PREVIEW: No. 3 Texas A&M Aggies to begin College World Series Quest vs. Grambling State Tigers

The Aggies open up their first round of the NCAA Regional Tournament against the Tigers in Aggieland.

May 17, 2024; College Station, Texas; USA: Texas A&M Aggies seniors Ryan Targac and Jackson Appel stand near the first-base line. / Matt Guzman - AllAggies on SI

After a down 2023, and a promising 2024, the Maroon and White are ready to fight on their way to the College World Series in Omaha.

The Aggies begin with a matchup against the Grambling State Tigers, the recently crowned SWAC Champions, at their home turf in College Station. This is extremely helpful to the Aggiess, who posted a 32-3 record at Blue Bell Park this year. A&M will surely look to use the rowdy nature of the facility to their advantage and get the best of their opposition, especially with their rival Texas Longhorns in town for the weekend.

Texas A&M started the season red-hot, winning their first 17 games and soaring to the top spot in the weekly NCAA rankings. Towards the end, however, it seemed as if the team had simply run out of steam, losing critical conference series games against LSU and Ole Miss.

The Aggies were able to end the season on a high note in the series against Arkansas, not only winning the series but run-ruling the Razorbacks in the season finale. They would eventually finish with a 44-13 record, with a 19-11 conference record.

A&M's high was quickly brought back to a low after losses to Mississippi State and Tennessee in the SEC Tournament, but after being honored with a regional hosting this past weekend, the Aggies will look to leave the past in the past and keep their eyes on the prize from here on out.

Texas A&M is fueled by a sizzling offense, consisting of the powerful and speedy 1-2-3 of freshman outfielder Gavin Grahovac, sophomore outfielder Jace LaViolette, and junior outfielder/pitcher Braden Montgomery, a transfer from Stanford. Each player hit well above .300, and together, the trio combined for 75 home runs and 214 RBI this season.

May 16, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies infielder Ted Burton steps into the batter's box. / Matt Guzman - AllAggies on SI

So how can Texas A&M secure a win? It's pretty simple. Get the bats hot, keep them hot, and let the pitching do their thing. Oh, and A&M won't have to worry about getting into the other team's head. That's what the 12th Man is for. A 32-3 home record is nothing to scoff at, especially at this level.

How can Grambling win this opening game? Shut down the offense, and don't let the over 8,000 home crowd fans expected to be in attendance ruin their focus.

Texas A&M and Grambling do battle at noon on Friday. You can watch the game on ESPN+.