The Texas A&M Aggies have decided on a new head coach after firing Jimbo Fisher. Following rumors of Mark Stoops heading to A&M, the program has moved off that possibility and opted to hire Duke head coach Mike Elko.
ESPN’s Pete Thamel was the first to report the news.
This represents a reunion between Elko and the Aggies in College Station. He served as the Texas A&M defensive coordinator and safeties coach from 2018-21 under Fisher before becoming the Blue Devils head coach back in 2022.
Prior to that, Elko had served in a variety of roles for different programs throughout the college football world. That includes being the Notre Dame defensive coordinator in 2017 and serving as the defensive coordinator for Wake Forest from 2014-17.
Elko, 46, brought the Duke football program back to national relevance during his two-year run in Durham. They finished this past regular season with a 7-5 record, including big wins over the likes of Clemson and Pittsburgh.
Last season also saw Duke boast a 9-4 record. Mike Elko took over for a Blue Devil program that had posted a 5-18 record in the two seasons prior to his arrival.
As for Texas A&M, the program has fallen on hard times recently. They finished the regular season at 7-5 after posting a 5-7 record a season ago.
It led to the Aggies paying out a record buyout to fire Fisher after he spent the past five seasons as the Texas A&M head coach. Fisher finished with a mere 46-26 record at College Station.