Mike Elko reveals what he learned as a coach during his time at Duke

Mike Elko had never held a head coaching job before arriving at Duke ahead of the 2022 season.

Instead, Elko spent the bulk of his career as a defensive coordinator, a position he held at Texas A&M from 2018 through 2021. In his first time leading a program, however, he did not dissapoint which led him back to College Station and becoming the Aggies’ next head coach.

Speaking on the experience he gained in Durham, Elko explained how those two seasons away from Texas A&M helped prepare him for a job at a program of this magnitude.

“You learn how to be a head coach,” Elko said during SEC Media Days. “Until you become a head coach you don’t really know how deep and in-depth it all goes. And so I think that’s the big part of it. And learning how to lead every aspect of the program. That’s critical as well.”

Elko had immediate success upon taking the head coaching job at Duke, winning nine games in his first season. While he couldn’t quite match that in 2023, he did still manage to get the Blue Devils bowl eligible despite injuries to starting quarterback Riley Leonard.

He ultimately finished his tenure with the Blue Devils with a 16-9 record overall and a 9-7 record in ACC play.

Before becoming head coach at Duke, Elko was on hand for some of the most memberable moments of the Jimbo Fisher era. From 2018-2021, Elko was the defensive coordinator for the Aggies’ most successful stint under Fisher which included two eight-win seasons, and two nine-win seasons including one year that saw Texas A&M finish No. 5 in the final College Football Playoff rankings.

The Aggies’ success dropped off following Elko’s move to become the head coach at Duke. Whether his departure directly impacted Texas A&M’s lack of success over the past two years is up for debate, but most will agree that he was the right man for the job based on the candidates that were on the table for them.

The Elko era offically kicks off with a bang when the Aggies suit up to host Notre Dame for the season opener on Aug. 31. He’ll be facing off against his former QB1 at Duke, Riley Leonard in that matchup, so it’ll be interesting to see how the defensive-minded Aggies coach will game plan against someone he has so much experience with.