← Zone 1150 - TexAgs Live
Zone 1150 - TexAgs Live
TexAgs Live - GO Hour with Nuño & Ryan Brauninger : 08.05.26
00:45:31
The Go Hour with Nuño and Brauninger, football is back! The first day of camp for the Aggies as David and Ryan talk about Ray's excitement around Ray Coney + A&M's head coach Mike Elko's comments on the diffculty of the 2026 season and more!
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- [00:01]
A
Well, well, well. It's a good. Well, well, well. I'm very happy to have Ryan Broninger in studio during the go hour, presented by the Warehouse at CC Creations. Cause today is a football Wednesday.
- [00:13]
B
Yeah. You smell that? It's not delicious. 1775 barbecue.
- [00:17]
A
Not yet. That's in a few minutes.
- [00:18]
B
It's not David's hideous lunch, unseasoned lunch. That is stinking up the entire office in the upstairs microwave. They're seasons and it is football. What you smell is football. And inevitably, though, with this being my third day running on the go, our filling in for the velvety yummy tones of Olin Buchanan, there is going to be a certain subset of our listener base, our Texas fans, that are upset that it's me today and it's been me for the last three days. I'm not going to describe that subset of human beings in terms of physical descriptors, but I think we can all put them together.
- [00:57]
A
Who?
- [00:57]
B
Who? Just imagine the people. That would be incredible fans of Olin Buchanan.
- [01:02]
A
They're about between 40 and 70, and they are men and women. I get. I get. Oh, yeah, oh, yeah. The older ladies love all they do. I didn't say what age was older, by the way. It only took you 51 seconds to send a zinger my way.
- [01:23]
B
What did I do to your way?
- [01:25]
A
Your food, that's. What'd you call it? Unseasoned.
- [01:29]
B
And stinks up the entire.
- [01:31]
A
It does not stink. I brought fish one time. It was an accident. It was salmon.
- [01:36]
B
Imagine trying to pull that by. So I accidentally brought fish for lunch. Like you accidentally. There was a chicken in your car. Like a dead chicken breast in your car, ready to go to work. And then out of nowhere, it somehow slips out and a fish flops in.
- [01:54]
A
This is the accident that I meant. Oftentimes I either prep for the week for what I'm gonna have for lunch, or I bring leftovers from the night before. So I do a little container before everybody can eat all the food, because my kids will continue to eat if you don't hide stuff. So I put my little container, boom, it's for lunch the next day. I don't think at. At 7:22pm when I'm about to put away my container.
- [02:15]
B
So it's less of an accident, more of just negligence on your part.
- [02:18]
A
I think it's an accident. Accident of not remembering. You shouldn't bring fish to work. And it was once.
- [02:24]
B
Hey, Nick. This guy couldn't be on B team. No, you couldn't be on B team.
- [02:28]
A
I'm not part of that.
- [02:29]
B
You know why? Because we're a hand up show. And you. It's okay for. Sometimes you say, you know what? I screwed up. Hand up, that's on me. You run from that.
- [02:38]
A
So you're saying that I don't apologize?
- [02:40]
B
No, I'm just saying that you're running from accountability. What you've done, though, this whole conversation has been brilliant because you were digging yourself a hole.
- [02:50]
A
There's no hole.
- [02:51]
B
No, you were digging yourself a hole. When you started to describe Olin Buchanan's
- [02:58]
A
fans, you asked the question.
- [03:00]
B
No, I didn't ask a question. I said, if you think about what Olin Buchanan's fans might be, their physical attributes, you could probably put them together. And then you started putting words to it on live radio.
- [03:13]
A
I said 40 to 70. This is a. You said men and women.
- [03:17]
B
And then you said, the women are older.
- [03:22]
A
There's nothing wrong with that. Dryer. Would you agree or disagree?
- [03:26]
B
Don't start pulling people in here especially. It's 805. She doesn't talk for another 10 minutes.
- [03:31]
A
I'm about to join the AARP group anyway, so I'm a part of that group.
- [03:36]
B
When is your birthday?
- [03:37]
A
September 10th.
- [03:38]
B
Yeah, I got a big one coming up next week.
- [03:40]
A
Is it 40? Holt, how'd you get so old?
- [03:44]
B
You know what people ask me, like, I can't believe you're 40 years old. And I'm like, you know, it's better than the alternative. Yep, getting older is better than the alternative. So you can't run from it. It's coming, Father. Time comes for every man. That's it. What do they say? It rains on the millionaire and the homeless man.
- [04:02]
A
There's nothing you can do about us. And make the most out of every minute and bring fish to work when you can. All right, let's start off with camp. Coach Elko held a press conference yesterday. I got a couple bites. I kind of want to talk through the first one. There's not really much to talk through. Just hearing him set the tone for the start of camp and his emotions
- [04:19]
B
behind that, it's like the start of what you're.
- [04:22]
C
What you're most looking forward to every year. And knowing that you're trying to formulate the strategy, the plan, the vision for the. This version of Texas A and m football, the 20, 26 team to go out and have the most success that they can have. And. But you also know how. How much that's going to change over the next four months. And it's impossible to predict how this journey is going to go. And so I think there's obviously a level of excitement. There always has to be and there should be. That's consistent year in and year out. I think, you know, as we've started to build and establish this thing, you know, you know, there's consistency with what we're. There's optimism and excitement about what we're capable of. I think those things all are important, but there's also, it's like kind of like, okay, we're about to start this long journey through a college football season, and so you're just kind of mentally getting prepared and ready for it.
