Hey, well, we're pleased to be joined by Travis Brown, who he's covered the Texas A&M Aggies for a long long time at the Bryant College Station Eagle, and you got to give him a follow at Travis underscore L underscore Brown.

Travis, thank you so much for joining me for the first time. It's a pleasure to have you on the show.

Yeah, thanks for having me. This is great.

Hey, like I was just saying off air here, you know, we like to stick to football. This is strictly an SEC football show, but I got to ask you about basketball because I know you were up there for the NIT up in New York City.

And I know normally that sometimes the NIT, it's kind of like who cares, but man, I saw Aggies were all over this thing.

It was such a tremendous tournament and you got to go up there to New York City and cover the event. So what was that like?

Man, it was fun. You know, I've covered the dance day tournament before back when A&M was there in, you know, 2016 and 2018.

And it's it's fun because it's the NCAA tournament and it's exciting, but man, it's it's like an away game for those teams when you're there in the NCAA tournament because, you know, you just go to the hotel, you're in Dayton or Oklahoma City or whatever, and you kind of just hang around the hotel and you play your games and leave.

Man, especially since they won, they were up there for a whole week and it's kind of like a bowl experience as close as you can for these basketball players because they get to walk around the city, they get to go to the museums, they get to, you know, I think Buzz took the team to the Lion King, one of the first nights they were there.

I mean, it's as close as like a football bowl experience where, you know, those football players get to go and see some sites and do some stuff in town as you can.

So I think for the players in that regard, it's it's about as cool as anything you can do in basketball off the court. And then on the court, I mean, you're playing a Madison Square Garden, a historic venue.

It's cool. You know, it's it's cooler than than I thought it was. I think like you said, there's a little bit of a stigma with the NIT because it is kind of the the consolation tournament, but from the experience realm.

Getting to go and do all that as a player, I think it's awesome. And then to tie it back into football again, when you make a wrong long run in the NIT, especially with a young team like A&M has, it's like bowl practice.

I mean, they get to be on the court practicing band together, building the building blocks for next season longer than then.

I mean, if you compare it to the NCA tournament, they're getting to do that as long as any team that makes it to the final four because there was really only the final four left besides the NIT finals. So yeah, great experience for everyone. And I think it is, I mean, you look at at the 10 years of coaches.

A lot of times the NIT is a springboard into a run for years to come in the NCA tournament. And so I think that's what Aggie fans are hoping this will be.

Yeah, and maybe I shouldn't have been so surprised because we all know how passionate that A&M fan base is, but I mean, the fans were out. And like I said, you know, they were celebrating the deep run into the NIT all the way literally to a man, a basket went in and out, could have won the championship.

But next season, hopefully Buzz Williams and company back in the postseason in the NCAA tournament, but I got to ask you about the tournament that the Aggies have yet to been to.

And that's, of course, the college football playoff, ever so close in 2020. What's your thoughts on all this preseason expectation Travis? I'm sure you've seen it because you cover this team on a daily basis, but a lot of people have the Aggies as a top 10 team.

People have Messiah's top five. What's, I know, I know that's so far down the road, but do you think that that kind of top 10 talk is warranted at this time for Jimbo Fisher and the Aggies?

I mean, I think it's, it's, there's a little added bit of that when you do bring in the number one class of all time, according to, you know, 247's composites.

I think it depends on, I think that they're getting those rankings based on potential, which I mean, I guess almost all preseason rankings are that, but, but especially this program because they're going to have to rely on some of those five star freshmen to step right in and, and fill the role and they're going to have to find a quarterback who is consistent and, and I mean, they have the options with Haynes King and Max Johnson.

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