• After Texas A&M routs Missouri, Aggies have stadium to themselves.
• Texas A&M underachieved for years. Mike Elko redirected the course.
• Aggies aren’t unblemished. Elko calls run defense ‘awful.’

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Rueben Owens II scored his second touchdown late in the fourth quarter, and he looked into the stands expecting to see fans. He saw rows of empty seats.

“I was like, ‘Dang, there ain’t nobody here,” Owens, the Texas A&M running back, said.

That’s the sign of a rout in motion.

Then Owens shifted his gaze toward the southeast corner of Missouri’s Memorial Stadium. He saw packed stands in that nook. That’s where Aggies fans congregated and celebrated as No. 3 Texas A&M pulled away in a 38-17 romp over No. 17 Missouri.

“That just shows a lot of love from the 12th Man,” Owens said.

The wind whipped, and the temperature plummeted after the sun set. That tends to happen on fall nights in the Midwest. Combine the elements with the increasingly lopsided score, and most Missouri fans headed for warmth or to pursue something more pleasurable to the eye.

Those wearing maroon and white in the southeast corner still wouldn’t leave, even after the clock showed 0:00. They cheered and they chanted, and wide receiver KC Concepcion decided he’d join the party. He ascended the steps from the field and gave the fans what they wanted: another reason to chant and cheer.

“KC! KC! KC!” they chanted.

Aggies fans waited too long for a season like this.

It’s not finished yet, but pinch yourself, because it’s the second weekend of November, and Texas A&M hasn’t folded. To the contrary, these Aggies grow stronger. They’re undefeated. They’re on a march toward Atlanta.

Mike Elko reminded of why he took Texas A&M job

This is what’s long been expected of a program steeped in financial resources, blessed with gleaming facilities, backed by loyal fans and rooted in fertile recruiting terrain.

And it became a rite of summer we’d vault the Aggies into some lofty position in preseason polls. And it became a rite of November we’d say another Texas A&M team showed itself to be overhyped.

As one coach after another failed, we kept considering this a top-shelf job. Because, never mind the history, why shouldn’t this program succeed?

That’s what Mike Elko thought when he succeeded Jimbo Fisher.

“From a CEO perspective, obviously I believe this is what this program is capable of,” Elko said. “That’s why we’re here. We’re here because we believe in the ceiling of this program.”

“This is kind of what everyone had been talking about with this program for a long time,” Elko added. “For nine games we’ve lived up to it. Now, we’ve got to go finish.”

Mike Elko is done talking about the past

They’re already finishing better than how they did last season, when a three-loss November spoiled an otherwise solid debut to Elko’s tenure.

Throughout the offseason and into the preseason, one word became a mantra around the program.

Finish.

By now, Elko’s tired of hearing about last season’s collapse. When a reporter referenced the events of last November, Elko waved it aside.