- [05:19]
A
So that basically just sets the tone for the next one that I want to run. Because he talks about it being unpredictable. They believe in the work that they've done. I think the most important soundbite from yesterday just shows you he calls this the most challenging year that he's had at Texas A and M. All right. And he lays out the why behind it. So let's listen to that and then chew on it for a minute. Bronny. Here's Coach Oko talking about this is not going to be an easy season.
- [05:45]
C
I think one of the biggest challenges that this program will have is what we'll about to embark on. And that's what I said to our staff and that's what I'm going to say to our team tonight. This program has had a really hard time doubling down on success. That's our challenge, and that is a challenge and a puzzle that has not been cracked here before. And so I don't. There's not one piece of me that thinks anything is going to be easier. I think this is going to be the most challenging season that we've had. We've got to replace a lot of talented players. We've got to go to some really challenging places and. And we've got to have the same levels of success that we're expecting as a program or that we've established as the standard for this program. And so to me, all of that creates what looks to me like the most challenging season that we've had in the three. And so to your point, yes, it's obviously better to go into that challenge with a third year program. When you look at where we are from an accountability standpoint, from a strength and explosiveness standpoint, we are in a much better place than we've ever been as a program. That all matters and that will all help. But as I stand here on the beginning of fall camp the words like easy aren't coming into my mind right now. I think this is really a big challenging season for us.
- [07:04]
A
I forget how the question was phrased, but like, how good is it that this is your third year?
- [07:09]
B
Yeah. How much easier is it to.
- [07:10]
A
I think it was Rob from Maggie Illustrator who asked that. I believe I might be wrong, but. And he didn't mean it like, is it going to be easy? But just, you know, you've got your, you've, you've recruited for three years, you've got your culture set and Coach Elko is saying, you know, yes, all that obviously helps where we are right now, but now we have to do something we don't do very often at this university, which is doubling down on success.
- [07:33]
B
And that's a common theme that we've heard across the summer talking circuit is he has said some, not quiet parts out loud, but some stuff that may make A and M fans uncomfortable and everybody's excited and he's going, hey, we've never done this in back to back seasons. Just like, you know, what did he say about SEC media days, about the trophy cabinet? Like, he's not running from this stuff and he's out to change it. And so when you get a guy that's as organized and as smart and as efficient as he is, you have confidence as a media member or even as a fan when you. That there is going to be a plan of attack here. This isn't going to be wishful hoping that we just continue the momentum that we built last year. He took this as a challenge and then disseminated that message to his football team in the entire program about what is at stake this season and for all their accomplishments in year two last fall, they didn't win anything. And that's what he addressed at SEC media days. Now he's addressing the continued success, the sustained success that this program has struggled to accommodate and especially over the last, you know, since RC left, really, since RC left, there hasn't been how many back to back really good years that you had. You thought you were going to get one in 2012 and 2013 were pretty good.
- [08:57]
A
What, 9 and 4 and, and 11
- [09:00]
B
and 2, 11 and 2 and 9 and 4 with one of the worst defenses that this place has ever and will ever see and with a historic offense as well. But yeah, that's probably when you're going back and looking through it. Since RC left, that's probably the best back to back year run that the school has had and that's not good enough. It's not good enough with the resources and the expectations and. But you don't just snap your fingers and all of a sudden it has to happen like 2025 means nothing for 2026. And it's good that you've got some guys coming back that he mentioned setting his culture, setting the standard that does make your job. That just takes some things off of your plate as a coach. But that doesn't mean those, those areas of your plate don't get refilled by other things. And with everything that a college football coach is now, it ain't just a football coach. You're a cfo, you're a CEO, you're a psychiatrist. So once you take something off your plate, you're probably adding something right there too. So I really liked his answer for that and I like that this is a challenge. This isn't like we don't have anything up and rolling. We had one good season. Like in order for us to have sustained success here, we have to come up with a plan that's going to allow us to do that. I'm really interested to see kind of how that unfolds. What, what does that look like both on the field and off?
- [10:22]
A
Coach Elko isn't necessarily coaching against Alabama or Texas while he is on a week to week basis. What he is doing is coaching against history. Because as you alluded to, this place hasn't had. I think the next best stretch would have been 20, 20, 2021 when they went 8, 4 after the 9 and 1 season. Like that's not. That's what we've seen since.
- [10:45]
B
Well then you would say that 24 and 25 are better than that.
- [10:48]
A
Yeah, so yeah, but I, sorry following success because I don't know if I thought 8 and 5 would be considered like. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that, that started the run but the successful season was the 11 and 2. Can they follow up a successful season with another successful season and potentially exceeding that?
- [11:08]
B
Well, you look at the way they're recruiting and you, you like the future viability of the program. But here and now in this season there are questions and you know number eight in the eight in the coaches poll came out yesterday. I think it's the highest Texas A and M has been in the preseason coaches poll and I guess it would have been that year when they lost to App State. Weren't they preseason number five?
- [11:30]
A
Sounds right. Yep.
- [11:33]
D
For seven in 2021 they were number six.
- [11:35]
B
Okay. Yeah. So it's been since the last couple of years of Jimbo, but That is the echelon. That is the tier of teams that this program needs to be in. Like, you need to be in this conversation every year. And they're recruiting like it. And they played like it last year.
- [11:50]
A
Yeah.
- [11:51]
B
And the schedule is unforgiving. We go through all that. I just. I really like the direction of the football program under Mike Elko. You mentioned he's coaching against history, and I think he's very apt to, like, he's very aware of that. But there's also a simplistic nature that you have to boil it down to, and you talk about adding stuff to your plate. I think when you look at, like, I'm coaching against history, that's too much. Just go coach your team today.
