Photo by: Jack Coil/Texas A&M Athletics
Mike Elko Press Conference Quotes: Texas
Nov 24, 2025 | Football
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION--Texas A&M football coach Mike Elko met with the media on Monday in his latest weekly press conference.
The third-ranked Aggies (11-0) close the regular season with an SEC matchup at Texas (8-3) on Friday night. ABC will air the game at 6:30 p.m. Fans can also listen to the game along the Texas A&M Sports Network (1620 AM/94.5 FM locally) or worldwide inside the 12th Man Mobile App or at 12thman.com.
Opening Statement
"First of all, wrapping up Samford. The players of the game from the scout team: on defense, we went with Kendall Jackson; on offense, it was Preston Landis, who obviously got a chance to score on Saturday, which was great for him. On special teams, it was Zach Clay; our lineman of the week on offense was Robbie Bourdon. I thought it was great to get him out there, get him a lot of reps, thought we saw a lot of really good football from him. On defense, it was Marco Jones. I thought Marco had a really, really big day, very productive. Players of the game; offensively we went with Amari Daniels. It was great to see him get over 100 yards and get a touchdown on Senior Day. That was a really cool moment for him. The defensive player of the game was Landon Rink. He's another guy who up front that had a really, really disruptive day. I wanted to give another shoutout to Noah Mikhail. I thought he was the other one that was really close for that honor. He's another kid who had a really, really good football game for us. The special teams player of the week was Landon Rink for the getting the big block and preserving the shutout. It would have went to Jayvon Thomas, had he not gotten tackled by the kicker (laughing). I told him I was going to say that in the press conference today. I'm proud of our guys, proud of how we handled it, and now we turn our attention to the Cotton Holdings Lone Star Showdown. It's another great opportunity on Thanksgiving weekend to play our rivals."
Does Texas' defense, or just their team in particular, remind you of anybody you've played this year with that strong defensive line, the way they go about their business, anything that gets you prepared for this game?
"They're really talented. They're a really-talented football team. Obviously, anytime you play this game, it's going to have a little bit of a different energy about it. That will be one of the biggest challenges that comes along with it, and I think it'll be an exciting opportunity for us Friday night."
What does it mean about this conference that you guys are pretty much going have to have a perfect season just to get into the conference championship game? Talk about the grind and what it means.
"I think the way things broke this year with our schedule inhibited some of our tiebreaker abilities. It's going to force us to go 8-0 to get to Atlanta and it is what it is. I think in another year, certainly last year, it wouldn't have taken the same. But that's just how this conference goes, and so you've got a lot of teams playing each other, battling it out. We're just fortunate to still be in it going into the last weekend of the year again."
How does the game being on a Friday night affect the week's preparation, especially for a big game like this?
"With the magnitude of this game, it certainly isn't the first time we're diving into watching them, and so that helps. It's not like when you sometimes throw these short weeks into the middle of the season against an opponent that you don't play very much, and that makes it a little bit harder from a preparation standpoint. I'm quite certain that they do, and I know we do, spend time on each other in the offseason, so it's not like when you turn the film on, it's the first time you've seen the schemes that you're going against. So from a preparation standpoint, I think you're in a little bit better situation just because of who you're playing for the players. You're just trying to balance the ability to get them the reps and the mental reps that they need to prepare and get ready for the game. Also understanding that physically you're one day closer to the game than you normally are. So today, for example, is a Monday preparation day, but a Tuesday on the calendar in relation to when the game is. I just think you try to balance both of those things to make sure that you get them ready physically and mentally to go out Friday and be ready to play."
How much are special teams maybe a focus of this game, and just rivalry games in general, when the margins can be thin?
"I think when you talk about this game, the critical factors of football will play a huge role, right? Turnover margin is going to play a big role; explosive plays are going to play a big role, winning on special teams is going to play a big role. When you have two teams that are going go battle it out, without a ton of separation between the two of them, it's going come down to those really important factors that will determine winning and losing. So that's where you've got to try to stay on the front end of it."
From the film study that you've done, how do you feel like this Texas team is different now than they were at the beginning of the season?
"Certainly they were playing a lot of young guys and a lot of new starters, and I think as they've gone through the season, you've seen a lot of growth. You would anticipate that. They do a really good job developing their guys and it's a good football team."
