Texas A&M Coach Mike Elko Named National Finalist For Major Award

After delivering Texas A&M's first playoff berth, Mike Elko joins an elite list of contenders for Coach of the Year.

Texas A&M Aggies head coach Mike Elko looks on prior to the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Kyle Field. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Texas A&M’s resurgence under head coach Mike Elko is impossible to ignore. Regardless of what happens in the postseason, the Aggies are back on the national stage in a way the program hasn’t seen in decades.

The Aggies earned their first playoff berth in school history after finishing 11-1, the best season since 1992 when it went 12-0 and won the Southwest Conference title. 

The national media has taken notice as well, with Elko being named a finalist for the George Munger Coach of the Year.

Embodies the strategic brilliance, leadership, and dedication that Coach George Munger exemplified.

Head Coach Mike Elko has been named a finalist for the George Munger Coach of the Year.#GigEm | @CoachMikeElko pic.twitter.com/mN0za00gZJ

— Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) December 8, 2025

Elko joins a finalist group that includes Indiana’s Curt Cignetti, Texas Tech’s Joey McGuire, and Vanderbilt’s Clark Lea, all of whom led major turnarounds of their own this season.

Year Two Under Mike Elko

Texas A&M Aggies head coach Mike Elko walks off the field after defeating the Samford Bulldogs 48-0 in a game at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: | Joseph Buvid-Imagn Images

Year two under Elko went better than anyone could have imagined. At SEC Media Days, the Aggies were picked to finish eighth in the league. Instead, they finished fourth in the standings, tied for the best record in the conference but left out of the title game because of tiebreakers.

Not bad for a program that just 24 months ago fired Jimbo Fisher while absorbing a record $76 million buyout.

Here are just a few accomplishments from Elko’s second season:

• Best record since 1992? Check. 
• First playoff appearance in program history? Check. 
• Two sacks away from the all-time team sack record? Check. 
• Develop Marcel Reed into a Heisman hopeful? Check. 
• First road win against a top-10 AP team since 2014 
• First road win against a top-10 non-conference opponent since 1979

Playoff Elko

Texas A&M Aggies head coach Mike Elko reacts against the Auburn Tigers during the fourth quarter at Kyle Field. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

To Elko, qualifying for the playoff isn’t enough. It’s merely the first step towards the actual goal.

“I think it was just a really cool moment to see Texas A&M pop up there at No. 7 and to know that we had accomplished step one of where we want this program to go, which is getting into the playoffs,” Elko said.

“That was never the goal. That was the first goal, right? The first goal was to get the name on the board. Now, we’ve got to go out, and we’ve got to prove that we’ve earned it.”

Getting to the playoffs was quite the accomplishment. Before 2025, the Aggies had only sniffed the playoff once, the 2020 season, when they finished as the first team out. 

Now Elko believes his group has what it takes to finish the job.

First Obstacle? The Miami Hurricanes.

Miami Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal watches from the sideline against NC State Wolfpack during the third quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

To win it all, the Aggies will first have to get past the Miami Hurricanes. Coach Mario Cristobal’s squad slipped in as the No. 10 seed on Selection Day, edging out Notre Dame for the final spot.

The Hurricanes will present a formidable challenge with their physicality and talent across the board.

But for the Aggies, that’s nothing new. Week in and week out, they have survived the gauntlet that is an SEC schedule.

A&M and Miami will kick off at 11 a.m. on Saturday, December 20th, with the defending national champion, Ohio State, waiting to play the winner.