How Mike Elko's Transfer Portal Approach is Benefiting Texas A&M This Spring

The transfer portal is still one of the most surreal aspects of college football. An opportunity that gives student athletes the ability to transfer to any school in the country willing to take them, for whatever reason they may want.

While some players are seeking more playing time or more money, schools are capitalizing on that to find players they can plug into their rosters, looking for new acquisitions to make an immediate impact at the school.

For Mike Elko, the head coach of the Texas A&M Aggies, that isn't his philosophy for the portal, according to what he told Josh Pate on the "Pate State Speaker Series".

Create Competition

Texas A&M Aggies Cornerback Will Lee III — Texas A&M Aggies head coach Mike Elko greets cornerback Will Lee III (4) prior to the game against the Auburn Tigers at Kyle Field. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

For the Aggies, it was one of the best seasons in program history last year, as they reached the College Football Playoff. Now looking to reload their roster after losing some of their most productive veterans, Elko turned to the transfer portal and the young, incoming talent to replace them."

"I think it's everything. I think you can't promise anybody anything, if you want to create culture in your building," Elko says while discussing how he keeps a strong locker room while effectively using the portal. "We are still a developmental sport, however much the transfer portal and NIL try to change it. The best teams will still be the ones that manage it best."

The Aggies brought in the fourth-ranked class in the transfer portal this offseason, highlighted by some of the top players along the offensive and defensive line. At the same time, they brought in the number-seven-ranked recruiting class, with 27 new faces arriving on campus, looking to play a role in the upcoming season in College Station.

"We have a lot of kids who have transferred in here with starting experience at other programs," Elko talks about how he is managing the new roster this spring. "And a lot of young, talented players in our program who want to start, and that has to be fair and open competition."

For many programs, the transfer portal has become a clutch, one of the easiest ways to replace production from the previous season and find a sense of consistency in their performance. Outside of the top spenders, though, that comes at a cost to recruiting and less developmental time for new talent on campus.

Elko and the Aggies, though, are in a different mindset, using both areas to fill out the roster and creating an environment of competition, hoping that it leads to success as players are pushed to remain the best versions of themselves.

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