Heightened focus required of Texas A&M given the urgency of CFP
Click HERE to view Texas A&M’s Monday press conference.
More than eight decades and four games stand between Texas A&M and its next college football national championship.
The No. 7 seed Aggies (11-1) open the College Football Playoffs on Dec. 20 vs. No. 10 seed Miami (10-2) at Kyle Field. A victory would lead to a quarterfinal game vs. No. 2 seed Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl.
The semifinals and finals follow. If A&M can get through those four games unscathed, the Aggies would claim their first national title since 1939.
A&M coach Mike Elko, on Monday at his weekly press conference, said the key to navigating that grueling four-game stretch is for the Aggies to fully comprehend what’s required to be successful.
“I think we have to understand the urgency of the moment,” Elko said. “We have to understand what it takes to focus, play-in and play-out, and to know you’ve got to be on the right side of the balancing act.”
A&M has the talent to win it all. But Elko said the Aggies must play loose, which might not be easy for a program making its first playoff appearance.
“I say this all the time: You can’t play tight in the game of football,” Elko said. “If you play tight, you’re going to get beat because you’re not going to play your best.
“But if you’re not aware of the moment and you don’t raise your focus level to the moment, then you won’t be able to match the intensity you need to play at your best, either.
“That’s a really, really fine line balancing act. I think, again, the more opportunities we get to play in those types of games, the better it is for our program.”
Confidence is Klein
Although Collin Klein is now the head coach at Kansas State, Elko said he has no worries about Klein’s focus in the playoffs.
Klein has agreed to remain A&M’s offensive coordinator through the duration of the Aggies’ playoff run.
Elko expressed full confidence in Klein.
“I have a ton of confidence in Collin and who he is as a man and who he is as a competitor that he’ll give the focus and energy that he needs to ensure that this thing is done the right way and finished the right way,” Elko said. “I have no questions about that. I think we’ll be able to manage this thing pretty well.”
As far as Klein’s eventual replacement, Elko did not offer details but indicated he was comfortable with the search.
“I think we’re in a pretty good place with that,” he said. “I think our intentions right now are trying to get through the season that let that thing play out, but I think we’re in a really good place.”
Asking a lot
In its most recent game, A&M allowed 218 rushing yards in a 27-17 loss to Texas. That was the Longhorns’ highest rushing output vs. a Power Four opponent.
That was the fourth time the Aggies have allowed more than 200 rushing yards this season. In a postgame press conference, Elko acknowledged a need to re-evaluate the run defense.
“We’ve got to look at what we’re asking our kids to do and make sure they can do it,” he said then.
On Monday, Elko wouldn’t say if there had been any evaluations or conclusions drawn.
“I don’t know that there is any evaluations to reveal,” he said. “That’s obviously an ongoing conversation that you have as a coach. When you’re not doing things at a level you want to see them get done, I think you have to explore it. You can’t just point fingers.
“I don’t know that there’s any magical revelation to it. I think it’s just an ongoing target that we’re trying to make sure we pay a lot of attention to.”
A&M is ranked a respectable 38th in the nation in run defense but has a tendency to give up long runs.
Miami is 77th in the nation in rushing offense. The Hurricanes have managed only seven runs of 20 yards or more and only three of 30 yards or more.
Reed Returning
During an appearance on a podcast with former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III, A&M quarterback Marcel Reed announced he would forgo the NFL draft and return to A&M next season.
Though that’s good news, Elko said it’s not concerned with it at this point.
“For us, being in the playoffs, we don’t want to get into next-year conversations and rock the boat on this year,” Elko said. “We want us to keep our main focus on the main thing, which is right now. I think that’s what we’re trying to do to the best of our ability.
“There’s going to be time for those conversations. Hopefully, that’s sometime after January 20th or so. For now, it’s focus on Miami and play our best football.”
The College Football Playoff National Championship Game is on Jan. 19.
