Mike Elko Responds To Accusation of Calling Out Plays During Win Over Missouri Tigers

Did Mike Elko and the Texas A&M Aggies really have that well of a read on the Missouri Tigers Saturday night?

Oct 4, 2025; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies head coach Mike Elko looks on prior to the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

The No. 3 Texas A&M Aggies continued their tear of the Southeastern Conference Saturday night in Columbia, Missouri with a 38-17 win over Eliah Drinkwitz and the Missouri Tigers.

Rueben Owens and KC Concepcion each had touchdown plays of over 40 yards, and the Texas A&M defense held the Tigers offense to a season-low 284 yards.

However, after Mizzou offensive lineman Cayden Green spoke his belief that the Maroon and White defense was identifying and calling out the plays of the Tigers offense before the snap, many were left wondering if that was the case or if the Aggie defense was just that skilled.

"I Don't Know Anything About That"

During his weekly press conference on Monday, when asked about Green's claim, Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko had a simple response.

Sep 27, 2025; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies defensive end Cashius Howell (9) reacts after sacking Auburn Tigers quarterback Jackson Arnold (not pictured) during the fourth quarter at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

"I don't know anything about that," Elko said, with no further context.

And when linebacker Taurean York was asked Tuesday about if the Tigers were tipping any plays, he replied with, "it's football."

"It's a team effort. We're out there playing 11-on-11 defensive football in the SEC," York said. "It's definitely a group effort and I'm glad that he felt like that for sure."

To be fair, if the Aggies had picked up something on the Missouri team, it's not an illegal tactic, though, as something as simple as a slight change in formation could be a telltale sign for a specific play, something that would easily be picked up by such a skilled defensive unit as A&M's.

Even when Green made his claim about the reads, he gave his props to Elko's defense and said that Missouri as a team had to be better.

“Yeah, a few times I think they were starting to get reads on formations and stuff, maybe stances, I don’t know. Like I said, that’s a really good defense. We’ve just got to be better," Green said. “I feel like they made some good adjustments, you know, they started to kind of key in on what we were doing, calling out plays at the line."

It's like a pitcher tipping his pitches in a baseball game. A skilled lineup of hitters is going to notice every tiny movement made before a specific pitch is delivered, pick up on it, and know to look out for it during the next at-bat.

That is likely what happened in Columbia Saturday night, assuming Green is telling the truth. The A&M defense was going up against true freshman quarterback Matt Zollers in his first collegiate start, a much higher level of play than high school football with tighter competition and smarter players, ones that can pick up on small little aspects of a team's game plan and use it to their advantage.

It's nothing illegal; it's just simply being smart and observant out on the field.

And if the Aggies were truly picking up on the plays at the line, then it showed throughout the night, with Zollers only completing seven of 22 passes attempted on the night and being strip-sacked twice.

Texas A&M returns home to Kyle Field to host the South Carolina Gamecocks this Saturday at 11:00 AM.