AJ Hoggard has led Vanderbilt into the AP Top 25 for the first time in a decade

With all of the success Michigan State basketball has had this season, it's easy to overlook what some former Spartans have been doing at their new programs.

AJ Hoggard is one player who is having a ton of success at his new program despite the sloppy end to his Michigan State career. He was expected to be a star in 2023-24, leading the preseason top-five Spartans, but he struggled from the jump and eventually decided to hit the transfer portal once they were bounced from the NCAA Tournament in the second round.

A lot of fans soured on Hoggard because of his inconsistency and some didn't like his nonchalant body language. It came off as him not caring -- he defended himself on multiple occasions.

Hoggard found a new home with a Vanderbilt program that had been one of the worst major conference teams over the past decade. In face, Vanderbilt has three nine-win seasons since 2018 and hasn't made the NCAA Tournament since 2016-17. Piston legend Jerry Stackhouse did not lead this team back to relevance.

Mark Byington and Hoggard, however, have.

After beating Kentucky over the weekend, Vanderbilt snuck into the AP Top 25 at No. 24 on Monday, marking the first time the Commodores cracked the AP Top 25 since 2015.

Hoggard has been solid this season, averaging 10.8 points per game on almost 40 percent shooting, but he's also the Commodores' lead assist man at 4.5 per game and he also averages 1.4 steals per game which shows he's getting it done on both ends.

While his shooting numbers have dipped drastically and he's not quite the polished threat on that end that he was supposed to be, he's still proving to be a leader and he's helped this team start 16-4.

Vanderbilt is projected to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016-17 and while it's not all because of Hoggard, his presence has been a large reason for the turnaround. Good to see him having success at his new program.