- [12:20]
A
You know, from a fan's perspective and from an analyst perspective, its history has been what's been against Texas A and M. But he coaches about competition, identity, accountability. He doesn't mention the playoffs in that bite at all. He doesn't mention the SEC championship.
- [12:35]
C
He.
- [12:35]
A
He mentions putting your hand in the dirt. Let's go to work.
- [12:37]
B
Yeah. When it's third and six against LSU and Death Valley, who cares what they did in 2011.
- [12:45]
A
Right.
- [12:45]
B
You know, are you really coaching against that? You're just trying to coach the next.
- [12:48]
A
Kids don't know any of that. Right. They don't read the history the way we do. Right. Like, they just don't. For them, it's about, all right. That's what it used to be. We're here to start something new.
- [12:58]
B
Yeah. And that's. It goes back to the old adage we talk about all the time, that the. Sometimes, especially recruits, they don't take the wins and losses like the fans do. And wins and losses in a specific moment at a specific time rarely flip a kid's decision. But fans are invested. They've been emotionally invested in. In this team, in this football program for a long, long time. Financially invested as well. So you kind of understand some of the emotional rollercoasters that they go through. But for Coach Elko, it's. To me, there's no emotion there. Like, it is a. It is a steady heartbeat with a plan of how we're going to do about. Go about this. And what I. What I'm looking forward to is, you know, this is the. This is peak excitement until we get to game day. Right. Today is peak excitement until the ball's actually kicked off. So what do the ensuing weeks look like at fall camp? That's where you determine what. You really got to me, because it's going to be hot. There's going to be a lot of days as somebody that I was not anywhere close to a Texas A and M football athlete, but I was a collegiate athlete. There are plenty of days where you, there's the last place that you want to go is to practice.
- [14:10]
A
Yep.
- [14:10]
B
And it's brutal. And it's a mental, it's a mental challenge as big as a physical challenge. And are you up for that? Just mental conversation, that personal battle every day to get up, not just go to practice and exist, but to get better. That's where the culture of the team comes in. Do you have guys pulling everybody in the right direction? Because not everybody's bad days are going to be the same.
- [14:34]
E
Right.
- [14:34]
B
Some guys are going to have good days and that's whenever you need, like not just Marcel and Mike O'Reilly and Damian Sanford. That's where you're going to need some of these younger guys that are the next in line for these leadership positions. I'm thinking like a Landon Rink, like pull some guys with you. Landon Rink, super high energy. I think he's going to play a lot this year. Can he pull some guys in the direction of his energy instead of like having them a lull for a few days? Those, those are, those are just things that you look at at fall camp. Everybody talks about positional battles. I like the team aspect of it. Like, what kind of team are we going to be?
- [15:08]
A
Right.
- [15:08]
B
And that does have to do with how you execute third down defense. But it has more to do, I think, with how are you executing the everyday drills that are monotonous and boring by the time you get to August 20th. Are you still as engaged with those as you were on day one?
- [15:22]
A
I want to hear one more bite because this is about Damian Sanford, who I had in the studio yesterday, by the way, on our Texas Aggies United interviews. But here's Coach Elko talking about his health, if he's going to be well, first off, the overall health of the team. If Sanford's going to be able to go week one. Don't overanalyze his answer. He kind of explains it. So here's coach Elko on that.
- [15:41]
C
Yeah, I don't think we'll have anybody miss. Nobody going in with massive limitations. And so we're healthy and ready to rol.
- [15:50]
A
So Sanford's practicing already.
- [15:52]
E
Cool.
- [15:53]
A
And as far as, like again.
- [15:55]
C
So before we take this and run with this, like, there are natural football build up limitations that happen to guys who are recovering from injuries. So he's not going to go out there and take 82 reps in practice one. But, no, there's no limit. There's no, there's nothing that needs to be written about.
- [16:13]
B
So you think he'll be ready for the opener in that case, then, or
- [16:17]
C
see how camp goes? There's still probably some markers and some steps that he's got to go through, but we'll see he's on course to be.
- [16:26]
A
On course to be. But as he mentioned, we'll see how he handles the practice battles.
- [16:33]
B
I want to go back, listen to that clip. It reminded me of when the injury occurred and how everybody was breathless trying to get to social media, proclaim how this was a devastating blow for Texas A and M fans, media members, clickbait artists. They couldn't wait to get to social media to talk about how devastating of a blow it was for this Texas A and M football team. First of all, you didn't know that somebody could have stepped up and played. But then Billy calmly comes along and says, hey, why don't we just pump the brakes a little bit and let's see what this, what the injury looks like, how the surgery goes, the whole thing. And look, we're right here starting fall camp, and the head coach just said he's on schedule to play in the opener. Like, not even miss any time. Now, could they precautiously hold him out until Arizona State? Sure. But for him to be where he's at is pretty remarkable. And it's a huge credit to Damian and really probably the medical professional professionals and the trainers that took care of him during this time to get him in his position where he is ready on day one of practice to go out there and run around.
- [17:36]
C
Yep.
- [17:36]
A
All right, let's tell the people the name of the show. We went 19 minutes, haven't said hi to people or anything. It's Tech SAGS Live, presented by David Gardner's jewelers Rollo Insurance Studio. The Go Hour, presented by the warehouse at CC Creations over there in that section. When we do our show from there, it's the holistic planning Cool zone. If you want to be a part of the conversation, call us up on the Buffy's Catering and bartending hotline, 979693, 1150. Or Texas on that same number. That is the catalyst. Pure Performance Energy Tech slide, 979-693-1150. We're going to go around the room. We go left to right. We go behind the glass and say hi to Nick Savage. Nick, good morning. Howdy.
