The talk is finally over in College Station, and head coach Mike Elko is absolutely chomping at the bit for his squad to hit the field for real! Texas A&M will kick off their season this Saturday at 6 p.m. at Kyle Field against Missouri State, and if you listen to Elko, it is high time.
“Beyond Past the Time” to Play Ball
Elko has been clear: he believes his team has the talent, they’re good enough to compete, but they have proven exactly nothing yet. “Finally, we get to stop talking,” he said Monday. “Finally, we get to stop talking about what things can be, what things can be about and we get to run out of the tunnel and go play somebody else. It’s beyond past the time to go do that.” That’s the mindset heading into Elko’s third season, and man, are the expectations ever high! The Aggies are sitting pretty with a No. 8 preseason ranking after their best season in over a decade. Last year saw them win 11 games, a feat only accomplished two other times in three decades. Yeah, they stumbled at the end, dropping those last two to Texas and Miami in the College Football Playoff, but the foundation is there. Key contributors like quarterback Marcel Reed and wide receiver Mario Craver are back, and they’ve beefed up with key transfers, including defensive end Anto Saka and left tackle Tyree Adams. This team has the pieces, no doubt.
New Kicker, New Challenges, Same Focus
Their first opponent, Missouri State, just made the jump from FCS to FBS last season and still managed seven wins. They’re rolling with a new head coach, Casey Woods, who was SMU’s offensive coordinator and a “hot name” in the OC world. Elko and his staff have been digging deep into film from “multiple different teams” to get a feel for what Missouri State might throw at them, but the big focus remains squarely on the Aggies themselves. One position battle that’s wrapped up is kicker: Illinois transfer David Olano has officially won the starting role over freshman Asher Murray. Olano brings experience, going 37 of 43 in his career with a 50-yard long, even though an injury kept him out of spring ball. Elko called the competition “very, very close and very, very tight” and believes they have a “really, really strong kicking situation.” On the injury front, linebacker Daymion Sanford is anticipated to play Saturday, though it’s “probably still a little bit of a gametime decision.”
This team has elevated itself, Elko said. They’ve made the playoff, competed for the SEC championship, finished in the top 10. Can this team do it again? “Whether this team can do that, I don’t know. We’ll find out when we start playing people for real,” Elko stated. Saturday is their chance to prove it all. You know Elko is watching every single snap to see if the talk truly stops and the winning starts. And talk about former Aggies making waves, 32 Texas A&M players made NFL rosters after cut day, headlined by Los Angeles Rams star and reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett. What a legacy!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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