What do you feel like it is about your offense that you guys have been able to just play so well on the road and have the success on that side of the ball?
"I think we have the ability to be explosive that helps not being locked into having to always having to put together 13-, 14-, 15-play drives. Those are the things that become a lot more challenging when you go on the road with the environment and the crowd and the defense playing with a little bit more energy. Sometimes it's hard to execute 15 straight plays, so I think some of our explosiveness has really been important for us. I think you've seen that in each of our road games, and that's been important and certainly will be important Friday night."
I wanted to ask you about Tyler White and just the ability for him and his brother to play together this season, especially after losing their dad earlier this season unexpectedly.
"I think it's been a real challenge for Tyler. He's gone through a lot mentally. He's leaned on some of the resources within our program to help and support him through what has been a really difficult situation. Obviously, I think one of the reasons why we tried to help get his brother here was to help put the family back together so that they weren't having to deal with it in isolation in separate parts or separate universities. The support system in and around the program has done everything we can to support and help them, but it's certainly a very challenging thing that he's been going through."
What have you seen from Arch Manning? You talked about them developing as a team. Have you seen maybe a different player at the start of the season compared to how he's playing now?
"He's a really talented quarterback. I think he's capable of making a lot of throws and has really athletic feet and can do a lot of things."
How do you balance all of the pageantry around this game, and what the rivalry means, and all of that? How do you balance that with your players with just keeping focus on the task at hand?
"I think that's the biggest challenge in this game, and it's rivalry games in general. I don't know that it's necessarily even specific to this one. The emotions are going to be high. The energy is going to be high. Through all of that, you've got to find a laser-focus to do the things that you have to do to go out and be successful play-in and play-out. Sometimes you can want something so bad, it almost blinds you. You have to be really careful of that. That's always the thing that comes up in these rivalry games when you talk about how bad each team wants to be successful. It's the team that can really kind of rise above the moment a little bit, and maintain that focus and maintain the composure that they need to go out and be successful."
Ending the season with big road game, how do you think your team has matured after the trip to South Bend earlier this season?
"We've gone on the road three other times and had success in each one; that shows maturity. We're 11-0; that shows maturity. We found a way to be successful each week; that shows maturity. We'll see how it plays out Friday."
Amari Daniels talked on Saturday about how "finish" was a big word you guys emphasized in the offseason. How much have you guys mentioned "finishing" this week? Is that kind of the message or the word you're taking through this week?
"It's probably not as important this week, to be honest, as much as finishing in the game will matter because I'm sure this will be a four-quarter game, like it always will be. I think it was a mindset to get us through some of the hard parts of the season. Obviously, this is the final week and so finishing the season is important and finishing this week and this journey is important. I think the magnitude of this moment will create enough energy that it doesn't really need to be a big part of it. We'll talk a lot about finishing within the game and finishing plays for sure, though."
When you were interviewing for this job a little while back, what did the athletic staff do to describe the sheer importance of this game to the 12th Man?
"Honestly, nothing. I don't think this game came up in my interview process. Now, having been a college football fan and having been here for four years, I didn't probably need a ton of explaining on what the magnitude of this game was. I said this last year, the amount of times that this rivalry was mentioned prior to us even playing gave me a little bit of an indicator of what it would be like when we got back on the field together. Obviously last year was a huge event here in College Station. The game is back (in Austin) now for the first time and so I'm sure it'll be very similar there. I'm sure there'll be a ton of electricity in the air when we kick off."
What did you tell the players this week to get their focus to maintain on this game and the challenge ahead?
"Oh, I don't have to tell them very much. I think they're pretty much clear on this one. This is an easy one to get their attention for."
What kind of challenges does all their pre-snap movement and motions present defensively?
"A lot. I think how you handle that and how you handle those adjustments will matter. They're very precise in how they go about what they're doing and how they're trying to create different leverages. I think it plays a big role."
You see Texas and development under Arch Manning, and they've gotten better. You guys have a similar situation (with Marcel Reed). What have you seen from them from week one to now that has kind of just stood out to you as you prepare for them?
"They're a really good football team and can't wait for Friday."
