Mike Elko harps on getting Texas A&M's offense going late vs. Arkansas

It’s been a slog of a second half so far between Arkansas and Texas A&M in a rivalry showdown. And tied at 14 at the start of the fourth quarter, Aggies head coach Mike Elko knew his offense would need to step up.

Since tying the game early in the second quarter, the Aggies’ offense — and the Razorbacks’ — had gone dormant. To get things going, Elko said his squad would need to start stretching the field some.

“We’ve gotta find some ways to push the ball down the field. We’ve gotta create some separation and we’ve gotta do a better job putting them in better positions,” Elko said.

It surely pleased the Aggies head coach, then, when his team marched down the field on the ensuing drive to take a 21-17 lead with nine minutes to play.

And as Elko spoke with sideline reporter Taylor McGregor, the Razorbacks were getting into scoring position. In a game where points have been at a premium, Elko said a stop was needed.

“Just gotta bow up here, we’ve gotta find a way to get off the field,” Elko said.

The Aggies ultimately did, forcing a field goal attempt that the Razorbacks converted to take a 17-14 lead early in the fourth quarter.

Razorbacks head coach Sam Pittman earlier called for more consistency

While Pittman might not have gotten the offensive consistency he wanted after the first quarter, his squad’s defense has answered the bell.

Speaking on thee ESPN broadcast after the 1st quarter, Pittman shared his desire for his team to limit big plays — something that’s seemingly happened as Elko complained of a lack of explosives later on.

“So inconsistent on offense. We’ve got a bad snap down here. We have an offsides. We’ve gotta be better, more consistent. We’ve gotta protect the quarterback,” Pittman said. “That’s what we said coming in here and we’re not doing a very good job of it. Defensively, we said don’t give up explosive plays, and all they’ve done all night is have one play in this first quarter and it went for six. So we’ve got to get the guy on the ground down here when he catches a 10 yard catch, we’ve gotta get him on the ground!”

And ultimately, Pittman just thought his team needed to take a deep breath and settle in.

“But we’ve gotta settle down, we’ve gotta play better up front,” Pittman said. “We’ve gotta protect Taylen [Green] and defensively, just can’t give up big plays and we’re playing pretty good, defensively.”