"We were having meetings with our defense": Texas A&M HC Mike Elko recalls squad's all-nighter playing Call of Duty amid EA Sports' CFB '25 release
Have you ever considered the impact video games have on a football team? Mikel Elko certainly has. He hasn't only considered it, he has had to deal with it directly. On May 23rd the newly minted head coach of the Texas A&M Aggies was asked if his team was excited for the release of EA Sports' College Football 25. He gave a surprising answer, that shows the unexpected impact video games can have on a 21st-century college football team:
"In full disclosure, because I've been a part of this before, you can't imagine how much the release of a hot new video game can impact your football team. I remember going all the way back to when the second "Call of Duty" came out and it got released in October in the middle of one of our football seasons. We literally were having meetings with our defense about why it was not good to say up until four in the morning playing call of duty. We had practice at 7 o'clock the next morning."
It is not surprising, in the end, that college football players are in that transmission stage in their lives in which they go from teenagers to full-fledged adults. Consequently, their life routine might sometimes resemble more that of a high schooler than that of a professional athlete.
The Aggies ought to be ready for this one. If a first-person shooter had that kind of impact on the team, imagine the effect the first college football video game in a decade might have.
Mike Elko bows to Texas A&M traditions
Last Thursday Mike Elko spoke at the Houston A&M Club about the future of the College Station program and next season's prospects. If one thing can be said about Elko is that he knows how to show respect for the history of the program he's now leading:
“I will say this as many times as I can: I am honored and blessed to be your head football coach... This program will always belong to you, and we are committed to that as a staff. We are unbelievably excited about what Texas A&M is,"
Elko also set high expectations for the school in the medium term:
"We have everything we need to be the premier football program in the country, but what we have to do is come together and build the best version of Texas A&M football.”
Elko has been a resounding success during the off-season, saying the right things and being a very active recruiter. The Aggies have so far brought in 30 players through the transfer portal. The question is, can he transform that pre-season momentum into results come this fall? Only time will tell.
Texas A&M opens the season on August 31st with a tough encounter against Notre Dame.