Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork reacted this week to Alabama coach Nick Saban mentioning the Aggies as a big spender in the NIL arena.

As SEC coaches and administrators met in Destin this week for the league’s spring meetings, NIL continues to be a topic of interest. Saban, along with SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, and others are among an SEC contingent headed to Washington next week on an NIL lobbying trip.

Earlier this week, Saban explained to the gathered media his take on NIL, paying players, and everything from taxation to unionization.

Saban cited three schools as examples of programs perhaps spending too much.

“The way Southern Cal, Texas and Texas A&M are spending money … (it’s) what are you willing to spend?” Saban said, per the Houston Chronicle.

Bjork responded to Saban mentioning A&M.

“We said in the beginning we’re going to embrace all of it,” Bjork said, per the report. “We’re going to embrace fundraising, ticket sales, sponsorship and NIL supporting our student-athletes. We have not been able to be (directly) involved in (NIL) based on the Texas state law, and that law is now going to change. … It will allow the institutions to support the athletes even more, so we can be more involved in it.

“When somebody makes a comment, it’s hearsay, they don’t have any data. We have the data and we know what our athletes have earned in the past two years.”

Bjork added “A&M folks are passionate” and Texas A&M embraces all aspects of college athletics, including NIL.

“We’ll take it as a compliment if we get lumped in with those other programs — that means our folks are engaged and we can appreciate and embrace that,” he said.

Read the full story at The Houston Chronicle.

Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Music App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.