He was an enigma last year. Now Amir “Aura” Khan is back. And so is his boombox.
McNeese (28-5) is dancing again in 2026, and Khan will be there, rapping the soundtrack and leading the Cowboys out with his giant, bedazzled boombox in tow.
In 2025, Khan led the team out while performing rap songs — everything from NBA YoungBoy to King Von and Lud Foe — with a cool demeanor that suggested the Pakistani American was “with it.” Draped by teammates on either side, with iced-out watches and chains stacked across his neck — jewelry he reportedly bought with more than $100,000 in NIL deals — Khan became as popular as the players themselves.
“I couldn’t have done any of that without them last year, the players promoted everything, they were so hype going into the walkout (to the court), and they wanted the most for me,” Khan told reporters ahead of the Cowboys’ first-round matchup with Vanderbilt. “That means a lot. Same thing with this group of guys. They want the moment to be special for me as well.
“It’s all about them. They’re the ones going out on the court and winning it. Last year, that group won the first tournament game. Our coaching staff put in the game plan. I didn’t really do anything to help with that, but they still wanted to share the spotlight with me, and that means a lot.”
Khan’s selfless sentiment is understood by the players who champion him. Senior guard DJ Richards Jr. was there last year to see Khan’s rise as a viral sensation, but still sees the manager exhibiting humility in the limelight.
“It’s funny because I’ll be seeing things on Twitter, and they kind of portray him as someone that he’s not,” Richards told reporters. “If you all could ask Amir right now, I’m pretty sure he would be so cool without all the attention, all the things. Everything came to him naturally.”
Khan’s rapture became inseparable from 12th-seeded McNeese’s 69-67 upset of No. 5 seed Clemson in the first round and the 76-62 loss to No. 4-seeded Purdue that followed in the next round.
For a moment, it looked like his story might move elsewhere. Khan followed coach Will Wade from McNeese to NC State, but he returned shortly after when academic complications arose with transferring credits. Had he stayed at NC State, he’d have to be a sophomore, rather than returning to McNeese as an academic senior and finishing his journey where it started.
“I decided to come back just because it’s home,” Khan said. “I live in Lake Charles, five minutes away from campus. The community and people of Lake Charles are amazing. Every game day, they pack our arena out, and it’s a special feeling. So why not continue to do it until I graduate?”
Khan’s celebrity grew even after McNeese bowed out last March. He landed more than 20 NIL deals, adding to the jewelry and leaning further into the image, styling himself in the likeness of the rappers he blasted through his boombox.
“A lot of people are going to come to him, but if y’all really have a conversation with him, you know he’s really not that type of guy,” Richards said. “We told him to put on the speaker one day. He knew the words, and then he just ran with it that day.”
Last week, McNeese beat Stephen F. Austin 76-59 to win the Southland Conference tournament for the third consecutive season and clinch another trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Cowboys are seeded 12th again, this time facing fifth-seeded Vanderbilt. Khan will be there again, boombox in hand, ready to soundtrack another run.
A new scoring engine leads the Cowboys in redshirt freshman Larry Johnson. The former four-star recruit originally committed to Creighton in 2024 but never played after a suspension for violating team rules and left the program in December 2024. He committed to McNeese and its new coach, Bill Armstrong, on March 24, 2025.
Johnson now averages 17.5 points, the most by a McNeese player since Sha’markus Kennedy averaged 18.6 points in 2019-20.
Behind Johnson, the Cowboys hope to become bracket busters again. Just like in 2025, they will be led out by their charismatic manager.
“I feel like we embrace it, it’s a part of our identity,” sophomore forward Jacolb Fredson-Cole told The Athletic. “He’s a great person, makes sure we’ve got everything we need. We love Amir. Every time he does his thing, you can feel the energy being raised.”
They hope Khan’s aura, his boombox and his permeating positivity can power a few more upsets.
— Joe Rexrode contributed to this report.
