Week 1 is officially over as the Texas A&M football team turns its attention to Big 12 opponent Arizona State.
A&M's defense looked about as good as you would hope in this type of game, outside of maybe getting a few more sacks. Even with that, the defense held the Missouri State Bears scoreless and allowed only 67 yards of offense. I'd chalk that up as a huge win for the first game of the year when you are still feeling out some players who are in this system for the first time.
On offense, it was a slow start, and poor offensive line communication put Marcel Reed under pressure way too often in the first half, leading to him needing to scramble out of trouble and being sacked twice. The running game wasn't much better, with neither back able
to average more than four yards per carry. It wasn't all bad, as the wide receiver group is very deep and athletic, and Reed was able to find them all night long. Then, in the second half, the running game started to wake up, the offensive line found its groove, and A&M ran away with a 50-0 win.
Overall, Aggies head coach Mike Elko liked what he saw, especially once they settled into the game and a lot of the nerves went away for some of the players. He also knows there is plenty to clean up this week in practice before they face a much better opponent in the Arizona State Sun Devils. A lot was learned, and they now have an idea of what needs to be done if they plan on being successful not only in Week 2 but for the remainder of the season.
Below are some of the top quotes from Monday's press conference with Mike Elko:
Texas A&M head football coach Mike Elko thoughts on the Week 1 game:
"The game went the way we talked about it going. Defensively, it was solid throughout the game… There will be greater challenges for us down the road. Offensively, we have to find ways to improve the lull that we hit… A lot of that was self-inflicted."
Coach Mike Elko on ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham:
"He's a guy that I have a ton of respect for… He's a really good football coach with a really, really good football team. This is going to be a really, really big test for us."
Coach Mike Elko on the offensive line:
"I thought there was a lot of good. Certainly, some things that we had to clean up. It was a little bit of a storm in that it was some things that we hadn't practiced with the guys we had out there. We did not play to the level or standard that we needed to early in the game. Everyone is aware of that."
Coach Mike Elko on the Aggies tackling:
"Those conclusions are tough because, again no disrespect to anybody, there are bigger challenges coming down the chute. This week will be a really, really big test for us. We're going to face a very talented offense."
Coach Mike Elko reflects on Sept. 11, 2001:
"It still hits really close to home as a kid who is from up there and was working up there when it happened. I actually walked down to the water and saw the city when the first plane hit... It's a meaningful day for me."
Coach Mike Elko on Arizona State:
"Games like this are important. I think they matter. I think they matter to our fan base. It's going to be a huge challenge for us. This is a really talented team. This will be a really big challenge for us."
Coach Mike Elko on Week 1:
"We learned a lot about where we are and what we need to do to get where we want to go."
Coach Mike Elko on the penalties:
"You're always concerned. They were different. Last year, we had a lot of lazy focus penalties. A lot of them (in Week 1) were kind of on the line. I think Anto (Saka)'s was on the line. I thought Isaiah Horton's was on the line. The one they called on Bravion (Rogers) for blocking too hard was on the line."
Coach Elko on the late Terry Price:
"Unbelievably unfortunate, his passing. We still feel that in this building. He was beloved by his family and this program. I was always appreciative of TP, the job he did, the work he put into it and the impact he had on his players."
"It's awesome that he's going into the Hall of Fame, and getting to call his wife to tell her the news was really special."
Coach Mike Elko on Marcel Reed:
"There were two drops, a couple of throwaways that I thought were throwaways and a couple of balls I'm sure he wished he'd thrown it better. I thought there was a lot of progress in him going through progressions and reads... Completing a high percentage of his passes was good."
Coach Mike Elko on OL Tyree Adams:
"Tyree (Adams), there wasn't a ton of tape, but the tape we saw was really impressive. He was probably a lot higher on our board than your crew had on your board. He was the one that we really wanted. We were really excited when we landed him."
Coach Mike Elko on Ray Coney:
"Ray (Coney), we had to get an older guy… We needed to make sure we got a veteran presence in there. We felt like he had a game that would transition up to this level, and we've been really fortunate with those decisions. We think he's going to be really impactful for us."
Coach Mike Elko on the defensive end position:
"We're deeper at defensive end than we've ever been in my time here. … It's an extremely competitive position to get snaps. Ryan (Henderson) can play both sides. He can play the end and jack positions. … He's a really, really talented player."
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: 'We learned a lot': Aggie HC Mike Elko speaks ahead of Week 2 matchup