- [18:12]
E
Good morning.
- [18:12]
A
Y', all, what's up?
- [18:13]
E
I couldn't agree more, Bronnie. I think today is. Is the most hyped that we'll all feel. And maybe even tomorrow morning when we actually have some. Some videos and some reports to watch and read. So, yeah, football's back. It's exciting and can't wait to see is it to me and y' all can help me remember this feels like the first time that A and M has gone into a fall camp without anybody, you know, limited. And obviously Sanford's going to be limited, but at least practicing right. I feel like in years past there's always been people already out who got injured in spring ball and whatnot. So that's encouraging to me. Going starting fall camp with everybody participating in some form or fashion.
- [18:54]
B
Nick, do you think Sterling Martin cost himself the Daytona 500 in 2002?
- [18:58]
E
Well, Sterling Martin isn't even a driver. You mean Sterling Marlin?
- [19:03]
B
Sterling Marlin? Yeah.
- [19:04]
E
Oh, yeah. I wasn't alive then, Bronnie, so I don't know.
- [19:09]
A
Ronnie got a nice text from ron, class of 80, about us. It's really nice.
- [19:16]
B
Fire away, Ron.
- [19:18]
A
The egos of Nunoz. And he has to put Z on there because he's an idiot. And Bronnie are too big for one show slash stage.
- [19:26]
B
Sweet.
- [19:27]
A
Their constant snipping at each other is too hard to listen to.
- [19:30]
B
Change the channel, pal.
- [19:32]
A
I had to turn it off.
- [19:33]
B
Yeah, so Ron, you should listen to. He should be a B team listener.
- [19:38]
A
Ron, come on over when I go visit assisted living and say hi to you in person.
- [19:41]
C
Wow.
- [19:43]
B
Class of 80s assisted living.
- [19:44]
A
No, I'm just. I'll shake your hand and say thank you for trying the show. And we'll have Opie come by and visit you as well.
- [19:51]
B
This guy's sensitive. He just can't help it.
- [19:54]
A
No, I can't help.
- [19:55]
B
I did a smooth walk by.
- [19:57]
A
Nobody wanted to hear it, though.
- [19:58]
B
Ron, we appreciate you listening.
- [20:00]
A
It's Ron Washington, by the way.
- [20:01]
B
It is.
- [20:02]
A
I think he's listening. Yes.
- [20:03]
B
That's just the way baseball go.
- [20:06]
A
Classic soundbite. Let's go to Kaylee Dreyer at the Angry Elephant News and Social Center.
- [20:11]
B
Maybe. Yeah, maybe some ego list. Kaylee Dreyer will help. It is 8:21. So she's allowed to speak now.
- [20:16]
D
I've been talking all morning.
- [20:19]
B
Just yesterday you came in and you told Nick you don't speak in the morning.
- [20:23]
D
When I first get here, it just takes me a second to, like, warm up to.
- [20:27]
B
Okay, everybody else, thank you, Kaylee.
- [20:30]
D
So I just wanted to get into. Obviously y' all talked about the preseason coaches poll. The AX came in at number eight. The SEC had nine teams in the top 25. The Big Ten had eight and the Big 12 and the ACC had four and three. And then I just wanted to go through from 2020 to 20. Obviously this year they were ranked number eight, 2020, number 13, 2021, number six, which was the lowest in the past six years. 2022, number seven, 23, number 25, 2024, they were not ranked. And then 2025 they were 21.
- [21:06]
A
Good stuff. Let's come back with some more stuff in a little bit because we are way late for a break. I'm talking 1775 tomorrow. I should be eating lunch there. They keep things exciting with mouth watering weekly specials. Thursdays you can get the brisket Philly. On Fridays you can indulge in a brazzle spuds or a perfectly smoked half chicken. Saturdays, raspberry chipotle pork, burnt ends and smoked barbacoa tacos. Rotating desserts that satisfy any sweet tooth. It's the place to go. And the queso Mac and cheese is absolutely delicious. I get it with every meal that I get there. They're open Thursday through Saturday, 11am until they're sold out. Call them up. 979-492-6241. It's 1775 txbbq.com the Money Machine is open now. Two ways to enter each week.
- [21:52]
B
Oh, come on.
- [21:53]
A
Don't keep us in suspense. Zone1150.com and the zone newsletter.
- [21:57]
E
Thank you.
- [21:59]
A
And we are back. It is Tech Sags Live. We are presented by David Garger's Jewelers Wallow Insurance studio. The Go Hour presented by the warehouse at CC Creation. James on the YouTube page has a comment that I think you'd like to hear. Ronnie's B team still on YouTube in the afternoons. Haven't been able to find it for my drives home. It's coming back, baby.
- [22:17]
B
We will be back the week before football season starts. So we're a little bit of a hiatus. We are the hardest working afternoon radio show on planet Earth and the moon. Except during the times when we're not working at all but when you're working
- [22:30]
A
hardest working, hardest working.
- [22:31]
B
And we, you know, we had a Nick used to produce our show and then Nick being as uppity as he is, he decided that it was too low brow for him. So all we've done is go hard. We've just gone to work and we've added Kate Bickham, as our producer, brings a ton to the table.
- [22:50]
A
Yeah, I don't know if you know this. Nick wakes up at 4am to start the show.
- [22:53]
B
I actually gotta, you know, credit to Nick. I was trying to pick fun at him. I don't know if I should do that because, you know, my ego is a little big. So along with my belly sensitive.
