Mike Elko calls it a 'luxury' for Texas A&M to have three capable quarterbacks

As messy as the Texas A&M season ended under Jimbo Fisher, newly-hired head coach Mike Elko is walking into a pretty good roster. Despite some losses to the NCAA transfer portal, there is still plenty of talent in College Station. Specifically in the quarterback room, where Elko feels like there are three guys the Aggies can work with.

“I’m happy that we have three quarterbacks,” Elko said. “There’s not a lot of programs across the country that have three kids that can go out there and operate an offense effectively right now. With the way people are shifting and moving all over the place, it’s a luxury to have three kids that have had very productive college football games on your roster.”

Conner Weigman is the biggest name and the presumed starter. Injuries have kept him out at times but if the former five-star prospect can stay healthy, the Aggies have to feel like they have a potential star on their hands.

Nine games into his college career, Weigman has started in eight of them. He’s thrown for 1,875 yards, 15 touchdowns, and just two interceptions on 250 pass attempts. A foot injury during last year’s game against Auburn kept him out for the entirety of the season. However, spring ball has been a positive step forward toward his return.

When Weigman went down, Max Johnson took over but he has since left for North Carolina. Jaylen Henderson, a Fresno State transfer, made an impact in three games by throwing six touchdowns. He too suffered an injury in the Texas Bowl against Oklahoma State.

Nonetheless, his play-time has produced positive results for the Aggies.

The final guy for Texas A&M is Marcel Reed, entering his second season of college football. Reed was the one to replace Henderson against Oklahoma State, being the first real action of his career. Completing 20 of 33 passes is something to hang your head high over, even if there were no touchdowns and an interception in the game.

Elko has watched all three go through spring practice and then the spring game. Watching and evaluating their play gives him and the entire Texas A&M staff confidence in where the quarterback room is, especially with the injury history.

“I think we’ve evaluated a large group of players — for a lack of a better way of saying that,” Elko said. “I think that’s what the evaluation is at quarterback more than just the spring game.”