Mike Elko hypes up SEC and Texas A&M's strength of schedule 

Mike Elko doesn't want to hear anything about the Texas A&M Aggies' schedule from last season. He also doesn't want to hear anything heading into 2026.

The Aggies made the College Football Playoff while going 11-1 in the regular season. Ranked No. 7, they then fell to the No. 10 Miami Hurricanes in the first round of the CFP. 

It was undoubtedly a good year for the Aggies, but one could have easily made the case that their first-round loss could have been a product of having an "easy" schedule. 

The Aggies kicked off the season with home games against UTSA and Utah State before playing No. 8 Notre Dame in South Bend in Week 3. Five of the eight SEC teams they played in 2025 finished with fewer than six wins.

Speaking on Wednesday with Paul Finebaum, Elko revealed that he doesn't buy into the strength of schedule, though. Texas A&M plays SEC football, and no matter which SEC team is on the slate, that's a tough matchup.

"Last year, we had the same conversation in the offseason," Elko said on "The Paul Finebaum Show" (h/t On3). "Then, we got in the season and I had to listen to people saying we didn’t play anybody. When you play nine SEC games, there’s no way to slice it. You look up and down the conference this year, everybody’s got a challenging stretch.”

Texas A&M's schedule to get harder in 2026 

Things may not be as "easy" for the Aggies in 2026. Five of nine SEC opponents won at least eight games last season. Texas A&M must play Missouri, Tennessee, Oklahoma and Texas. LSU is bound to be better in 2026 under Lane Kiffin, and Kentucky and Arkansas both have new head coaches with potential.

South Carolina is coming off a 4-8 season and retained Shane Beamer, but he's going to be under a ton of pressure to produce in 2026. He also has one of the best quarterbacks in the country in LaNorris Sellers. The Gamecocks will be dangerous, and Texas A&M plays them on the road.

For Elko, it all comes down to the SEC being the SEC, though. It's just tough to win games in the conference where "it just means more."

“Everybody’s got games on the road, and that’s a lot of really elite programs," he explained. "That’s why we coach in this league, that’s why kids want to play in this league, and that’s why we’re represented in the NFL Draft more than anybody. It’s daunting for sure, but it’s what we signed up for. That’s what the SEC is, and that’s what makes this conference great. That’s why our TV ratings are so high, and that’s why the passion around this sport in the SEC is so big.”