Texas A&M is back in the national conversation after a great run from the Aggies, but where do they land amongst the sport's most valuable programs?
Texas A&M is home to one of, if not, the most passionate and dedicated cultures in the nation, and that pride is magnified when it comes to Aggies football.
While the 12th Man is always ready to show out for the men from College Station, the current group of Aggies led by head coach Mike Elko has given them an extra reason to root them on.
Fresh off an 11-1 regular season and a trip to the College Football Playoff, there is excitement and hopeful buzz around the program with real thoughts that it could be another memorable year for Texas A&M.
With a renewed mindset permeating through Aggieland, the stock for Texas A&M is high and rising.
But how valuable is the program in the greater landscape of college football?
In a recent piece from the Athletic, they attempted to gauge the worth of each squad hailing from the Power Four, which means the Aggies were right in the middle of these rankings.
According to their metrics, Texas A&M slotted in outside of the sport's top 10 schools and came in at No. 17.
Its estimated value? $1.05 billion.
A modest position and one that somewhat perfectly embodies the place the Aggies find themselves when it comes to on-the-field action.
Not quite with the "big boys" that have been, or still are, in the mix for a national championship year in and year out, but still above many other programs that would take Texas A&M's place in a heartbeat.
For example, the Aggies' archenemy, the Texas Longhorns, took the crown as the presumptive most valuable program in the entirety of the sport. They were projected with a near double price tag than their rivals at $2.46 billion.
The placement is a reminder that even with all that Elko has done to turn the Aggies back into the national contender they ought to be, there is still much work to be done to ensure they are consistently viewed in that regard by their colleagues.
Thankfully, Elko seems more than aware of this fact and has hammered home that this is only the beginning for Texas A&M in its latest incarnation.
And he has the resources and support from alumni, donors and rabid Aggie fans spread throughout the nation at his disposal. Which means that Texas A&M is more than able to skyrocket its way up this list.
One fantastic outing does not make a program an instant blue blood, however, Texas A&M has long been waiting for a squad that can truly make its goals seem more like reality than fantasy.
And now that they have arrived, there could be nothing stopping the Aggies from becoming one of the premier schools in all of college football.
