Texas A&M WR Christian Kirk enters his junior season with an interesting milestone in front of him.

The former 5-star recruit from Arizona enters what seems certain to be his final season at Texas A&M with an all-time SEC record within reach. Sure to follow standout Aggies receivers Ricky Seals-Jones and Speedy Noil in entering the NFL Draft after their junior seasons, Kirk has 163 career catches. The SEC all-time record is 262. The Texas A&M all-time record in 252.

Vanderbilt’s Jordan Matthews (2010-13) set the SEC record. Ryan Swope (2009-12) holds the Aggies’ record.

Kirk will attempt to do in three years what those two receivers did in four. Projected as high as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, Kirk has one more season in which to haul in 90 catches for the school record and an even 100 for the SEC mark.

Statistically speaking, looking at the first two seasons at Texas A&M, would suggest this overachieving talent has little chance to break either record. Kirk caught 80 passes in leading the Aggies to a sensational freshman season in 2015. He led the SEC in 2016 with 83 receptions.

Moreover, just two SEC receivers in history have had a 100-catch season: Amari Cooper with 124 in 2014 and Matthews with 112 in 2013.

But there are solid reasons to believe Kirk can increase that total significantly. For two seasons, Kirk has shared the spotlight with some of the more outstanding receivers in the conference, if not the nation. The aforementioned Seals-Jones and Noil being two of them.

In addition, Josh Reynolds could very well be the best of the bunch. He led the Aggies in receiving yards in 2014 (842) and in 2016 (1,039). He was second to Kirk in 2015 with 907, while Kirk totaled 1,009.

But all three are gone. The spotlight in 2017 is squarely pointed at Kirk. He will be the Aggies’ go-to guy. He’ll have to be if the 2017 season has any chance at being a successful one.

That should mean that Kirk has an opportunity to be among the nation’s leading receivers. Last season the nation’s top four receivers hauled in a minimum of 100 passes. Theoretically, Kirk could and should be among the top receivers in the country.

However, there are also sound reasons to be pessimistic about Kirk’s chances to break neither the school nor the SEC record. The biggest being of a new starting quarterback to get him the ball on a consistent basis.

The Aggies will be employing their third starting quarterback in three years. Continuity is certainly not on Kirk’s side.

Who will be Texas A&M’s quarterback for the 2017 season is still yet to be decided. Senior Jake Hubenak has the most experience and even then he only has three career starts. Redshirt freshman Nick Starkel and true freshman Kellen Mond are in the mix as well.

Another factor that could work against Kirk in 2017 is his use as a return specialist. One of the best in the nation, Kirk has returned five punts for touchdowns, including three last season, which led the nation. Kirk averages 23.1 yards per punt return over 27 career attempts.

There’s a real possibility that Kirk will be used more on punt returns and kickoff returns in 2017. How that might wear on his body over the course of the season could be a factor in his receiving numbers.

Either way, it will be interesting to track his status as Kirk goes for both the SEC and national records in 2017.