- [23:03]
A
Let it be.
- [23:04]
E
Yeah, Bronnie, for that comment, I am canceling the sweet graphics package we have.
- [23:09]
B
Oh, he did make a sweet graphics package. I'm sorry, Nick. I'm sorry. I forgot he did show me the. But I was going to give you a compliment. So I got a phone call from Jason Hutchins at Texas A and M baseball a couple of weeks ago because Clayton Freshcorn and Aiden Sims, who were coming to the Texas preseason kickoff event, they didn't know what to wear. And they were sitting in his office and they were nervous that they were going to be overdressed. So he called me to ask what the players should wear to the PKO event. After I told him, he goes, hey, do you drive a black truck? I was like, no, I drive a white truck. He goes, man, I get to work early and every time I drive by Texas, there's a black truck that's already beat me to work. I said, that's our producer, Nick Savage. Hardest working man in the game, man.
- [23:51]
A
You've gone from here to here in a matter of 34 seconds, Nick.
- [23:56]
E
I love it. I'm actually driving my wife's car, so he probably thinks I'm lazy now. But don't worry, I've still been getting here just as early.
- [24:04]
A
All right, let's play a little 25 and 25. Presented by Paragon Financial Financial Advisors and Aggie owned independent fee only fiduciary, serving families and business owners nationwide. Visit Paragon adv.com number 18 on the list, Ray Cony.
- [24:20]
B
Linebacker Ray Cony, a transfer from Tulsa.
- [24:23]
A
Are you thinking about making fun of me there?
- [24:25]
B
No, no, no. I just. The delivery. You put me on my heels a little bit. You've humbled me a little bit. Thank you, David. I needed some humbling this morning. Ray Cony, excited about him. Remember whenever he went into the transfer portal, there were a lot of A and M fans that like, oh, that fits exactly what we need at linebacker, a bigger body that can run, has a ton of tackles to his name at Tulsa, has a very interesting route to Texas A and M, and he's kind of seen every level of football on his way to College Station and We will see how much he impacts this defense. Down to down, series to series, regardless. At the very, very least, let's say he's not an every down player. He's not a starter. You have now provided yourself with quality depth and insurance. Should something happen with one of those guys ahead of him, I think there's a real conversation to be had. He's one of the names. If you're looking through positions on this team and you're looking at guys that could, with a strong fall camp, really emerge as an every down player, I think Ray Kony is one of them. Not just because he's behind somebody, but I think the linebacker spot opposite of Damian Sanford is up for grabs and it could be him, it could be Noah McHale, it could be Jordan Lockhart. I'm excited to see Ray Cony when the ball is snapped and it's 11 on 11, not drills, not 7 on 7, 11 on 11, 11 on 11 where he can shine. Because what is he? He's a tackle maker and he's wearing number 21. And the last guy that wore that jersey here was a tackle maker. And I think there's something to be said for when the game gets played and there's actual football happening. If your name gets called a lot, there's something to it. I don't care how what the 40 time is, I don't care what the shuttle time is, the broad jump, the vertical, all that stuff. That's what the NFL tests and that's what gets drafted. But for me, if I'm going to win a game, does he get his name called? Calling his name out because he made tackles?
- [26:21]
A
Yep.
- [26:21]
B
And that's what he's done in his career.
- [26:22]
A
The film will tell you he is athletic enough for the sec. We'll see how it translates. He sidelined the sideline, as you mentioned, a tackle machine. Those are things that coaches can trust and put them in. The questions will be how quickly does he make the transition to the sec? And I think he will make that transition. And also how does he do in misfits? Does he plug holes? Because that's, that's a big thing and that's something that I talked to Damian Sanford about yesterday when he was in studio. That the, the linebackers know they cannot miss it. That that is something that they're working
- [26:51]
B
on and that was something that Mike Oko address last off season, going into the off season. I think Richard asked him about it yesterday and this, his answer was correct. Like we can talk about it. We think we've gone back through the drawing board and tried to clean up our, our technique and how it's taught. But until you get out there and actually play football, we don't know the answer to did we fix some of the stuff on our run defense? Because, you know, schematically you can think that you've got every base cover, but you've got to instill the discipline in all of those guys to fit into those, those gaps. And all it takes is for one guy to be off, one guy to miss a tackle, and then they're out the gate and everybody's going, well, you didn't fix your run defense well. Ray Cony, they brought him in to be a part of the answers to those questions.
- [27:35]
A
Now it can. It's going to be hard to say this question because knowing what went to the NFL, but what if the linebacker group is better? You know, you lose Taurean, you lose Scooby like that, you're losing a lot of talent there. That being said, a more seasoned Damian Sanford, the growth of Noah McHale, and if Ray Kony can be what we think he can be, and Jordan Lockhart, every year, I think, has just gotten progressively better. You talk about those four guys. What if the group overall is better?
- [28:04]
B
I think that certainly with. It's certainly a discussion. And they had a new voice leading them. And how did they take the Travis Williams as their new position coach? What kind of energy does he bring day to day? How much different is his ability to communicate player to player, than what Jay Bateman had? I don't know all these answers, but this is from that part of it, that element of it. I think that, I think it's something that you have to look at when trying to evaluate, at least in the preseason, is how are these guys getting coached day to day and how are they being communicated with day to day and Jordan Lockhart? Listen, not a ton of cameos, but when he's been in like late games, he's flashed.
