New Kansas State coach and Texas A&M OC Collin Klein will juggle CFP prep with rebuilding his alma mater, leaving Mike Elko searching for a new playcaller.
Collin Klein is officially pulling double duty. Texas A&M's offensive coordinator has accepted the head coaching job at his alma mater, Kansas State, but will remain with the Aggies through their College Football Playoff run.
In a coaching carousel that has already yanked key assistants from Tulane, Ole Miss and Oregon in the middle of title chases, A&M is the latest contender forced to adjust on the fly.
Klein made it clear during his introductory press conference in Manhattan that he's not bailing on the Aggies' postseason goals.
Instead, he'll be splitting time between College Station and the Little Apple, trying to prep game plans and build a program at the same time.
"I'll be back and forth," Klein said. "There will be responsibilities during the day when I'm in College Station prepping for the playoff game… and then anytime there's a break and in the evenings, coming back here and getting going on recruiting, beginning to start building a staff and building relationships with our players."
The former Heisman finalist isn’t shying away from the grind, either.
"I love challenges," Klein said. "To take this program where it's never been is going to be hard, and I want it to be hard. We're going to attack it as a staff, with our players, as a fan base, and as an administration."
From the A&M side, the move is another reminder of what happens when you're winning at the highest level ... other schools come shopping for your staff.
Head coach Mike Elko isn't treating Klein's promotion as a crisis, but as proof that the Aggies' offensive resurgence has been noticed nationally.
"It’s a tremendous opportunity for someone on our staff to take the next step in their career," Elko said. "And I do everything I can to support and help those endeavors."
In the short term, the priority is to keep the playoff train on the tracks while Klein calls plays and Elko quietly works on identifying the Aggies' next offensive architect.
In the long term, A&M now has to nail its next hire to maintain its momentum, because if this coaching cycle has proven anything, it's that elite programs either adapt or get left behind.
For now, Aggies fans will live in two worlds with Klein ... dialing up shots for a potential national title in maroon and white, while sketching out the future of Kansas State in purple.
How smoothly he balances both will shape not only A&M's postseason, but also the first chapter of his head-coaching career.