game plan around Conner and the best way we think Conner can attack LSU. But then, you also have to have in the back of your mind, \u2018Okay, well, what happens if Conner goes down and Marcel\u2019s got to go out there and win us this game? What does that look like?\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s a credit to Collin that he\u2019s able to do that in a way that doesn\u2019t create a lot of volume for our offensive players. It\u2019s real subtle tweaks and differences that you can change that don\u2019t change a lot for a lot of people, so it\u2019s not like we\u2019re practicing two completely different offenses. We just have enough wrinkles within our system that we can tailor it to who the quarterback is. So, you have that plan ready, and you know it\u2019s there, so then, when the offense isn\u2019t isn\u2019t firing or isn\u2019t being efficient enough, and you feel like you have an opportunity to try to inject some life into the game, that\u2019s kind of what you do.\u201d<\/p>\n On how difficult it is to prepare for both Reed and Weigman<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s a challenge because I think their strengths are kind of contrasting. I think Conner\u2019s strength is his ability to see things, his quick release, his ability to function and operate in the RPO game. So, based on how you rotate, based on where you create access, if you are trying to outnumber the box, Conner has the ability to beat you with his arm. And then, he\u2019s certainly athletic enough that he can do some things with his feet and be a weapon in that regard, as well.<\/p>\n \u201cMarcel is kind of the exact opposite, right? (He) can do enough in the RPO game. He can throw the ball enough in the RPO game. And then, certainly, (he) has the arm talent to throw the drop-back in the play action game. But he has a different dynamic in terms of his ability to to run the zone-read game and the different types of read plays that you can run. When you\u2019re doing all of that, you\u2019re really touching the entire gauntlet of offense, right? You\u2019re kind of attacking it from every different angle. So, as a defensive coach, I\u2019d imagine that that\u2019d be challenging to try to get your kids ready for all of that.\u201d<\/p>\n On what goes into decision to start one quarterback over the other<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI think we\u2019ll kind of come to those decisions. I think we\u2019ve got to try to figure out what\u2019s best for this offense, what\u2019s best for those two young kids, what\u2019s best for this program for the rest of this season. So, I think that that\u2019ll take some conversation this week as we go through the week and try to figure out the best way to go.\u201d<\/p>\n On how Texas A&M\u2019s veterans have responded to slow starts and coming up just short<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI think a lot of that comes back to what they did throughout the offseason. I think we\u2019ve gotten into a lot of these games, into a lot of these moments, into a lot of these high-stress situations down the stretch and spent a lot of time focusing on the things that they\u2019ve done, the work they put in the different things they\u2019ve done with Coach Moffitt, what they\u2019ve done to prepare themselves for those moments. We ask them to think about all the things that they\u2019ve invested and put into this. And then, trust it and rely on it. And I think, to this point, they\u2019ve done a good job with that.\u201d<\/p>\n On what the 12th Man has meant to Elko<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI just think, standing there, sawing them off, that was such an impressive scene. The energy that that student section brought that whole game just kind of the whole way through \u2013 it was just in my mind. I didn\u2019t know the right way to thank them. And that (a \u201cGig \u2018Em\u201d) was the best thing that I could think of.<\/p>\n [Newsletters: Get breaking news and analysis from GamecockCentral]<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt was certainly still on my mind when I came to the podium. It\u2019s still on my mind when I came to the podium today. I just think, for everything that they do for our program, I want them to understand how much we appreciate it. We appreciate their support, and we appreciate how they\u2019re there for us through thick and thin, no matter what. For me, this is year five, really, with that support \u2013 four as the DC, one as the head coach, obviously \u2013 and the first time I\u2019m really at ground level with the opportunity to show my appreciation. So, I think that\u2019s kind of where some of that stuff has come from.\u201d<\/p>\n On what Elko has seen from Regis and the Aggie\u2019s defensive line<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll flip it, and I\u2019ll tell you that he\u2019s a main reason why it\u2019s the best defensive line he\u2019s played on. I think he is one of the most unsung heroes on this team, in terms of the level that he\u2019s playing at. He\u2019s immovable in there right now. He\u2019s extremely physical, he\u2019s making a lot of plays in the interior run game. I think he, and to some degree, Shemar Turner, too \u2013 but I think Albert, just because of his being at the nose guard and being in the center of it, are really altering people\u2019s game plans because they\u2019re having such a hard time running the ball between the tackles. <\/p>\n \u201cAnd then, when you talk about the depth, the ability to bring in DJ Hicks, the ability to bring in Cashius Howell, the ability for Rylan Kennedy to show up all of a sudden in the fourth quarter fresh and go get a sack \u2013 just what we\u2019re able to do rotating people around. Rodas Johnson comes in and gets a pressure that leads to the first turnover, interception, right? There\u2019s a lot of quality in that group, which allows us to rotate \u2013 which, I think, allows them to to stay fresh and continue to get stronger as the season goes on.\u201d<\/p>\n On Texas A&M\u2019s third-down success on offense<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI think one of the things we do probably a little different as we get to third down early in the week. So, we started installing our third-down game plan on Tuesday. That\u2019s different \u2013 a lot of teams don\u2019t do that. I think, for us, or me as a coach, I understand. And I\u2019ve always wanted to kind of give our kids the best chance to get their head wrapped around the different blitz packages, the different looks you\u2019re going to get on third down. It\u2019s different, right? And you get to a point in the season where, \u2018Okay, we\u2019ve blocked inside zone enough. One less rep of blocking inside zone on first down and one more rep at some exotic third-down pressure maybe helps us. So, that\u2019s been a big part of it, I think.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s an emphasis point, obviously, across the board. It is for most programs. But I think we do a good job of getting our kids to understand it. And I think we\u2019ve done a good job of trying to manage the down and distances we get into. That always helps, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n On what Weigman can improve upon<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI think, and I think he would tell you this \u2013 I think he gets sped up sometimes. His clock starts moving faster when he\u2019s not having success. And his eyes are going through the progressions a little too quick. He\u2019s getting the ball out of his hand a little bit too quick. I think we saw that on a couple of the throws. And he rushes his mechanics a little bit, and the ball sails on him. So, I just think he\u2019s still got it \u2013 he still has a ton of growth. He\u2019s still got a ton of repetition that he needs and experience that he needs to gather to just be able to consistently go through the progressions at the pace and speed that you need. <\/p>\n \u201cAgain, everything in the passing game is about your eyes and feet being on time with the wideouts. And if the wideouts aren\u2019t there, then that\u2019s a problem. If your eyes and feet aren\u2019t there, that\u2019s a problem. I think, sometimes, our wideouts are a little too slow getting where they need to be. And I think, sometimes, Conner is a little too fast um as goes through his progressions.\u201d<\/p>\n The post Everything Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko said previewing matchup with South Carolina<\/a> appeared first on On3<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko met with the media on Monday to look back…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-73990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73990","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73990"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73990\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73990"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73990"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73990"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Discuss South Carolina football on The Insiders Forum!<\/strong><\/a><\/h2>\n