Sleeping GIANT in College Station? Why Texas A&M, Mike Elko can SHOCK College Football in 2024

we are here with Billy Luchi of texags.com and Billy this is has this been a weird week for you with three solid days of everybody talking about Texas and now here here come the Aggies you know it's you know it's been a couple years of this Texas OU buildup particularly I think particularly Texas because I cover A&M but also what happened on the field last year right you know which is ironic because U beat Texas right but Texas had the better season they had the better season that playoff birth and uh and and I think better prepared in terms of this year's roster right right I don't worry about Oklahoma long term but if you said which which has the better roster this year I'd probably pick Texas and I've been impressed I was impressed with venal the other day yeah and I think there's been an uptick yeah at first I was going man what I just think they're like one step ahead in terms of the roster but it has been interesting and and then you combine that with A&M in the final day yeah so and it's look let's be honest if you looked at the preseason rankings it's A&M and it's three other teams that are going to be towards the bottom of the rankings right and you know how that final day goes yes and everybody's trying to get out and yeah I would have personally loved to see A&M in Texas on the same that would have been hilarious I I'm sure politically they wouldn't do it that would have been awesome he was just a little bit really wanted to have some fun oh yeah uh yeah I was like my preference for covering the team is day two always for me oh yeah yeah because day one's a mess yeah nobody knows what's going on day two everybody's settled in everybody's excited day three you're starting to drag day four your bags are packed yeah yeah absolutely but so here here's the deal we just saw Mike ELO in the big room and he comes across as fully prepared as understanding like I feel like of the first year head coaches around the country this year nobody's better prepared for the situation he's walked into than Mike Elco because he was the DC before he took his last job well he was a DC so he knows some of the players he certainly knows an even higher percentage of the talent yeah um and then also just understanding the place understanding A&M which matters for A&M especially absolutely like the uniqueness of it but also what you know Aggies and I'm an agie and and I think a lot of fan bases and which what fans become the decision makers you like to think yeah we're unique we're unique we're different so it is an advantage to know but also what you don't want to acknowledge he was here and and knew where this place could and needed to get better problems were where the program shortcomings were where they could do better in terms of like say the nil space or the facility so he comes in with a really unique knowledge base and I promise you it wasn't like that went away while he coached it dude I'm not saying spent time with it no it's very we had him on the show a few months ago and it was very clear he was trying to be as diplomatic as possible but he knew where the warts were and and had gone to work on them pretty quickly because I I asked him a question that was something to the tune of well you're you're inheriting all this talent and kind of look on his face was like it's not what you think man I I've described it as this you go through you go on here we can go with the that kickass database he Ys it on three which I think's the the best thing out there appreciate it prop Shannon and Andy and Company but I mean that too I mean like the way on three is covering recruiting is next level but you can go do that and the Stars still say this is a loaded roster I don't think I'd say loaded but I'd say it's a nice roster and it's a roster that with with a coach that is checking every body and I don't mean in season I mean from the day he took the job The Hires the portal the nil the retaining players who to retain who to let what the off season Tommy maof like every box you check the decision to practice Conor wigman yes in the spring when people were like oh he's he doesn't look healthy but they made sure can he reinjure himself no he's fine then he needs to practice because they needed that quarterback to run the offense while learning the offense let the teammates see him out there and also work that foot from V the various angles that come with actually yeah being an athlete playing football so what I was getting at is I think he checked all of those boxes along the way and he is prepared that roster is not bmer Georgia like we were maybe thinking it was threatening to be a couple years ago but it's still good enough to beat any team on that schedule when you look at and that's what's so interesting about this because A&M comes this into this season and the players who've been at A&M have never had a quiet off season like this they never had a season they've gone into without a bunch of expectations without everyone talking about them because you know two years ago it was they brought in the number one recruiting class is this the year they ascend last year it was 2022 was a disaster Jimbo's on the hot seat now we are not even talking about them but like you just said they can be competitive in every game on this on the schedule well Andy I I'd say they were competitive in every single game on the schedule last year right you think about Bama Tennessee Old Miss in Oxford they were in the games final play LSU third string quarterback leads at halftime it and that was with all the stuff you talked about going on and you bring the Steady Hand of Mike Elco and and that presence and that