Mike Elko’s face said it all Saturday night in Baton Rouge. Disbelief, frustration, and just a hint of ‘not again.’ Texas A&M’s defense, which had been the pride of College Station, looked fragile against LSU. And it came on the heels of one of the most memorable locker room lessons the Aggies’ HC has delivered this season, where he spelled out the standard he expects. Turns out the lesson hadn’t stuck.

An X post on October 25 shared Tyler Shaw’s report on Mike Elko after a poor Texas A&M defense execution. “After that LSU touchdown, A&M head coach Mike Elko was absolutely lighting into the defense, per @TylerShawSports roaming the sidelines.” And why wouldn’t he be? By the time LSU scored its lead-taking touchdown, the Aggies had already blown multiple opportunities, including two tipped interceptions by Marcel Reed and a blown coverage that allowed LSU to cash in.

The game had started with promise. A&M forced LSU to punt, and Marcel Reed made the Aggies’ fans breathe a little easier with a 41-yard touchdown run. Aggies up 7-0. But Garrett Nussmeier found Trey’Dez Green in the red zone, tying the game at 7-7, signaling that A&M’s secondary was floundering. Reed had a chance to put A&M back in control, connecting with Ashton Bethel-Roman for a jaw-dropping 47-yard reception on third down. But disaster struck on the very next play. 

A second interception, tipped and returned into A&M territory. LSU capitalized with a 7-yard touchdown run from freshman Harlem Berry, taking a 15-14 lead, and the scoreboard told the story of A&M’s defensive collapse. Even Saturday Down South posted a picture of Mike Elko as the Texas A&M vs LSU scoreboard read 14-15 with the caption, “The genius football mind of Mike Elko cannot comprehend the chaos that is LSU at night under Brian Kelly.” Saturday night in Baton Rouge proved one thing. Mike Elko’s message from a week ago hadn’t fully landed with his defense.

Mike Elko’s lesson didn’t stick for the Aggies

This wasn’t an isolated meltdown. Just days earlier, after Texas A&M’s narrow 45-42 win over Arkansas, Mike Elko refused to hand out his weekly defensive award for the first time all season. Carter Karels said then, “For the first time this season, Texas A&M coach Mike Elko did not give one of his weekly awards to a defensive player. Instead, he kept it real with them after their ‘very poor game’ vs. Arkansas.” 

Mike Elko’s message was blunt. “Defensively, it was a very poor game,” he said. “Didn’t play well, didn’t play up to our standard, didn’t do the things you need to do to be successful at all.” And the numbers back it up. Per Pro Football Focus, A&M missed 13 tackles, and Arkansas scored 162 of its 268 rushing yards after contact. “We can’t play defense like we played on Saturday against anybody and be successful,” he said. “If we don’t fix our own issues, we won’t stop anybody.” He delivered accountability, making it clear that discipline and execution aren’t optional for his team. 

Baton Rouge was seeing what happens when pride, fury, and reality collide. Texas A&M’s defense had no excuses, and Mike Elko made sure they knew it.