Making the case for Deion Sanders, Mike Elko as candidates to replace Jimbo Fisher at Texas A&M

After Jimbo Fisher went 5-7 in 2022, there was a lot of talk about whether Texas A&M should move on from him. With the Aggies off to a 4-2 start this season and coming off a loss to Alabama, Kayce Smith of Barstool Sports believes it’s time.

Speaking with On3‘s Andy Staples on Tuesday, the A&M alumna provided two names the Aggies could look at if they do make that decision. Colorado coach Deion Sanders would be here dream candidate, while Duke coach Mike Elko represents a more “realistic” option.

“People are asking me, ‘who do you want to go get?’ Of course my answer is, ‘give me Deion Sanders,'” Smith said. “I would be the most insufferable person on the planet. If you get Deion at A&M, my whole world would just be made. But in reality, you’ve got guys like Mike Elko, who’s coached at A&M before. Mike Elko is clearly taking that step to be a good head coach.”

Sanders has been one of the biggest stories of the college football season after rehauling the Buffaloes roster this offseason. He’s taken a Colorado team that went just 1-11 the year prior and turned them into a respectable squad that is 4-2 so far, the same record as A&M. He clearly has the energy needed to revitalize a program, but he might be a bit far-fetched.

Elko has ties to A&M after serving as the defensive coordinator to Jimbo Fisher from 2018-21. He’s turned around a Blue Devils team that went 3-9 the year before his arrival, taking them to a 9-4 finish in 2022 and getting them off to a 4-1 start this season.

Regardless of who the Aggies get however, Smith is ready for a change.

“You look across the board and you say, ‘OK, do you promote somebody from within? Do you go out and find the next big thing?'” she said. “I don’t know. But I do know that thus far it seems like Jimbo Fisher is a great recruiter. He’s gonna get those guys on campus and it’s just not gonna come to fruition. It’s not just because they lost to Alabama. Week in and week out, you scratch your head. If they go out and beat Tennessee, great. I’m not gonna be changing my tune.”

Jimbo Fisher’s buyout is the biggest thing standing in the way of A&M letting him go. He’s owed $76.8 million according to his contract, which keeps him through the 2031 season.

The Aggies have had just one season with double digit wins since 2000, and haven’t won a conference title since 1998 in the Big 12. Their loss to Alabama on Saturday doesn’t provide much hope they’ll get there this season either, as the Crimson Tide now have control of the SEC West.

Still, Smith believes it is possible to turn things around. She pointed to the immediate success Sanders has had at Colorado and what Sonny Dykes did for TCU last year in leading it to the national championship game.

After six seasons of watching the same thing play out, she’d rather try to find someone like those coaches rather than continue to hope Fisher gets the job done.

“Giving a guy a guaranteed contract is always gonna be very risky,” she said. “I still don’t understand that thought process. Guaranteed for 10 years. That does not make sense However, in reality, what does A&M expect? A&M hasn’t been at the top of a conference in a very long time and I do understand that. But when you look at everything since Johnny (Manziel) has been there, everything has taken that step up to become that next program.

“You’re not gonna become that overnight. But look what TCU did last year. You bring in a first-year head coach for TCU with Sonny Dykes and they make it to the national title game. Deion’s obviously a different level, but you look at these different places and it can happen. Why is it not happening in College Station? To me, it’s the head coach situation.”