Do you expect Le'VeonMoss to be available this Friday?
"We'll see. Probably not but we'll see."
And Rueben Owens II and Mario Craver?
"Those guys are awesome."
We're about to talk to Director of Athletics Trev Alberts. Just what did it mean for you that he got a new contract as well? Did you know that was in the works for a while and what does (Alberts' extension) mean to you?
"I think it's really important. I think continuity is really important. I think stability is really important. I've really appreciated our partnership as we've gone through and built this thing. He's been a lot of fun to work with as we've talked about elevating this program into a championship level program. He obviously has experience in it as a player and in his time at Nebraska and it's just it's been a great partnership. I'm excited that it's going to continue for the foreseeable future."
I know you've talked about Marcel (Reed) throughout the course of the year, but what makes you or what moments happened or what stands out in your mind that really made you think this guy is ready for big time moments?
"Certainly when he led us on a game-winning touchdown drive in South Bend; when he brought us to victory at Arkansas when we needed to score on every possession; when he rallied us back from being down 30-3 at halftime against South Carolina and went for almost 300 yards in the second half. And any of the ones in between probably, but those would be the three that stand out the most."
Just how much about this offense is about maintaining balance on Friday night and getting contributions from everybody?
"I think in big games in this league, physicality matters; how you can control the line of scrimmage, how you can establish the line of scrimmage. Those things always seem to play really, really big when two good SEC football teams play each other. Who controls the trenches more often than not will have a huge upper hand Friday night. I think that'll be a big piece of this equation for sure."
It's one thing for the coaches and players to talk about this rivalry, but what about the fact that you guys took part in it last year, the coaches and everyone, how does that move forward affect it this year?
"You get a feel for it. I think it was what I thought it would be last year. I knew it was going to be electric and it was. I knew there was going to be a lot of energy in it and there was. When you watch the speed of the game relative to the speed of other games, it's a lot faster. Everybody seems to be running a step or two faster in this game because of how much it means. That's what happens when the energy gets up to that level. It certainly reaffirmed what I thought it would be like, but (it was) certainly kind of how I anticipated it would go."
The third-ranked Aggies (11-0) close the regular season with an SEC matchup at Texas (8-3) on Friday night. ABC will air the game at 6:30 p.m. Fans can also listen to the game along the Texas A&M Sports Network (1620 AM/94.5 FM locally) or worldwide inside the 12th Man Mobile App or at 12thman.com.
Opening Statement
"First of all, wrapping up Samford. The players of the game from the scout team: on defense, we went with Kendall Jackson; on offense, it was Preston Landis, who obviously got a chance to score on Saturday, which was great for him. On special teams, it was Zach Clay; our lineman of the week on offense was Robbie Bourdon. I thought it was great to get him out there, get him a lot of reps, thought we saw a lot of really good football from him. On defense, it was Marco Jones. I thought Marco had a really, really big day, very productive. Players of the game; offensively we went with Amari Daniels. It was great to see him get over 100 yards and get a touchdown on Senior Day. That was a really cool moment for him. The defensive player of the game was Landon Rink. He's another guy who up front that had a really, really disruptive day. I wanted to give another shoutout to Noah Mikhail. I thought he was the other one that was really close for that honor. He's another kid who had a really, really good football game for us. The special teams player of the week was Landon Rink for the getting the big block and preserving the shutout. It would have went to Jayvon Thomas, had he not gotten tackled by the kicker (laughing). I told him I was going to say that in the press conference today. I'm proud of our guys, proud of how we handled it, and now we turn our attention to the Cotton Holdings Lone Star Showdown. It's another great opportunity on Thanksgiving weekend to play our rivals."
Does Texas' defense, or just their team in particular, remind you of anybody you've played this year with that strong defensive line, the way they go about their business, anything that gets you prepared for this game?
"They're really talented. They're a really-talented football team. Obviously, anytime you play this game, it's going to have a little bit of a different energy about it. That will be one of the biggest challenges that comes along with it, and I think it'll be an exciting opportunity for us Friday night."
What does it mean about this conference that you guys are pretty much going have to have a perfect season just to get into the conference championship game? Talk about the grind and what it means.
