Tag: Paul Finebaum Show

Texas A&M coach Mike Elko has eliminated ‘fingers on a chalkboard’ ahead of Florida game

“There is a lot of hip hop on the Mike Elko Spotify, it’s just from a different genre and different age, old school,” the Aggies coach said.

Ahead of the Texas A&M football team’s SEC opener on Saturday afternoon at Florida, head coach Mike Elko appeared on The Paul Finebaum Show and explained how the Aggies are preparing for their first road game.

“Honestly what we do, and this is probably a little bit of a new-age coach, I promised the kids that I would never do the actual crowd noise stuff because as an assistant, that used to drive me crazy and would feel like fingers on a chalkboard. The kids always want music, that’s what they all want at practice, so when we’re all simulated, we put the speakers right behind the offense and we turn the music up about as high as we can get it. The speakers literally portably move right behind the offense, so it’s pretty deafening, but it’s the music that the kids wanted at practice so it kind of goes both ways,” Elko said. “The kids have the access to our operations staff and we let them kind of figure out what they want. I just tell them how bad it is every time I listen to it.

“I’m probably a little bit different than what you think too, there is a lot of hip hop on the Mike Elko Spotify but it’s just from a different genre and different age, old school.”

Kickoff at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville is scheduled for Saturday at 2:30 p.m. on ABC.

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‘Conner’s going to go into the spring as the number one’ HC Mike Elko appears on the Paul Finebaum Show

Aggies head coach Mike Elko provides an update on QB Conner Weigman’s injury recovery

Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko, who established himself as a favorite among the fan base even before coaching his first game with the program, has made the media rounds during the A&M’s spring practice period, which officially began late last week.

While the roster as a whole, which is filled with blue-chip talent at every level, will continue to create multiple storylines this offseason, incoming redshirt sophomore starting quarterback Conner Weigman’s injury recovery after missing eight games during the 2023 season is under the microscope once again.

On Monday, during an interview with Paul Finebaum on the SEC Network, Elko expanded on the talent of the Aggie’s quarterback room while providing a straightforward update on Weigman’s injury progression:

“Connor’s going to go into the spring as the number one, and I think everyone’s aware of that,” Elko said. “Like everthing, you want competition and competition within your program.”

In terms of how he’s working through the everyday practice-related tasks, Elko expanded on the level of intensity that Weigman can take on during the early portion of the spring period:

“He’ll be able to work efficiently as a pocket passer. I don’t know how well he’ll be able to truly run around yet,” Elko stated. “He still hasn’t quite been fully out there doing agility work and those types of things. It’s important for us to get him out there and get him integrated in the system.”

Regarding the options behind Conner Weigman, senior Jaylen Henderson, and sophomore Marcel Reed are about as good as backup security.

“You have two quarterbacks who filled in and had some very succesful moments, as Jaylen Henderson on the backend of the year had a great game against Mississippi State. Jaylen wound up getting hurt on the first series of the bowl game, and Marcel Reed, as a true freshman steps in and throws for over 370 yards in the bowl game.”

Right now, nothing on the injury front has changed outside of the already known players who will miss spring as they continue to recover, including offensive linemen Kam Dewberry and Aki Ogunbiyi, defensive ends Shemar Turner and Enai White, and tight end Donovan Green, who missed the entire 2023 season due to an ACL tear.

For Conner Weigman, slow and steady wins the race, and a full recovery should be the only thing on his mind. Texas A&M’s annual Maroon & White Spring Game will take place on Saturday, April 20.

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SEC Nation is coming to College Station for Texas A&M vs. Auburn

SEC Nation is coming to College Station for Texas A&M’s big SEC home opener vs. the visiting Auburn Tigers next Saturday morning.

Saturday’s showdown between Texas A&M (2-1) and the visiting Auburn (3-0) Tigers is big, folks, as the SEC opener for both squads is filled with future implications in the wide-open SEC West.

For the Aggies, Saturday’s decisive 47-3 home win over UL Monroe didn’t answer any lingering questions, while the Tigers 45-13 win over Samford showed a versatile performance from quarterback Peyton Thorne (283 yards, 1 TD pass, 123 rushing yards, two TDs).

Due to the importance of the matchup for both programs, it was announced Sunday that SEC Network’s Saturday morning pregame show, SEC Nation, is coming to College Station and will broadcast live from Texas A&M’s Aggie Park before kickoff.

Outside of the regular morning broadcast, The Paul Finebaum Show will also be live from Aggie Park from 2:00-6:00 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 22, while Marty & McGee on Saturday morning from 8:00-9:00 a.m.

