Texas A&M graduate student-athlete Deshae Wise, a Pac-12 all-conference and all-academic team competitor during her career at Cal-Berkeley, joins DyeStat editor Erik Boal to discuss her transition to competing with the Aggies ahead their competition Jan. 28-29 at the Texas Tech Open, along with pursuing a Masters degree in Public Service and Administration, in addition to how the program has been dealing with the emotions over the Jan. 10 passing of Texas A&M legend and 2014 Bowerman Award winner Deon Lendore, an Olympian representing Trinidad and Tobago who died in a car crash at age 29. Wise shares what a unique opportunity it was to compete at the NCAA Division 1 West Regionals in May at Texas A&M, which allowed her to gain a better understanding of the campus, facilities and community in College Station. She explains her process of entering the transfer portal and the communication that took place with Texas A&M program head Pat Henry, as well as sprint and hurdles coach Milton Mallard. Wise reveals how coach Henry ends team meetings by reminding the student-athletes not to let the day get away, and how that has been a unifying force for all the event groups in the aftermath of Lendore's tragedy. She expresses gratitude for the support she has received, not only from coaches and teammates, but also from the training staff, counselors and administrators, in helping her acclimate better to the academic schedule while balancing her first two meets competing for the Aggies. Wise reflects on her experiences at Cal and how she helped elevate the presence of the program in the Pac-12 and said she wanted to embrace the challenges of competing in the Southeastern Conference in her final year of collegiate eligibility. She analyzes the depth of the Texas A&M hurdling corps, including veterans Kennedy Smith and Kaylah Robinson, and shares how she has already benefited from training with them, in addition to the opportunity to race against U.S. Olympian Annie Kunz at the Aggie Invitational. Wise, who has already run 8.34 in the 60-meter hurdles and 24.06 in the 200 meters, looks forward to potentially contributing to the 4x400 relay this year after Texas A&M set collegiate records in both the indoor and outdoor events with Athing Mu in the lineup. She examines the potential to run under 13 seconds in the 100 hurdles and sub-60 in the 400 hurdles outdoors, and shares her dreams of competing at the Division 1 outdoor championship meet in June at Hayward Field in Eugene, as Wise was selected 2017 Gatorade state athlete of the year in Oregon following an exceptional career at Grants Pass High, where she grew up after she and her mother Rebecca Bender overcame being victims of human trafficking when Deshae was a child, allowing her to thrive in the sport. Wise also looks to complete her two-year Masters program, with the goal of training and competing as a post-collegiate athlete in 2023 while remaining in College Station.