Texas A&M Defensive Coordinator Jay Bateman Leaves Aggies For SEC Rival

The Texas A&M Aggies have lost their second coordinator in a matter of days.

According to reports from On3's Pete Nakos, Texas A&M defensive coordinator Jay Bateman has elected to leave Aggieland to join new Kentucky Wildcats head coach Will Stein's staff in the same role.

Bateman had been with the Aggies since the beginning of the Mike Elko era, coming to College Station in 2023 alongside offensive coordinator Collin Klein, who just accepted the head coaching role at Kansas State.

It is unclear as of now if he will coach Texas A&M's defense during their College Football Playoff opener vs. Miami next weekend.

Bateman's time At Texas A&M was up and down

Texas A&M Aggies head coach Mike Elko during the first half against the Louisiana State Tigers at Tiger Stadium. | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

This move doesn't come as a shock, as Bateman was under scrutiny at the end of the 2024 season after struggles in his first year at the job.

Mike Elko even called out that defense after their defensive collapse in their bowl loss to USC.

"The story of the game is the story of our season," Elko said. "We can't cover the forward pass well enough to be a good football team. That is my fault."

That season, Texas A&M ranked 63rd in the nation in total defense, 34th in scoring defense, were 90th against the pass and 42nd in the nation against the run.

As a result, the Aggies overhauled their defense and made some schematic adjustments at the behest of Elko last spring.

"We definitely have made some pretty serious schematic adjustments," Bateman said. "Some things that maybe were a little outdated and some things we think are going to help us. This conference is like the NFL; it changes all the time. I feel really good about where we are right now... He wants it done a certain way, and I think Mike is one of the best defensive coaches there is," Bateman said. "He has just been a little bit more involved, and (that looks) a little bit more like, 'Why are we doing this?' Or, 'Why are we doing it that way?' I do not think it has been a wholesale change. I think it has been more, 'Let's clean this up. Let's change this. I do not like this. I do like this.'"

This season, with Elko's hands a little bit more on the defense, the Aggies made a major turnaround, ranking first in the nation in Sacks alongside Oklahoma, 21st in the nation against the pass, 38th against the run, and 19th in total defense.

Regardless, Bateman They also had one of the best third down defenses in all of college football, and were near the top of the nation in tackles for loss, and first down conversion rate.

Now, Bateman heads to the Bluegrass state, to help Stein and his new-look Wildcats attempt to turn around a defense that ranked in the bottom half of the SEC in every major category.