There will be plenty of debate over the College Football Playoff in the coming days.

Some will say Texas A&M should have gotten in. Some will say it’s right the way it happened. Some might even argue that Cincinnati deserved the 4th spot.

The reality is that the Aggies narrowly missed being a part of the final 4 teams and will instead see North Carolina in the Orange Bowl on Jan. 2 in Miami Gardens, Fla.

It didn’t matter that Notre Dame played poorly in their ACC Championship Game loss to Clemson. Or that Ohio State had played only 6 games. Both got in over A&M, who ended the regular season on a 7-game winning streak.

That was understandably to the chagrin of quarterback Kellen Mond, who tweeted that it was a joke the Aggies were left out.

Mond’s spectacular senior season will end without thechance to cement his Aggies legacy even further. He already shattered several records this year, becoming the school’s career leader in total offense, passing yards, passing touchdowns, completions and attempts.

As frustrating as the snub is, the Aggies can at least look back on this season and feel as if they did all they could.

A blowout loss to Alabama is the only smear on their resume, and that came only 2 games into the season. Still, it seems the 28-point margin was too much for the committee to overlook. That one blemish will haunt A&M.

Outside of that, they did everything they could to put themselves in this position in the face of many doubters. They mostly kept quiet about the Playoff, deflecting questions about it. But we saw the frustration spill over with Mond on Sunday. They wanted to prove they belonged.

They still at least have that chance.

The Orange Bowl might not be where the Aggies wanted to be, but it isn’t nothing. This is the first New Year’s 6 Bowl appearance of the Jimbo Fisher era. It is also the biggest bowl they have played in since the Cotton Bowl in 2013.

A lot of eyes will be on the Aggies in this game. They can still show the country that the committee made a mistake with a resounding win. It’s a game they will be expected to win.

They run into an 8-3 UNC team that has couple of questionable losses to Florida State and Virginia. The Tar Heels are a run-first team with a pair of 1,000-yard rushers in Javonte Williams and Michael Carter. The 2 split carries almost exactly evenly, with Williams having just 1 more.

It will be a perfect opportunity for the Aggies to show off their defensive front. They have the 4th-best run defense in the country, giving up just 92.2 yards per game on the ground. If they can shut down that tandem, it will speak to the strength they displayed all season.

On offense, it will be a chance for A&M to show off their line, which has provided great protection for Mond and allowed Isaiah Spiller to rush for nearly 1,000 yards of his own (he is at 993).

Mond will also get 1 last game to give Aggies fans something to remember him by. A game to show the committee why leaving the Aggies out was a joke. If he excels, it should still do plenty for his A&M legacy.

The Aggies have been the team this season that doesn’t try to change who they are. They simply played their style of football and won games with it. Ultimately, that wasn’t enough to get them in the Playoff.

But those who have watched them closely know how effective it can be. This is their chance to show the nation what could have been.