- [28:42]
A
Yeah. And here's something that I've said over and over, and I think, I hope that Rick Kony is another example. When Derek Miller and Mike Elko want somebody, there's usually success that follows. Right. Like, look at what they have done, grabbing guys. And even no matter what program they come from, San Diego State, Tulane, Bowling Green, whatever it may be, Kansas, it seems to work here at A and M at a very high level.
- [29:08]
B
Yeah, they've. They've got a really efficient process and we've written about it a ton. On the recruiting side, you See it in the portal. You obviously see it in high school recruiting. Billy put out an article yesterday and I won't divulge everything, all the intel that's in there. But one of the guys that he talks about in terms of big Summers was K.K. johnson, a guy that had a couple of offers as a quarterback at Fort Bend Marshall. They went and said, no, we think he's something else other than a quarterback. They offer him as a tight end and then everybody else goes, oh, like that's actually really. That's really forward thinking. Very good evaluation. So other schools jump in and A and M signs of. And now he's already turning heads because of the type of athlete that he is at the position. These guys have knocked it out of the park in terms of player evaluation. That starts with Derek Miller and Mike Elko, but it trickles down. There's a whole. There's a whole team of people over there that are into player evaluation and scouting and they have as good of a department as anybody right now because you're right. Like, they go and find players like Cassius how? And they go and find Marcus Ratcliffe and some of them are easier, but if Ray Cony hits, they went and found Ray Cony as well. So, yeah, huge feather in the hat. Huge kudos to Derek Miller and his team.
- [30:24]
A
All right, we'll hit a break here. We will come back with more. I want to hit a couple other sound bites from coach Elko from his introductory press conference before fall camp begins later on tonight. Right now, talking about the Rollo Insurance Group, where you get a personal agent, you get their direct number. Not a call center, not an automated system. You'll get someone who knows your situation and your name by face and name. That's the Rollo difference. And the difference is real. They got 60 offices in Texas. Whether it's home, auto, business, ranch insurance, start a relationship with an expert who puts you first. Your agent becomes familiar with your specific situation. And they provide a plan that most mass market insurers simply cannot match. So when you need advice or have a claim, you'll speak directly with somebody who knows you by name. That's the Rollo Difference. Visit rolloinsurance.com Tech Sags rolloinsurance.com Tech sags/8 44 Rollo. It's Rollo Insurance.
- [31:11]
B
Aggie football sounds even better online.
- [31:15]
A
Check it out@radioaggieland.com As a reminder, the final segment of the program is brought to you by Double Dave that session at 10:50. But right now, caller number 12 979-693-1150. We're going to hook you up with your choice of a dozen pepperoni rolls or a large one topping pizza from Double Dave's. They've been serving Aguiland since 1984 with your favorite pizza and of course those world famous pepperoni rolls, reliable in house delivery, bringing piping hot goodness straight to your door. Just click on DoubleDavs.com and your favorites are on their way.
- [31:45]
B
Can I quick shout out? You know, yesterday we did the TKO performance of the week and I talked about the summer that coach early had had. If we had delayed the TKO performance of the week by one day, we could have had a really baseball centric segment there because yesterday Cadence Sorrell, his first professional hit single. Bear Harrison, first professional hit, a triple
- [32:07]
A
and another one, right?
- [32:09]
B
And Gavin Grahovec, first professional hit, a home run. Also Brad Rudis, first professional strikeout in low way. Remember he went through the draft league and was playing unaffiliated baseball before being picked up with the Twins and he got his first appearance and strikeout of the season yesterday. So congratulations to all those guys.
- [32:27]
A
Props to them. Bronny, I want to hear this sound bite from Coach Elko. It's a question that I asked because I think this, to me is why I believe in his entire process, this exact sound bite. I asked about not having certain starters figured out just yet because of basically how much competition that they have in those rooms. Now, some guys may have been coming in thinking they'll be starters, but they understood when they signed the dotted line that this was going to be a battle. And here's Coach Elko talking about his philosophy behind that. In today's college football world, when you
- [33:02]
C
have 18 to 21 year olds, competition is better. The desire to have to get up every day and fight to earn things is what will ultimately create the development that you need. Need. You know, we don't have, I say this a lot but like we don't have 32 year old NFL veterans that you just want to hand jobs to. You still want to create that competitive mindset in these young kids. And so I think that's what we have strived for in roster creation even to say, you know, we're not bringing in the starting tackle. We're going to have a handful of guys that we think are really good, good that can compete to earn that spot because through that competition everybody gets better. And so I think we're excited about the fact that I don't know who some of the starters are going into fall camp. Offensive line, defensive line, linebacker. When healthy, who's going to be the second one? You know, there's a corner competition. Who's going to go out there and wide out, because we've got a lot of depth there. I just think there's a lot of competition across the board, and ultimately that elevates everything in your program. I think that's really important.
- [34:12]
A
So obviously he's got a couple spots. He knows who the starters are. He knows that Marcel Reed is his starting quarterback. He knows that when Damian Sanford is good to go, he's a starting linebacker. He knows that Mario Craver is his starting wide receiver. And I, yes, I do see, assume that Horton's going to be the X in that situation. But there's a lot of other positions, especially on the offensive line. D.J. hicks, another one. I think pretty much you can guarantee he's going to be a starter, but there's a lot of other guys that have the same level of talent. Some are just a little green in their development, and maybe they're not anymore. Maybe that whole year under Tommy Moffat's program and Coach Elko's philosophy as they're entering their next year, or maybe it's been two years in the process. Maybe those guys are ready to take the next step, but they don't have to if they're not ready.