"I think the way things broke this year with our schedule inhibited some of our tiebreaker abilities. It's going to force us to go 8-0 to get to Atlanta and it is what it is. I think in another year, certainly last year, it wouldn't have taken the same. But that's just how this conference goes, and so you've got a lot of teams playing each other, battling it out. We're just fortunate to still be in it going into the last weekend of the year again."
How does the game being on a Friday night affect the week's preparation, especially for a big game like this?
"With the magnitude of this game, it certainly isn't the first time we're diving into watching them, and so that helps. It's not like when you sometimes throw these short weeks into the middle of the season against an opponent that you don't play very much, and that makes it a little bit harder from a preparation standpoint. I'm quite certain that they do, and I know we do, spend time on each other in the offseason, so it's not like when you turn the film on, it's the first time you've seen the schemes that you're going against. So from a preparation standpoint, I think you're in a little bit better situation just because of who you're playing for the players. You're just trying to balance the ability to get them the reps and the mental reps that they need to prepare and get ready for the game. Also understanding that physically you're one day closer to the game than you normally are. So today, for example, is a Monday preparation day, but a Tuesday on the calendar in relation to when the game is. I just think you try to balance both of those things to make sure that you get them ready physically and mentally to go out Friday and be ready to play."
How much are special teams maybe a focus of this game, and just rivalry games in general, when the margins can be thin?
"I think when you talk about this game, the critical factors of football will play a huge role, right? Turnover margin is going to play a big role; explosive plays are going to play a big role, winning on special teams is going to play a big role. When you have two teams that are going go battle it out, without a ton of separation between the two of them, it's going come down to those really important factors that will determine winning and losing. So that's where you've got to try to stay on the front end of it."
From the film study that you've done, how do you feel like this Texas team is different now than they were at the beginning of the season?
"Certainly they were playing a lot of young guys and a lot of new starters, and I think as they've gone through the season, you've seen a lot of growth. You would anticipate that. They do a really good job developing their guys and it's a good football team."
What do you feel like it is about your offense that you guys have been able to just play so well on the road and have the success on that side of the ball?
"I think we have the ability to be explosive that helps not being locked into having to always having to put together 13-, 14-, 15-play drives. Those are the things that become a lot more challenging when you go on the road with the environment and the crowd and the defense playing with a little bit more energy. Sometimes it's hard to execute 15 straight plays, so I think some of our explosiveness has really been important for us. I think you've seen that in each of our road games, and that's been important and certainly will be important Friday night."
I wanted to ask you about Tyler White and just the ability for him and his brother to play together this season, especially after losing their dad earlier this season unexpectedly.
"I think it's been a real challenge for Tyler. He's gone through a lot mentally. He's leaned on some of the resources within our program to help and support him through what has been a really difficult situation. Obviously, I think one of the reasons why we tried to help get his brother here was to help put the family back together so that they weren't having to deal with it in isolation in separate parts or separate universities. The support system in and around the program has done everything we can to support and help them, but it's certainly a very challenging thing that he's been going through."
What have you seen from Arch Manning? You talked about them developing as a team. Have you seen maybe a different player at the start of the season compared to how he's playing now?
"He's a really talented quarterback. I think he's capable of making a lot of throws and has really athletic feet and can do a lot of things."
How do you balance all of the pageantry around this game, and what the rivalry means, and all of that? How do you balance that with your players with just keeping focus on the task at hand?
"I think that's the biggest challenge in this game, and it's rivalry games in general. I don't know that it's necessarily even specific to this one. The emotions are going to be high. The energy is going to be high. Through all of that, you've got to find a laser-focus to do the things that you have to do to go out and be successful play-in and play-out. Sometimes you can want something so bad, it almost blinds you. You have to be really careful of that. That's always the thing that comes up in these rivalry games when you talk about how bad each team wants to be successful. It's the team that can really kind of rise above the moment a little bit, and maintain that focus and maintain the composure that they need to go out and be successful."
Ending the season with big road game, how do you think your team has matured after the trip to South Bend earlier this season?
"We've gone on the road three other times and had success in each one; that shows maturity. We're 11-0; that shows maturity. We found a way to be successful each week; that shows maturity. We'll see how it plays out Friday."
