Mike Elko Identifies Texas A&M's Offensive Issues Ahead of Arkansas

The Texas A&M Aggies have struggled to find consistency offensively, and Mike Elko says the problems extend beyond the obvious.

Aggies Quarterback Marcel Reed 10, The LSU Tigers take on the Texas A&M Aggies. September 19, 2026; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; at Tiger Stadium. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Marcel Reed will inevitably receive much of the attention when Texas A&M tries to get its season moving back in the right direction against Arkansas on Saturday. That comes with playing quarterback, particularly when an offense is struggling as badly as the Aggies did against Kentucky and LSU, even Arizona State and Missouri State to a certain extent.

But Texas A&M coach Mike Elko doesn’t believe fixing the offense is as simple as getting better play from Reed. Four games into the season, Elko sees an offense that has made things too difficult on itself.

“I think it is a little bit of everything. I think we have to do a better job of creating explosive plays,” Elko said. “A lot of that is finding better leverages and creating better opportunities to be able to do that.”

Texas A&M's Offense Has Been a Constant Issue

Sep 26, 2026; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; Texas A&M Aggies wide receiver Mario Craver (1) is tackled by LSU Tigers linebacker TJ Dottery (6) and cornerback PJ Woodland (11) during the second quarter at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The performance against LSU represented the low point, but Elko indicated the underlying problems existed before that loss.

“We are having to be too precise, and you know obviously that last game was a really poor game but even before that we are having to be too precise,” Elko said.

Elko pointed specifically to Texas A&M's inability to establish any consistent rhythm. Positive plays have too often been followed by tackles for loss or incompletions, forcing an offense already struggling to create explosive plays to consistently operate from behind the chains.

“We have got to make sure that we are developing a rhythm of what our kids can do comfortably and try to create a little more flow to it,” Elko said. “We’re so choppy right now, it’s a good play followed up by a TFL or it’s a good play followed up with an incompletion.”

The Problems Go Beyond Marcel Reed

Sep 26, 2026; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; Texas A&M Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed (10) scrambles under pressure during the third quarter against the LSU Tigers at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Reed is certainly part of the equation, and Elko acknowledged that Texas A&M's coaches have to find the best way to get better results from their quarterback.

Still, he pushed back against placing the Aggies' struggles against LSU entirely on Reed.

“I think the struggles in the LSU game were really deep,” Elko said. “These are obvious statements, but [Marcel Reed] is a part of it, but I don't think he was the only part of it. I think there were struggles at so many levels in the LSU game that it's hard to pinpoint one guy and what he did wrong.”

The challenge now is finding answers without completely changing what Texas A&M does offensively.

“We can’t recreate the wheel because that will cause more confusion and lack of execution if all of a sudden, we come in tomorrow and let’s try to do this drastically different,” Elko said.

Elko believes there are answers within what the Aggies are already doing. Saturday against Arkansas will provide the first indication of whether Texas A&M found them.