Texas A&M's basketball program received disappointing news Wednesday from the Brazos County court ruling on Rylan Griffen's eligibility, but head coach Bucky McMillan believes it will eventually be resolved so the talented guard can return to competition for the Aggies.
The former Texas A&M guard is ineligible again after a judge dismissed his lawsuit against the NCAA. Despite that, the battle between Griffen and the association is far from over. He could pursue the suit in another state as he continues to fight for a chance to return to college basketball under the NCAA's new age-based eligibility model and his 2022 class status.
While Griffen's current status hurts the Aggies' depth, McMillan and company must keep going and gear up for their
November 3 tipoff against Alabama State. The second-year Texas A&M head coach discussed the impact of his ruling and provided his insight on the suit against the NCAA during Thursday's press conference.
"Was I surprised on the ruling that, when we're looking across college basketball and players in this state and in these counties across the state are ruled that they can play in the same situation as Rylan that we'll be playing against this year, and all across the country," McMillan said. "That am I shocked? I mean, I think everybody in that courtroom that was in there to have kind of a ruling that's somewhat unprecedented in how it was ruled was shocked."
Griffen began his collegiate career with the Alabama Crimson Tide before transferring to Kansas for the 2024-25 season. After his one-year stint with the Jayhawks, Griffen joined McMillan at Texas A&M last season, where he averaged 11.2 points, 2.5 assists, and 2.7 rebounds.
Despite a bleaker outlook for his potential return after this week's ruling, McMillan believes it will be resolved for Griffen and the Texas A&M basketball program.
"We do think it'll get resolved, obviously in the favor of Rylan because, well, that's what's going on in college basketball, and we're certainly going to be playing against guys in the same position Rylan's in, so we expect it to get resolved for Rylan the same way," McMillan said.
The Dallas, Texas, native will not compete for the Aggies on the court at this time, but he is still working on his communications degree at the university and is slated to graduate this spring.
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: 'We do think it'll get resolved': Bucky McMillan discusses Griffen suit