daytoday structure yeah I think it's just going to build and build and if they can get out of September and it's tough we know this but it's also not impossible you draw Notre Dame at home in week one Riley Leonard's first game with you go to El's former Duke quarterback there's so many story lines there too yeah you know so and Elco was a former Notre Dame DC and and Mike Den Brock was probably the the runner up to that OC higher right with Colin Klein there's a bunch of them but if you man like I think A&M's in that group with like and and you can put one up top one top but A&M LSU Tennessee um Oklahoma yep those four teams I'm I'm G like somebody out of those four is gonna make the playoffs oh agreed and it's going to be in my opinion you look at Conor wigman Jackson Arnold nio and uh nus yeah you watch whichever one of those four quarterbacks has the best year I don't mean statistic just when we sit leading their team in the way they need to lead their team yes I think that team makes playoff I I agree with that and I've I've said I think that's Tennessee out of that group because because Tennessee's defense is probably better this year than than LSU's we'll see with A&M with Nick scorton coming in as a transfer I think A&M's defense Andy is what if they get there it's gonna be quarterback and defense I yeah you know when Mike OKO and you know he kind of Will downplay and it is it's different it's the all Shucks it's the but but when he when he does believe in something he says it yeah he doesn't make like a little you know joke or right but or cck you're like hey what no he'll say it and when he came out of spring and made the comment that yeah I think this could be the best defense I've had at A&M you they had a couple of really good ones they had some really good they led the league and run defense a couple years they were top 10 at least one year and when he says that I'm like okay well and and I look at A&M and where A&M falls on various schedules and I there's a game I keep coming back to with some other with Oklahoma and Auburn like they play each other and it's one of those where it feels like each of the fan bases thinks it's an auto win and you realize and you want to like shake them and be like no neither one of these ISO yeah Florida A&M feels that way like all the Florida fans think they're going to easily beat A&M in the swamp and the A&M fans are like well Florida's supposed to be bad this year got that one like one of you is going to lose that game I hate to tell everybody that well yeah and I I agree with you on that one and I think look I think Auburn's one of those too yeah like I'd rather play Auburn early Florida late right flip-flop those and play FL Florida get beat down by that schedule a little bit play Auburn in week three those are two really tough road games for A&M and they also have to go to South Carolina to Starkville which and South Carolina not necessarily in the position of A&M roster wise but kind of like has some special players that good enough to beat any yeah if you're not ready you're going to get beat yeah and and look you go to Florida man that Florida's either gonna lose to Miami and that is going to be a desperate kind of like to to me A&M will get their last shot like if they lose to Florida inm it's over right so I mean the Miami and A&M it's over or they beat A&M I mean Miami and it's like oh we could start hot this could be great in the swamp's gonna be like the kind of have to be a top 10 team to get out of there with correct so that's a tough tough game for the aies and I think look it's gonna be really tough for Florida I'm just trying to make sure I show you the proper Gainesville experience the night before that game that's that's what I want to make sure you come away with the right swamp experience you kind of have to I'm I'm skipping a Creed concert for that thing you know Creed's like FSU guys that's Tallahassee band I didn't know so yeah that you know they're not welcomed With Arms Wide Open in Gainesville so well I'm I I'm selling a couple of like second roow tickets in The Woodlands to Creed so if any Houston people are at send me a message face can you take the price higher no I'm going face value I would never do that and disrespect Scott STA and Company but I will be going in November in Austin so there you go okay so you're going to get your Creed fix also there you go perfect perfect I don't know about you Billy this is I've not been more excited for a season and I think being here people keep asking me what's the most memorable thing anybody said I'm like nothing nobody said anything interesting but what I did is I talked to more people about different games that are going to happen that I hadn't thought about and I'm like oh my God what if that happens what let me throw this scenario at you because this is the one I've decided one for you this is the one I've decided is is deathcon one greatest like must go-to game if if this scenario works out to be this way this is not what I thought but remind me to go to what I was Texas and Texas A&M are each nine and two going into the game at Kyle Field like I I will sleep on some I will sleep in your yard that night to be in College Station that day I got there's a little burrow in my yard that I noticed this week okay I'll fit right with baby rabbits oh cudd so you don't want to sleep well you do except there was a there was a murder back there one of the a fox babies oh no we got foxes we've got Hawks we've got owls we've got copperheads we've got oh boy we got a little bit of everything I live in Florida everything can kill you in Florida too so I understand but what you don't expect to kill is a is a Golden Retriever and and he he accidentally playing