According to Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports, Texas A&M and UCF have set up a home-and-home series with one another, beginning this upcoming season.
UCF will play host during the 2024-2025 season, with the two being each other’s opener on Nov. 4. The Knights will then travel to College Station next fall in what should be a fun matchup between Big 12 and SEC members.
“Texas A&M and UCF will begin a home-and-home series on November 4th — the opening night of the 2024-25 season — in Orlando, according to a source,” Rothstein said via X. “Return game in College Station in 2025-26.”
Scheduling news has begun to leak across college basketball and head coaches are hoping to put themselves in a position to make the NCAA Tournament in 2025.
Texas A&M has relied on the SEC Tournament too many times to earn an automatic qualifying bid in the past few seasons. Buzz Williams has done a better job scheduling Power Conference opponents and UCF is just the latest example.
On the flip side, taking down an SEC team with a ton of preseason hype would do wonders for Johnny Dawkins and UCF. Despite missing out on the postseason, the Knights surprised people during their first season in the Big 12. They were quite comfortably picked to finish last by coaches only to win seven conference games.
Beginning the 2024-2025 season with a win against Texas A&M would send a message to the rest of the Big 12, saying UCF is ready to take another step forward.
For the most part, rosters are set across the country. A few coaches are still waiting on NBA Draft decisions and still working on prospects out of the NCAA transfer portal. But some teams have emerged at the top of college basketball, giving On3’s James Fletcher the chance to produce a way-too-early top 25.
Fletcher has the Aggies at No. 22 right now, just making the list. Five SEC teams — Alabama, Auburn, Texas, Florida, and Tennessee — are ahead of Texas A&M while Ole Miss falls two spots behind. Not a bad spot to be in around six months before the season tips off.
The SEC is once again expected to be a top conference in college basketball. Adding Texas and Oklahoma only adds to the mix, especially for Texas A&M — bringing back some old rivalries.