"There is a chance that College Station could be calling": CFB analyst drops bombshell on Texas A&M snagging Bama AD Greg Byrne to replace Ross Bjork
Alabama Crimson Tide athletic director Greg Byrne has been rumored to be in the running to leave Tuscaloosa and take a similar role at Texas A&M.
The speculation went into overdrive after Lance Taylor, co-host of "The Next Round," said during Tuesday's episode:
“Nobody wants to see him go anywhere, but I still think there is a chance that College Station could be calling…”
Greg Byrne has been heavily linked with the Texas A&M athletic director job. The Aggies’ current AD, Ross Bjork, will leave his post in the summer to become the new AD for Ohio State. This means that Texas A&M will need to find his replacement, and the school reportedly has its eyes set on Greg Bryne.
Byrne has a strong track record at Alabama. Ever since he came into the position, the Crimson Tide's football team has remained relevant, winning the 2020 national championship and being constantly one of the country's best teams. However, this dominance may be fading due to one of Byrne’s decisions.
After Nick Saban's retirement, Byrne quickly hired Washington coach Kalen DeBoer to be Saban's replacement. This led to many key players, including top prospect Caleb Downs, transferring out of Alabama to rivals.
Additionally, if DeBoer fails to live up to the high expectations that Alabama has, fingers may be pointed at Byrne for making this decision.
This may be a reason why Byrne may decide to jump ship and head to SEC rivals Texas A&M.
Who is Greg Byrne?
Greg Byrne started his athletic director career at Oregon as an assistant AD. He would remain in assistant AD roles at various schools until 2008 when he became the Mississippi State athletic director.
During his time with the Bulldogs, Byrne hired Dan Mullens as the football program coach. Mullens was able to make the Mississippi State program somewhat competitive and was able to, at times, upset the biggest SEC programs.
After three years, Byrne moved to Arizona and again made a change to the football program. He fired long-time coach Mike Stoops and replaced him with former Michigan Wolverines coach Rich Rodriguez.
Rodriguez made an immediate impact, giving the Wildcats multiple winning seasons, and even made the 2014 Pac-12 championship game, heavily losing to the Oregon Ducks.
Byrne moved to Alabama in 2017 and has remained in Tuscaloosa ever since.
But, with the arrival of DeBoer, if things do not go to plan, Gregg Byrne may decide to follow in his father's footsteps and become the new Texas A&M athletic director.