Mike Elko reacts to spectacular one-handed catch by Moose Muhammad

The Texas A&M Aggies trail their former Big 12 foes, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, in the TaxACT Texas Bowl. The Aggies entered into Wednesday night’s bowl contest with more questions than answers about their program. However, that has not stopped the players participating in the game from giving their all on the field. And there was no better example of this in the first half than the spectacular catch made by Texas A&M’s star wide receiver, Moose Muhammad.

While going over the middle, Muhammad made a spectacular one-handed catch in traffic. And right as he was making the grab, the Aggies recently hired head coach, Mike Elko, was in the booth commentating. That gave the Aggies’ new headman the perfect opportunity to share his thoughts on the amazing catch live as it happened. You can check out Muhammad’s catch and Elko’s reaction in the video below.

.@CoachMikeElko joins the ESPN booth and just like that @MooseMuhammad makes a one-handed grab 👀

📺 ESPN pic.twitter.com/DYOKrQMZsX

— Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) December 28, 2023

Despite the big catch by Muhammad, which was good for 29 yards, Texas A&M was unable to capitalize and was forced to punt the ball back to Oklahoma State. As the game clock winds down in the first half, the Aggies still trail their former Big 12 rivals 24-6.

Elko reveals message to Texas A&M players after taking over as head coach

When Elko took over at Texas A&M, he made it clear the program had a long way to go to reach its potential. The Aggies got into a bowl game this year with a 6-6 record after last year’s disappointing 5-7 record, which included a top-ranked recruiting class.

For Elko, the goal isn’t just to make a bowl game. He wants to be in the College Football Playoff. That was his message to the players after he took over.

“We’ve got to become what we’re capable of becoming,” Elko said on the ESPN broadcast during Wednesday’s Texas Bowl. “I think that’s the biggest thing. I think this program is capable of being a team that’s in the Playoff and competing for national championships every year. But we’re not that right now. We’ve got to recognize that, and we’ve got to roll up our sleeves and go to work to become what we should be.”

Elko knows what it takes to win in College Station. He was on Jimbo Fisher’s staff as defensive coordinator from 2018-21 when the Aggies won eight games four straight seasons — including nine-win campaigns in 2018 and the COVID-impacted 2020 season. Now, as the College Football Playoff is getting ready to expand to 12 teams next year, he wants Texas A&M to be right in the middle of the race for a national title.