It’s Thursday night, and that means it’s time for Mail call!

Q: How much are these (elite basketball) guys getting paid when a player like this decides to stay in school?(QuickDrawMcGraw77)

A: A whole lot of money. We’re talking millions here. Probably in excess of $2 million.

Q: Update on all the baseball stadium renovations and upgrades? Timeline to start and what is the full scope of everything that they will be doing even if it takes a few years. (Maroon1)

A: Beyond the work that is already underway, I haven’t heard about any timeframe for renovation and expansion.

Q: What are your thoughts on the potential of our back-court? Duke, Purdue, UofH have some studs. Is our back-court maybe Top 10 in country? (Graham Cracka)

A: It’s very possible. If Bryson Warren shoots the 3 as well as he did in the G-League, they’re going to be very scary.

Q: 1. Remind us who Bucky is targeting for C?

A: That’s the method to his madness. He doesn’t leak who their targets are.

2. With the season ending (?) injury to our LB, is the Spring Game going away?

Hopefully it’s not season-ending, but Coach Mike Elko remains strongly in favor of the spring game — at least, in public. 

3. How’s our subscription growth going?

Pretty good, actually. If we get a little bit of a push, we could meet my six month goal in a little more than three weeks.

4. Does Arie have PTSD every time she goes to change something on the site?

If she does, I wouldn’t blame her.

5. When the 5 and 4 star OL recruits start coming off the board to us, will it affect any of the ones who commit later?? (TSip Despiser)

It may cause them to speed up the process if they want in. There’s always a risk if you pack up on top recruits that other guys will look elsewhere, but if they clean up the way it appears they might, it may not be an issue.

Q: I have a serious question about spring practice/scrimmages. It really is a crapshoot, and I know players go down with a season ending injury every year during fall camp. However, I am starting to view the spring activities as an overall negative. I appreciate that high school seniors are now graduating at mid-term and entering college 8 months early. So, nutrition and strength training are paramount. Then, a slowly developing fall camp seem like a safer schedule. What are your thoughts on this subject? (Nemojones)

A: I think that spring practices are an absolute imperative. That’s when you get a lot of your time in pads and implement your offense and defense. I think there’s an argument to be made about the spring game, but spring practice is a must.

Q: Has any word leaked out as to the extent of Sanford’s injury? (SuperAg1000)

A: It’s a broken ankle. Recovery time to be determined. If there’s no ligament damage, then he could return at some point during the season.

Q: Who do you think our baseball team will beat during the second half of the season, and what is your reasoning? (Rick77)

A: The Florida series is tough to call because they’re hard to figure out. They repeatedly lose Tuesday games, as they did this week, then turn it on over the weekend. Auburn and Mississippi State are at home, so I think they can win those series. Ole Miss has won seven of their last nine conference games, so going on the road to deal with them will be tough. Mississippi State has been hot and cold and now they’re hot again, so we’ll see how they are playing in three weeks.

Q: Did you happen to record the amount of pre-snap penalties in the M&W game? (Chewy)

A: Three false starts, an illegal shift and two encroachment penalties.

Q: What are your favorite 2 coaching changes / additions to the staff and what did changes did you see from their presence at the spring game that bodes well for improvements on the field? (JPhillips97)

A: It’s great that they got Elijah Robinson back and having a full-time quarterbacks coach in Joey Lynch. Robinson, we know, is an elite defensive line coach and having someone who works all the time with Marcel Reed — and the two apparently have a good rapport. That could be the most important, but overlooked, move of the offseason.

Q: 1) I watched the entire M & W Game. Since there wasn’t any names on back of jerseys AND the announcers were too busy talking non-in-game play by play details, meaning not announcing which player was in on the tackle, etc, etc…I am interested in how a few portal players did? 1) Angelo McCullom; 2) Brandon Davis-Swain; 3) CJ Mims

A: Davis-Swain didn’t play. McCullom had a tackle but was solid overall. Mims really impressed me with his push and speed for his size. I anticipated he’d be the starter next to DJ Hicks and, after watching the game, I feel even stronger about that.

2) I know it’s probably way too early to know BUT who do you see as our primary kick returners on KO’s and Punts? I believe Bussey will retain primary KO return duties but want your opinion? Craver taking over for K.C. on punt returns? (Chile Pequin)

Craver and Isaiah Horton were returning the punts in the spring game, so I think that there’s a good chance Craver does return punts if Bussey doesn’t. I think Bussey will certainly return kicks.

Q: request for you post just a little blurb or remembrance of Trent Hunter in honor of his life and funeral today…. (TheThreadEnder)

A: I posted this earlier today on a thread: Good kid. Excuse me, good man. He was what we want Aggies to be: he did it the right time every time, he never quit and, even though he was undersized and not overly fast, he was in the right place at the right time to make the tackle. He would have been a captain in the Elko era. But, if you asked him, he’d probably say being a husband, a father and a step-father was his joy.

His name was called Tuesday night, but he’s absent, not gone. He left behind a legacy at A&M, in Katy and with his family.

Q: What do you think about the 5 in 5 eligibility the NCAA is considering? (Rick77)

A: I fully support it. But it makes too much sense for the NCAA to implemented.

Q: Have you seen any differences in regards to the offense under Wiggins vs Klein? Any changes to OL blocking schemes in the run game? What about passing schemes, what changes have you seen there? (Travster23)

A: No, and I think that’s by design. I don’t think they want us seeing much, if anything. In their shoes, I wouldn’t want to show off much in the spring either.