Amari Daniels talked on Saturday about how "finish" was a big word you guys emphasized in the offseason. How much have you guys mentioned "finishing" this week? Is that kind of the message or the word you're taking through this week?
"It's probably not as important this week, to be honest, as much as finishing in the game will matter because I'm sure this will be a four-quarter game, like it always will be. I think it was a mindset to get us through some of the hard parts of the season. Obviously, this is the final week and so finishing the season is important and finishing this week and this journey is important. I think the magnitude of this moment will create enough energy that it doesn't really need to be a big part of it. We'll talk a lot about finishing within the game and finishing plays for sure, though."
When you were interviewing for this job a little while back, what did the athletic staff do to describe the sheer importance of this game to the 12th Man?
"Honestly, nothing. I don't think this game came up in my interview process. Now, having been a college football fan and having been here for four years, I didn't probably need a ton of explaining on what the magnitude of this game was. I said this last year, the amount of times that this rivalry was mentioned prior to us even playing gave me a little bit of an indicator of what it would be like when we got back on the field together. Obviously last year was a huge event here in College Station. The game is back (in Austin) now for the first time and so I'm sure it'll be very similar there. I'm sure there'll be a ton of electricity in the air when we kick off."
What did you tell the players this week to get their focus to maintain on this game and the challenge ahead?
"Oh, I don't have to tell them very much. I think they're pretty much clear on this one. This is an easy one to get their attention for."
What kind of challenges does all their pre-snap movement and motions present defensively?
"A lot. I think how you handle that and how you handle those adjustments will matter. They're very precise in how they go about what they're doing and how they're trying to create different leverages. I think it plays a big role."
You see Texas and development under Arch Manning, and they've gotten better. You guys have a similar situation (with Marcel Reed). What have you seen from them from week one to now that has kind of just stood out to you as you prepare for them?
"They're a really good football team and can't wait for Friday."
Do you expect Le'VeonMoss to be available this Friday?
"We'll see. Probably not but we'll see."
And Rueben Owens II and Mario Craver?
"Those guys are awesome."
We're about to talk to Director of Athletics Trev Alberts. Just what did it mean for you that he got a new contract as well? Did you know that was in the works for a while and what does (Alberts' extension) mean to you?
"I think it's really important. I think continuity is really important. I think stability is really important. I've really appreciated our partnership as we've gone through and built this thing. He's been a lot of fun to work with as we've talked about elevating this program into a championship level program. He obviously has experience in it as a player and in his time at Nebraska and it's just it's been a great partnership. I'm excited that it's going to continue for the foreseeable future."
I know you've talked about Marcel (Reed) throughout the course of the year, but what makes you or what moments happened or what stands out in your mind that really made you think this guy is ready for big time moments?
"Certainly when he led us on a game-winning touchdown drive in South Bend; when he brought us to victory at Arkansas when we needed to score on every possession; when he rallied us back from being down 30-3 at halftime against South Carolina and went for almost 300 yards in the second half. And any of the ones in between probably, but those would be the three that stand out the most."
Just how much about this offense is about maintaining balance on Friday night and getting contributions from everybody?
"I think in big games in this league, physicality matters; how you can control the line of scrimmage, how you can establish the line of scrimmage. Those things always seem to play really, really big when two good SEC football teams play each other. Who controls the trenches more often than not will have a huge upper hand Friday night. I think that'll be a big piece of this equation for sure."
It's one thing for the coaches and players to talk about this rivalry, but what about the fact that you guys took part in it last year, the coaches and everyone, how does that move forward affect it this year?
"You get a feel for it. I think it was what I thought it would be last year. I knew it was going to be electric and it was. I knew there was going to be a lot of energy in it and there was. When you watch the speed of the game relative to the speed of other games, it's a lot faster. Everybody seems to be running a step or two faster in this game because of how much it means. That's what happens when the energy gets up to that level. It certainly reaffirmed what I thought it would be like, but (it was) certainly kind of how I anticipated it would go."
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/ FootballTexas Game Week Press Conference: Mike Elko
Monday, November 24
Mike Elko Weekly Press Conference
Monday, November 24
Behind the Mic: Samford
Saturday, November 22
Postgame press Conference: Samford
Saturday, November 22