After falling to the Tigers 13-10 on the road in what was a miserable game within an even more miserable 2022 season for both programs, revenge is on Jimbo Fisher’s mind behind the arm of ascending quarterback Conner Weigman.

Texas A&M will host the Auburn Tigers at Kyle Field on Saturday, Sept. 23 at 11:00 a.m., where it will air on ESPN.

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WATCH: MSU head coach Mel Tucker joins ‘Paul Finebaum Show’ ahead of 2022 season

MSU head coach Mel Tucker jumps on the Paul Finebaum Show to discuss the upcoming season, his contract extension with MSU and getting his start with Nick Saban

Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker was a guest on “The Paul Finebaum Show” on Thursday to discuss the upcoming season, look back at his decision to sign a contract extension with the Spartans and getting his start with Nick Saban.

Watch the interview below:

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Check out what Billy Napier had to say on the Paul Finebaum Show

Billy Napier is learning from the past and making the appropriate changes to rebuild Florida football.

Billy Napier joined the Paul Finebaum Show on the SEC Network on Friday for the first time as Florida’s head coach. The interview started with some friendly banter and Finebaum didn’t press any hard questions as Napier repeated many of the remarks made at his introductory press conference.

Napier reiterated his intention to hire a staff the size an NFL team would have to ensure the evaluation process goes smoothly when deciding which players to bring on board. The process was refined at Louisana, and Napier said that Florida has the resources to execute his plan at a much greater level.

“Once you decide who you think is good enough to play for the Gators, then it’s about recruitment,” Napier said. “It’s about customer service. It’s about building relationships. It’s about selling the University of Florida.”

Finebaum didn’t ask any direct questions about players entering the transfer portal or Florida losing many of the former coaching staff’s top commits in the first weeks of Napier’s tenure, but he did poke at some of the team’s struggles. Napier said that Florida should be able to recruit at the same level as the conference elite and that he plans to do so going forward.

Napier told Finebaum that he’s having a lot of one-on-one conversations with players and staff to find out what needs to change with the program. Establishing a good network of people is the first step in what looks to be a slow process to rebuilding Florida football.

“We’re going to do this one day at a time, we’re going to do it one person at a time,” he said. “And I think it’s important to listen to the people that were here. What did they learn? What was done well? Where did the train get off the tracks?”

Napier said that he’s already pinpointed a few changes that can be made to get the team headed in the right direction, but he refrained from getting into specifics.

“We can learn from the good, the bad and the ugly,” Napier said.

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Finebaum: NCAA president Emmert’s handling of cancellations “inexcusable”

Cancellation was always going to be the safe decision, but the NCAA’s lack of communication left conference leaders in the dark.

Last week, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey appeared on The Paul Finebaum Show to disclose that he learned secondhand of NCAA President Mark Emmert’s decision to cancel spring and winter sports amid COVID-19 concerns.

As per Sankey, he learned of the cancellation from a journalist. He received no prior notification from NCAA officials.

Though it was always going to be the safe decision to make, the communication (or lack thereof) related to the NCAA’s cancellation plans left conference leaders in the dark.

Following Sankey’s revelation, Finebaum, in an appearance on Birmingham’s WJOX, let loose on his perceptions of the issue.

“I know this is the wrong time to make absolute statements but I’m going to make one anyway. That moment was the end of the NCAA as we know it. It may have power in existence for some times but that was an existential moment in the history of the NCAA where knowing the commissioners like we do, they are going to band together at some point, when the storm clears, and are going to say, ‘You know what, we’re not going to take that anymore.’”

Finebaum continued regarding the communication breakdown:

“For Mark Emmert, not to have more consultation with the people that feed the system was inexcusable. And what was interesting is we all praised him on Wednesday afternoon, ‘What a great decision to go ahead and announce that there would be no fans (for the 2020 NCAA Tournament)’ and in the moment it did look good, but once again no consultation with anyone.”

The necessary precautions for the general public’s safety never came into question for Finebaum.

“Quit praising him for making the right call…it wasn’t a difficult call.”

He concluded:

“Let’s not give him too much credit or give anyone too much credit. This was this a domino effect, which we all know was caused by the NBA (being the first major American sporting league to suspend play due to coronavirus concerns).”

For other inquiries into how the global health pandemic affects the world of college sports:

Coronavirus forces NCAA to make big decisions regarding eligibility, recruiting

SEC cancels its men’s basketball tournament due to coronavirus

NCAA grants spring season athletes an extra year of eligibility

Will Georgia football cancel G-Day due to coronavirus?

Georgia football Pro Day postponed amid coronavirus outbreak