The Tigers are rolling on down to Aggieland.

Missouri football goes on the road for the first time this season this Saturday, and it’s a big one, as No. 9-ranked Mizzou (4-0, 1-0 SEC) team gets set to face No. 25 Texas A&M in College Station. The game will air on ABC, with kickoff scheduled for 11 a.m.

The Aggies (4-1, 2-0) have defeated Arkansas, Florida, Bowling Green and McNeese. Notre Dame defeated coach Mike Elko’s team in his first game in charge of Texas A&M back on Aug. 31.

More: Takeaways from each of Missouri football’s remaining SEC opponents through Week 5

Elko and select A&M players, including presumed starting quarterback Marcel Reed, met with local media in College Station on Monday to preview the game against Missouri. Here is what they told reporters ahead of the Mizzou matchup:

On the challenge of covering Missouri football’s Luther Burden III

Elko sees more than one problem defending Burden.

“Obviously,” the A&M head coach said, “Luther Burden is the headliner.”

But …

The head coach also was wary of the focus the star playmaker can take away from the rest of the Missouri offense. Elko called Nate Noel an “elite runner,” and praised the Tigers’ “three outstanding receivers” with the addition of Theo Wease Jr. and Mookie Cooper.

“It's not a one-man show, and it's not just, ‘OK, hey, we're going to stop him at all cost and not worry about anybody else on the field,’" Elko said. "You’ve got to, obviously, be aware of him, know where he is, know how you're leveraging him and make sure that that's got as much help as possible most of the time. But at the end of the day, as special of a player he is, and he's truly special — I mean, he'll be one of the first wide receivers taken in this year's draft — it's a really talented offense, which makes it challenging.”

Marcel Reed on the Mizzou defense

Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz called his shot Tuesday, saying that he believes redshirt freshman quarterback Marcel Reed, who has started and helped the Aggies win their past three games, will start again Saturday against Mizzou, even if Week 1 starter Conner Weigman returns from injury and is available.

More: Why Missouri football coach Eli Drinkwitz expects to see Marcel Reed at QB for Texas A&M

Weigman is reportedly back throwing for the Aggies in practice, but it was Reed who met with media in College Station earlier this week and took questions about the Mizzou defense.

“I know that they're a top-10 team defensively, top five in total defense. So, I mean, it's going to be good preparation for us, and we're going to attack them just how we attacked any other team,” Reed said. “You know, going over what coverages they’re going to do, their top coverages … and stuff like that, and finding ways to fill those voids and attack them in a way that they don't like.”

The Texas A&M quarterback is 38-of-68 passing over his three starts for an average of 171.3 yards per game, and he has six touchdown passes and zero interceptions. Reed has rushed for 62 yards per game and two touchdowns. in wins over Florida, Bowling Green and Arkansas.

“They're going to be a tough team. Obviously they've proven themselves last year,” Reed said. “But they're coming to Kyle Field, so we're going to give them something.”

Elko on facing off against Eli Drinkwitz, Brady Cook

Elko and Drinkwitz have squared off before.

The first-year Texas A&M head coach recalled his days as Wake Forest’s defensive coordinator, which overlapped with Drinkwitz’s stint as the offensive play-caller at ACC-rival NC State.

For reference, Drinkwitz won that round, as the Wolfpack pulled out a 33-16 win in 2016. The rematch went Elko’s way, as he was Texas A&M’s defensive coordinator when the Aggies beat Mizzou 35-14 in Columbia in 2021.

So, there’s some familiarity there.

“I think they do a really, really good job of attacking you sideline to sideline and then pushing you vertical in the throw game,” Elko said. “A lot of different play-action concepts; always quick to go to a trick play at the right time — does a really good job making sure that those are designed the right way and schemed the right way. So, yeah, he's just a really good offensive coach, and they've done a really, really good job for a long time.”

That starts with the Tigers’ quarterback, in Elko’s eyes.

“Brady Cook, I think he's extremely talented,” Elko said. “Can throw the ball all over the field, does make plays with his feet, extends drives, makes plays on third down, has enough athleticism to do some things running the football. I don't know that I would label him a dual-threat, but he makes a lot of plays with his feet; a lot more than I think people give him credit for. And he's such a winner. Like, he plays the game the right way.”

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: What Texas A&M's Mike Elko, Marcel Reed said before Missouri football game