"We want to be extremely tough": Mike Elko outlines the plan to make Texas A&M a powerhouse in the college football landscape

Mike Elko took over as the head coach of Texas A&M following the conclusion of the 2023 regular season. This marks a return for the coach, who previously served as a defensive coordinator with the Aggies under Jimbo Fisher before going on to become the head coach of Duke.

Elko’s tenure at Duke was a largely successful one as he transformed a struggling Blue Devils into a contender in the Atlantic Coast Conference. This is something he is hoping to replicate with the Aggies and he is already defining how the program will work toward that goal.

“We want to be extremely tough, mentally and physically," Elko told TexAgs Radio. "We want to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. We want to walk off the field being that we’re the team that played the hardest.”

Mike Elko believes things are moving in the right direction

Following his previous four-year tenure as a defensive coordinator at the program, Mike Elko is no stranger to the Texas A&M setup. This is pretty much helping him get things done at pace since he returned to the program and he believes things are moving in the right direction.

“We have a lot of really good kids and kids that are listening to the message and moving in the direction that we want them to. We got into our first workout yesterday in which the coaches were allowed to be out there.”

Teamwork will undoubtedly be crucial to the Aggies' success in the upcoming season and Elko is happy that is the work. The entire team appears to possess a unified vision ahead of the 2024 college football season.

“It was good to see our kids dive in with teammates and push and encourage to help drive guys where they want to go. It was a lot of fun to watch some of that.”

The route to rebuilding Texas A&M

Mike Elko was tasked with rebuilding the Aggies, following years of struggles under Jimbo Fisher. The coach believes all that is needed for that is available at the program, which offers him some excitement.

“We have everything we need to build this program the way we want it," Elko said. "Which is a great feeling as a coach because it means you just have to build it the right way.”

Without a doubt, Texas A&M possesses the ambition to become dominant in the Southeastern Conference and they hope Mike Elko is the man to ensure that. The Aggies have yet to win the SEC championship since arriving at the conference in 2012.