but anywh who you can stay in the yard and you might have to because it is going to be like that I agree with you it's going to be like that regardless of their records but imagine that I could show you a text I sent yesterday and I say could you imagine 9 and2 N and2 I if I if you made me predict today I'd be like what about an eight and 8 and3 A&M versus a a 9 and2 Texas just a little bit less but maybe may maybe well there's still a chance at 9 and three depending on how things shake out yeah if it's A&M facing Texas so but yeah 9 and 29 and2 get back to me if the agies do win those two games we talked about Notre Dame and Florida right CU then there's a possibility yeah and by the way I thought you were talking about these games and you're like you know what's one that would be insane what's that imagine a him Gets By The Irish and the Gators look ahead a few weeks not long Missouri's gonna come into what about the unexpected showdown of of drink vers Elco at Kyle Field at 11:00 a.m. with with like an unbeaten top 10 missou and it's unbe A&M team yeah what I had even thought about but could be the biggest game of the year or the biggest game of the week that week that's not the 12th is it I think it's the week before okay then that's good because the 12th the biggest game of the week is still going to be Ohio State at Oregon but the good news is that's not going to be at 11:00 a. Central so yeah that's that's but that that's what I'm so excited about is all these possibilities like I had not even thought about that game yet you're absolutely right if you look at Missouri schedule it should be undefeated so it's you know kind of on A&M to to make itself in position for that to be a big game but I would argue they don't even have to be undefeated there they if they lose one of the one of the bigger ones that's okay it yeah it's nonstop this is all we this is all it's going to be I'm going to Big 10 next week and I guarantee you I'll have like a list of 10 more games that I can't wait for it's pretty cool like it is it's unexpected like I I we'll see where the season goes there's a week I usually Skip One Road game a year I just kind of been my you know there's like a four three Road games in four weeks that's kind of maybe where I'll pick it if I've been to the place a few times I was looking there when aen plays at South Carolina there's a certain date up in Michigan where it's Oregon at Michigan I've got like my little Andy staple style hookups up there oh yeah the only thing that kind of killed my vibe is the lions are not home that weekend because we double when he says hookups Dan Campbell was his college roommate but he's on my Michigan hookup but he knows some people in town yes for sure you know Christina darer oh yeah former Tex actor was daughter of Tim darer running the show there former DC director of on campus recruiting unfortunately great for her she left Harbaugh created a position for her with the Chargers and she left so that was kind of I just hoping for but we've got Marshall at Oregon so oh yeah I could put on that bright green Marshall Marshall mow very big name if maybe one of those names you have not heard in college football who's one of the most important people in college football he's helped build that roster at Oregon and was it&m before that done a hell of a job and there's a lot of smack talk we're on there's a little group of us and there's a lot of smack talk every time he comes into Texas trying to take players oh yeah not just from A&M but from Texas and I mean they're with with Lanning and him doing that uh they're a threat to anyone in any state right now absolutely Billy Luchi you're a threat to everyone in every state we appreciate you we didn't even talk style over here oh we let's do that I just learned I've known this guy for years I just learned he has a stylist a friend that turned stylist but she's really good I like well who's her other big client besides you I'd say her second biggest would be Troy aan so you might see him on Monday Night Football you be like oh that's number two client right and we're probably not I don't know if I make the top 10 or 20 but she's here in Dallas she does great work I've never I've never I've never thought about having a stylist before you know I'm I do a show every day you you have good style anyway with the suits well let's let's we may have to call Ashley just we we'll hook me up it's right up the street beautiful at Q we could just drive over there done done Billy I took T-Bob shopping this week whoa hold on okay we had T-Bob on earlier you should have oh my God I wish you did he make sure to get things that accentuate the chest here um no I got him like a I got him I I didn't I didn't mind a sugar daddy I didn't take we went shopping I got him like a uh into like a fiori like long sleeve crew neck okay first pair of jeans he's bought he said in like 15 years we're getting we're getting T-Bob into the athleisure yeah we were at North Park Mall where you know we were I took a call a couple work calls while we were in like adjacent dressing rooms who we're like you know talking over the stall like a real sh that is the that's the worst romcom dressing room Montage ever by the way I felt like Seth Rogan and Michael Sarah when they're like were they like trying on one of the dad's clothes super bad yeah it was not that different than that and we will leave you with that image of Billy Luchi and T Bob AAR jces in the romcom dressing room Montage thank you Billy all right thank you so much for watching just a reminder subscribe to this channel right here so you never miss an episode of Andy Staples on three and oh by the way watch all the other great videos on the on3 sports YouTube channel