‘In the Heat of the Moment’ — Texas A&M Coach Mike Elko Regrets Postgame Remark About TexAgs After 27-6 Loss as Fans Are Divided on Apology

Mike Elko had more than a 27-6 loss to address Monday.

The Texas A&M coach said he regrets how he answered a postgame question about the fan base after Saturday’s loss at No. 14 Missouri, an answer that referred to TexAgs co-owner Billy Liucci.

Elko also said he has a strong relationship with Liucci and appreciates the fan base, remarks posted on X by TexAgs, the independent Texas A&M site and message board. The loss dropped the Aggies to 3-3 and 1-3 in the SEC.

Mike Elko’s Regret Over Billy Liucci Remark Draws Divided Response

“To address the postgame conversation again, I think in the heat of the moment I think I answered a question in a way that I certainly regret,” Elko said, with Liucci in attendance. TexAgs posted a shorter version of his remarks.

Asked by On3’s Carter Karels for his message to a concerned fan base after Saturday’s game, Elko drew a line between the fan base and social media and said there was one group he didn’t care much about. “Billy’s cesspool can go be Billy’s cesspool,” he said, before asking the fan base to stay behind the team.

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On Monday, Elko said he regretted how the remark was taken and how it came out, and that at no point in his postgame news conference did he blame anyone but himself.

Liucci wrote on X on Saturday that it was unnecessary for the coach to call out a large, frustrated part of the fan base right after a lopsided loss. He said Monday on Wake Up Barstool, “I realized he wasn’t trying to take a shot at me.”

Fans answering TexAgs’ post were divided on the apology, and one account gave Elko credit for how he handled it. “He didn’t side step it. He stepped right into it.”

Elko also clarified a remark earlier this season. After a loss to Kentucky, he said a comment about everybody quitting on the team referred to the noise in and around the program, not the fan base.

Tripp, an Aggie graduate, wrote that he loves Elko and that the coach didn’t have to apologize, then added, “It’s ‘We’ not ‘Them.'”

Some Fans Say Fixing the Offense Matters More Than Elko’s Apology

Elko said Monday that he is the reason the team is struggling and that he has owned that since the start. The Aggies have lost three of their last four games.

At Missouri, Texas A&M gained 216 yards, ran for 29 on 23 carries and converted 5 of 18 third downs. All six of its points came on David Olano field goals of 53 and 27 yards, while Missouri’s Jamal Roberts ran for 222 yards and two touchdowns.

Senior quarterback Marcel Reed completed 19 of 39 passes for 187 yards with two interceptions and was sacked three times. Pro Football Network’s QB Impact grade has him at 69.8 this season, 128th of 170 qualified FBS quarterbacks.

“Just bench Marcel Reed and all is forgiven,” another account replied.

Asked Saturday why he doesn’t give sophomore Brady Hart a chance, Elko said, “It just doesn’t feel like that’s the move that would help us.” He added that it has to be evaluated going forward.

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A third account urged Elko to score a touchdown against a ranked opponent and wrote, “No one cares about your apology.”

Texas A&M did not score a touchdown at Missouri. A year ago, the Aggies went 11-2 and reached the College Football Playoff for the first time.

“Win out and make the playoffs and we don’t care,” another replied.

PFN’s College Football Playoff Meter gives Texas A&M a 0.4% chance to make the playoff as of Oct. 11. It gives the Aggies a 97.9% chance to beat The Citadel on Saturday at Kyle Field and a 26.2% chance to win at Alabama on Oct. 24.

This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.