- [35:00]
B
Yeah. And it speaks to his point about being hungry every day to compete for a spot and the competitive nature that you have to build in human beings this age that are highly athletic, highly gifted individuals. There is a mentality piece that comes with fighting for survival, fighting for my spot every day. And that's why I think there's so many of those instances where we think that four of those transfers are going to start on the offensive line, but we don't know that. Like, I don't think they know that either. And so one of the more intriguing elements about this fall camp are all those positions where you're going, man, like, we feel good about the group, but who's it going to be that's going to emerge as the starter or the every down player? And you, you've got a little bit of insurance, like on the defensive line, because you're going to rotate and play so many, but you got to get the starting five on your offensive line. You need to get it right. You need to get it right as soon as you can. That may take a couple of games before you figure out. Move some things around. We saw it with Texas last year. It Took them about halfway through the year before they figured out their best combination and started playing the best they could up front. But there's, you know, you mentioned Craver and Horton and I would throw ABR in that group. Is Terry Bussey ready to take the next step in his development or does he get pushed by Aaron Gregory and what do those reps look like? And I would love for Terry Bussey to continue kind of building on the momentum that he generated throughout the spring and the summer and lock down that spot. But you have to like where that group is as a whole because you do have that next wave of receivers pushing to get on the field. And whether it be offensive line, tight ends, another one where I, you know what's going to happen there. You brought in a bunch of different guys and Michael Riley talked about the group yesterday. But just position by position outside of the secondary and quarterback, you're going to go, all right. Like, there's some reps to be fought for starting today. And you speak to the culture of your team like we talked about earlier. Who's up for the fight, who's up for the physical grind, but also the mental grind of being sharp every day we go out there because I want the footballer, I want to be on the field when the important plays happen. And all of that is built, starting to be built right now.
- [37:19]
A
There's a couple ways you can look at it and they're not the exact same situation. When we had Jim Dunaway on, I think he said that both Keelan Russell and Austin Mack were pretty close back to back. Like they're in the same ballpark. And that could be a good thing or a bad thing. Right. Good thing is, man, there's no drop off if you go with either one. The bad part, there could be a big distance between the two. When Alabama was during their day, they could go too deep at every position. Right. And I'm hoping that's what we have.
- [37:46]
B
Georgia's doing it.
- [37:46]
A
Yeah, Georgia's doing it for sure. That's what I'm hoping we're going to get from A and M. Is that like, it's not because nobody's taken the job. It's because both of these guys want the job and are capable of taking the job.
- [37:58]
B
Yeah. Like, even at running back, we expect Ruben Owens to be the leader. I hope Ruben gets pushed in camp.
- [38:04]
A
Yeah.
- [38:05]
B
Because it'll make Ruben better. And if the leader is being forced to get better than the whole group gets better or some guys completely get left behind. I tend to believe that if the leader is being pushed to get better, then the whole group comes forward and that's a group that has a little bit of question marks. But I'm overall, I'm excited about. I'm excited about Jamari and Morrow. I'm excited about Ruben. I think Ruben caught a bad rap at the end of last year. I don't think that Ruben was 100% healthy and I do think there's a really good back in there and I think there's an every down back in Ruben Owens and I'm hoping that he has flipped the switch and is ready to take that mantle on. But if he's not, you've got some really capable backs and Jamari Amoro flashed in brief a lot and he's got something that not a lot of. I mean he's got a little bit of like a Darren Sprouls, Clyde Edwards, E layer to his game and that's exciting.
- [38:52]
A
About a year ago, maybe a little bit more than a year ago, I feel like Tiger was getting spoken about more than Jamarian. Jamari had a great camp, no doubt, and Tiger ended up getting hurt. But he's a guy that I think we don't talk about. I'm going to interview him later on today. We don't talk about because we don't know, we don't remember in a way. But let's not forget, you know how he was coming up the mean he
- [39:14]
B
was one of the premier players at DeSoto and those guys have enormous hit rates and not only at Texas A and M, but across college football. Like you go and you recruit really good players from DeSoto. They work out often. It's a huge testament to their program, the expectations in their program and how they are brought up from a young, you know, as a teenager. The expectations of them day to day, they translate well to college football. I think Tiger is like, Tiger is just steady Eddie. You know what you're going to get. Could he serve like an E.J. smith role for this team?
- [39:48]
A
Right.
- [39:49]
B
Where maybe he's not leading the team in carries week in, week out, but when he touches the football, they're important,
- [39:54]
A
important touches to move the sticks. Yep.
- [39:57]
B
Maybe he's in on, you know, maybe he's good in pass protection. He's really smart.
- [40:01]
C
Yeah.
- [40:01]
B
Like there's a, there's a role for Tiger riding, touching the football and also not touching the football on this team that I think can be really, really important. Everybody, I had a team source describe Tiger riding as a, as a power puller. Now why Is that important because it turns a third and three into a first down.
- [40:18]
A
Yep.
- [40:18]
B
And if he's that guy, then there's huge value for him on this team.
- [40:22]
A
We'll hit a break. One final segment here on the Go hour presented by the warehouse at CC Creations. There's recording family stories and there is what Heritage Films does, which is they just not only tell your story, they do it in a two hour documentary form. You got army veteran Chance McClane who doesn't just interview people, he immerses himself in your world. Whether it's timber farming in Oregon or cattle ranches in Texas or just a good old boy here, right down the road in College Station, he and his team do amazing work telling family stories. And to our Tech Sags audience, part of the reason his company exists is because what you guys do, Aggies love telling their stories and they care differently. And that's why family owned business like Chances love to tell your story. Check out the website YourHeritageFilm.com that is YourHeritageFilm.com. call them up. 7138-9383-4171-3893-8341. It's Heritage Films.
