\n\tTexas A&M head football coach Mike Elko may have ventured onto financially sensitive ground when he lashed out at the Aggies\u2019 largest fan site.<\/p>\n
\n\tDuring post-game remarks following Texas A&M\u2019s 27-6 loss Saturday at then-No. 14 Missouri, Elko took aim at negative posters on TexAgs.com, deriding the website as \u201cBilly\u2019s cesspool\u201d in a pointed reference to its co-owner and executive editor Billy Liucci.<\/p>\n
\n\tElko subsequently apologized for the remarks, saying he regretted his response to a press conference question \u201cin the heat of the moment,\u201d while emphasizing his \u201ctremendous relationship with Billy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tBut Elko\u2019s personal connection to Liucci is only part of the story. Liucci\u2019s company, Maroon & White LP, which publishes TexAgs and operates several related ventures, also has a substantial financial relationship with Texas A&M\u2019s primary athletic resource development vehicle, the 12th Man Foundation.<\/p>\n
\n\tAccording to its latest tax filings, the 12th Man Foundation paid Maroon & White LP $6.28 million in the fiscal year 2025 for \u201cexternal marketing services.\u201d That made Maroon & White the 12th Man\u2019s highest-paid independent contractor.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe nature and scope of those services are unclear. Liucci and a 12th Man spokesperson did not respond to emails seeking comment and clarification.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe 12th Man Foundation, a legally separate nonprofit, serves as the chief fundraising arm and official ticket provider of Texas A&M Athletics, transferring more than $72 million to the school in FY25 to pay for \u201cscholarships, programs and facilities.\u201d The organization also supplied $19.4 million in unrestricted donor funds to cover the initial buyout<\/a> payment due to former head football coach Jimbo Fisher, Elko\u2019s predecessor and former boss.<\/p>\n \n\tMaroon & White LP\u2019s relationship with the 12th Man Foundation is longstanding, though the scale of the payments appears to have increased of late. In FY24, the foundation reported paying $1.12 million to the publishing platform. The relationship dates to at least 2011, when the parties announced a marketing accord that offered shared benefits to 12th Man Foundation donors and TexAgs premium subscribers.<\/p>\n \n\tTexAgs\u2019 connections to the university\u2019s athletic ecosystem extend to the name, image and likeness world, as well. TexAgs has partnered with Texas Aggies United, Texas A&M\u2019s official NIL partner, to provide<\/a> \u201ccontent production, technology, administrative, marketing, and athlete activation support and services.\u201d Although there are no known direct financial partnerships between the university and TexAgs, in 2021, the website paid<\/a> $10,000 for exclusive media access to two Aggies football players. The deal was reportedly the first publicly known NIL-media-access agreement of its kind.<\/p>\n