Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko says he has 'respect' for Steve Sarkisian.
Unlike other coaches in the SEC, like Georgia's Kirby Smart, Elko and Sarkisian's paths only crossed twice, when Elko was the defensive coordinator at Texas A&M and Sarkisian was the offensive coordinator at Alabama in 2019 and 2020.
Elko worked as a defensive coordinator at Bowling Green, Wake Forest, and Notre Dame while Sarkisian was at USC and Alabama. The two only took head coaching positions in the Lone Star State programs years after Texas and Texas A&M stopped playing each other. Elko and Sarkisian haven't played each other since 2020, and have never played as head coaches or in a matchup of this intensity.
"Just having gone against him, respect for him and what he's done on offense, respect obviously for what he's put together over there and the team and the program that they're running," Elko said. "I don't have a personal relationship with him.""Coach Elko is a good coach," Sarkisian said. "He's been around the block, he's been in College Football Playoffs, he's done all that stuff. So they'll be okay.
The Aggies, despite being in the SEC for over a decade, have yet to make it to the championship, and Elko could do it in his maiden year as the team's head coach.MORE: Texas Longhorns vs. Texas A&M Aggies Ticket Prices Reach Record HighsIsa Almeida is a writer covering the Texas Longhorns for SI/Fan Nation, having joined the team on June 1, 2024. Raised in Southeast Brazil, Isa is now a third-year Journalism student at the University of Texas at Austin.
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