- [41:14]
B
Give it to me. Give it to me.
- [41:15]
A
The Louis Polina show. It's awesome. Sports, barbecue, ice cream and beer. Beer and more beer. You know where. Listening in weekdays limited two in the zone. We're back. It is Tech Sags live. We are presented by David Gardner's jewelers Rollo Insurance Studio. Want to give a shout out if you don't mind, to two people. First off, my brother Alex. Happy birthday. August 5th is his birthday.
- [41:37]
B
Felice Cs.
- [41:38]
A
He's not only my. My best friend, my mentor. Alex, happy birthday. Hope you have a great one.
- [41:43]
B
And is he fit?
- [41:45]
A
He is fit. Yeah, he's fit. He would destroy me in Jiu Jitsu.
- [41:51]
B
Better looking than you.
- [41:52]
A
No, no.
- [41:54]
B
I want a lot of things on record. No, Internet's a permanent place. This is gonna live forever.
- [41:58]
A
He's a good looking dude, but he's great at Jiu Jitsu. He's, I think a black belt. So he would kill me.
- [42:03]
B
So maybe you'd be nice to him on.
- [42:05]
A
I'm always nice to him. He's my big brother. So happy birthday to him. And my niece Valentina, who lives in Orlando, Adrian's daughter and Annie, his beautiful wife. So she had a birthday yesterday. I was supposed to call last night. I haven't done it, so I'm gonna do it after the show.
- [42:20]
B
Wow. Shout out to Valentin Feliz Kupleanos.
- [42:23]
A
Thank you very much. We got some football to get into text wise, so let's go straight to the angry elephant news and social center.
- [42:31]
D
Yeah, so we got a really nice text. Actually, the complete opposite. They said this isn't the same Aggie program as years past. Another year of Moffitt, a more experienced Marcel, firepower across the board. Absolute mad men in the coach's office. Come on. 20, 26 aggies.
- [42:48]
B
Look, that is a nice text message, but I thought it was going to be about us. And now my ego has taken yet another hit. Hey, don't. Don't think that I didn't clock what you did in the last segment. I just was nice and avoided talking. Oh, yeah.
- [42:59]
A
I didn't do a thing.
- [43:00]
B
Yes, you did. Nick. Nick, what sound bite did we play last segment? Who asked the question to get the sound bite?
- [43:08]
E
Well, we always play, you know, David's question, OB's question. We played Richard's question.
- [43:14]
A
I even played Carter's question earlier.
- [43:17]
B
So I'm just saying it was. There's been accusations about your ego in this show, and then you so happen to play the question that you asked Coach Elko, and. Great question, by the way.
- [43:26]
A
Thank you. I appreciate it.
- [43:27]
B
Ego aside, great question.
- [43:29]
A
Hey, I'm gonna go ahead and tell you, everybody on TV in radio has an ego.
- [43:33]
D
Right?
- [43:33]
A
I'm just telling you.
- [43:34]
B
I knew that I could just pick at it. It's like a minifestrin.
- [43:37]
A
I know. I have one. I'm okay with it.
- [43:39]
B
I have to, like, there's a certain element to this. Honestly, there are some crossovers between my jobs and, like, how you act and behave. Like, I don't think you're a completely different human being on air, but you have to be like a little bit of a souped up version of yourself.
- [43:54]
A
Animated version. Yeah.
- [43:55]
E
Yeah.
- [43:56]
B
And that's no different. Like, when. With coaching. One of the greatest pieces of advice that I ever got with coaching when I. When I first started with 12, was there shouldn't ever be a parent in the stands that thinks they can do what you. What you do. So if that involves a little bit of bravado and a little bit of showmanship, then do it. Because in what we're in an industry where they're paying for us to coach their kids. They want to get. They want to get a return on that investment. But there is something to that. Like where when I come on radio or B team, whatever, like, you're a little bit of more of a. Yeah.
- [44:31]
A
And ego can mean Multiple things. It doesn't necessarily have to mean cocky.
- [44:36]
B
Sure.
- [44:36]
A
There's like, you're allowed to get your feelings hurt.
- [44:39]
D
That's okay.
- [44:40]
B
You know what I'm saying?
- [44:41]
A
You're allowed. You're allowed to respond.
- [44:43]
B
Nick, this is going to be a long two hours, brother.
- [44:45]
A
That's going to be the best. And I like this one. A 979 sentence in David, David, David. Classic 1980 assisted living. Really? This is David, class of 81.
- [44:54]
D
Wow.
- [44:54]
B
I got my dad's class of 80,
- [44:57]
A
so, I mean, it's possible. These places are great.
- [45:00]
B
Listen, this guy took a shot at you, so you went completely over the top.
- [45:03]
A
It was a different guy who responded.
- [45:04]
B
No, no. But the original.
- [45:06]
A
I will always match energy. If you're sweet, I'll be sweet, too. You're rude. I'm gonna go rude. Hey, you can't take criticism. You can't take a response, bro.
- [45:15]
B
This has been a fun hour, but
- [45:18]
A
people like the locker room talk. We got another text about that, so appreciate you, bronnie. It's been a great week, man. Thank you. Tomorrow on the show, Richard Zane. Moving ahead, Amanda Kristovich talking a little college football. The Tech college sports act. That's next on Tech. From taco night in Tulum to sushi in Tokyo, make every bite rewarding with gold from Amex.
- [45:36]
B
Wherever you dine four times.
- [45:38]
A
Membership rewards points at restaurants worldwide are piling up. Learn more@american express.com Explore Gold Terms and points cap apply.