March Madness 2026: Who is Amir ‘Aura’ Khan? Meet the McNeese manager who went viral for getting players fired up before games

The beauty of the NCAA tournament is that members of the smallest schools can become legends if they can step up their game on the sport’s biggest stage. In 2025, McNeese student manager Amir Khan proved to be one of the biggest personalities involved with March Madness thanks to his unique pre-game ritual.

Well, McNeese is back in the NCAA tournament in 2026, meaning Khan will have another chance to delight fans before games. After a brief stop at NC State, Khan is back with McNeese, where he’ll almost certainly lead the players out of the tunnel ahead of Thursday’s game against Vanderbilt.

Here’s everything you need to know about Khan, including his college journey, nickname and pre-game ritual.

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Who is Amir Khan?

Khan is a manager for the McNeese men’s basketball team. He gained national attention in 2025, when he led McNeese players out of the tunnel while carrying a massive boombox and blasting music. Khan rapped along to the song coming out of the boombox, and was hyped up by McNeese players before games.

The ritual got Khan a ton of attention, leading to the manager getting a name, image and likeness deal, and endorsement deals with Buffalo Wild Wings, TickPick and Insomnia Cookies.

He took advantage of that fame by creating and selling t-shirts, taking pictures with fans and appearing next to legendary film director Spike Lee during a broadcast.

His time in the limelight didn’t last long. After McNeese upset Clemson in the first round of the 2025 NCAA tournament, the team fell to Purdue in the second round.

Why is Amir Khan nicknamed “Aura?”

It’s unclear how exactly Khan earned the nickname “Aura,” but it appears to be just a vibes thing. Khan credited the players for the name, per the Oklahoman.

“(The aura) really just comes from all these players,” Khan said to The Oklahoman. “I’m just holding the speaker, walking out with them, and it comes from their excitement, their hype, and what they do on the court. If we weren’t three-peat Southland champions, I don’t think all of this would’ve happened.”

Why is Amir Khan back at McNeese?

Fans who followed Khan’s story last season might be surprised to see him back at McNeese. After becoming a viral celebrity at the school, it was revealed that Khan would leave McNeese to join coach Will Wade at NC State.

But Khan didn’t last long at his new school. In March, Khan announced he returned to McNeese. He did so with a video that should look pretty familiar.

Because of that, it’s expected Khan will lead McNeese out of the tunnel ahead of Thursday’s game against Vanderbilt. Given all the attention Khan received last year, it seems likely the broadcast will attempt to capture that moment.