DALLAS - The Jimbo Fisher era is over, and now it’s Mike Elko’s turn to try to bring Texas A&M football championships.

At the final day of SEC Media Days Thursday, Elko spoke about the state of the Aggies program right now.

“We had to have some real honest conversations when I took over about where we were as a program,” Elko said. “We can't verbalize what we are, facts tell us who we are, and we were a 12-13 football program the last two years. So, the only way to change that is to work. You can't just say you want to be different, you can’t just say you want to compete, you have to do it.  I think that has been from day one, the internal conversations that we had. Then you have a lot of great kids with great character, who have a lot of pride in themselves, and so that's not lost on them either, and so okay, here's a path that potentially can change the results that we've had. So they start doing it and then it leads to success, their body starts looking different, they start feeling better, they’re playing better in the spring, and that brings more success. We’ve had a stronger summer in that regard, and hopefully, that continues into fall camp and through the season. If you want to get different results you’ve got to change what you are doing, and I think we have embraced that this offseason”

LSU plays at Texas A&M on October 26.

Hugh Freeze also took the podium on Thursday to talk about his second year in charge of the Auburn Tigers.

After a less-than-stellar 6-7 first season on the plains, Freeze is optimistic about the upcoming season.

“I think our players sense that there is a chemistry among our staff that's pretty special right now, I feel, that provides a confidence and an energy to our players and the way they go about chasing the standards that we've set for each other,” said Freeze. “Secondly, I think we've upgraded our roster, now a lot of that roster is young kids. Certainly can't predict exactly how they'll adapt to playing in this difficult conference. But all of those things have led to a higher accountability in our building. Again, I think that's one of the reasons that we're optimistic that we're on the right track to returning Auburn to its rightful place, being one of the top football programs in college football.”
LSU does not play Auburn during the 2024 season.