Texas A&M football was embarrassing against Tennessee on Saturday, Nov. 14, with its offense being held to a brutal 179 total yards in the 22-7 loss. The Aggies also failed to score 10 points for the fourth time in seven conference games this season, as their disastrous season keeps getting worse.
Third-year coach Mike Elko, who led Texas A&M to the College Football Playoff last season, was asked to describe the offense in one word after the game.
"Pathetic," he said.
The Aggies benched third-year starting quarterback Marcel Reed on their final drive of the game, but Brady Hart wasn't much better. Reed and Hart combined to complete 11 of 25 passes for
93 yards and two interceptions, the second of which Hart threw on his third and final attempt.
Texas A&M's offense has been brutal this season. Reed, whose starting gig is in jeopardy, has now thrown more interceptions (nine) than touchdowns (eight) this season. His completion rate dipped below 55% after the game.
The struggles have compounded to the point where Elko is apologizing to the fan base.
"Utter apology with everything that I have to everybody that supports this program," he said to open his postgame news conference. "Thank you for turning out, you deserve so much better. Give me a chance and we will get this fixed and put a much better product on the field.
"That's all I can to say. I apologize to everybody that supports this program. That's not nearly what you deserve."
Mike Elko after Texas A&M lost to Tennessee 22-7
— SEC Mike (@MichaelWBratton) November 14, 2026
"Utter apology with everything that I have to everybody that supports this program.
"Thank you for turning out, you deserve so much better.
"Give me a chance & we will get this fixed and put a much better product on the field." pic.twitter.com/ZqPsGoYtJs
At 4-6 on the season (1-6 in SEC), Texas A&M needs wins over Oklahoma and Texas to reach bowl eligibility. Texas A&M entered the 2026 season with high hopes after reaching the CFP in 2025 and ranking No. 9 in the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll. Not many expected Elko to be talking about Texas A&M's inept offense less than three months ago, one that has more problems than just Reed's struggles.
“Our offense is inept," Elko said. "I don’t know how you can put this on one kid. This is not on one kid. The narrative that this is just on Marcel — anybody who watched that game and thinks it’s just on Marcel Reed — it’s on me. It’s on me.
“It is a completely non-functional offense, and that’s one me. It’s my fault. I own it. Come after me.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mike Elko apologizes to fans for 'pathetic' Tennessee loss: 'You deserve so much better'
