Craig Melvin still can’t believe that he’s risen to cohosting NBC’s Today following Hoda Kotb‘s departure, and has so much gratitude for the “surreal” position he’s in.

“There are so few truly venerable institutions left in television, and being part of one isn’t something I take lightly. It’s the professional honor of a lifetime. Honestly, I never thought I would be the guy to sit in this seat — I was happy in my role. But then one day, I got the call that Hoda Kotb was leaving, and I just thought, Wow, this might actually be happening,” Craig, 45, told Moffly Media‘s Samantha Yanks in an interview published on Monday, February 24.

Just being part of Today is a full circle moment for the South Carolina native, who set his school schedule around watching the morning show as a teen.

“I grew up watching this show! That’s the crazy part. A couple of months ago, I had lunch with (former Today host) Bryant Gumbel, and I told him, this is surreal for me. Back in middle school, as I was getting ready to hop on the bus to St. Andrews, I timed my entire morning routine by Today. I knew that by the 7:55 a.m. break, I had to be out of the house and on my way,” he revealed to Samantha, 49.

Craig joined Today as the show’s news anchor in 2018, adding cohosting the third hour of the show to his résumé the following year.

The newsman told the media outlet that it’s still a pinch-me moment when fans can recall his various memorable moments on Today.

“You don’t fully grasp the magnitude of the show’s reach until you experience it firsthand, you know?” he explained. “It hits you when a random person in Ohio or an airport in Florida stops you and says, ‘I remember your first show. Seeing your mom on was such a beautiful moment.’ And that’s when it really sinks in — Oh my God. People watch. Millions of people are watching and listening every morning.”

Craig took over from Hoda, 60, on January 13. Her final Today telecast was on January 10 after the longtime NBC personality announced in September 2024 that she was leaving the show to spend more time with her young daughters.

The former Dateline host couldn’t believe that the Oklahoma native would walk away from such a coveted position, revealing he thought Hoda might be ill when she delivered the news to him.

“My dressing room is two over from hers, and she knocks on my door one morning, which was unusual,” Craig recalled to Parade in an interview published on January 10. “And she’s like, ‘You have a moment?’”

“She came in, and she said, ‘I just wanted to tell you something. I’m leaving.’ And my initial reaction was, ‘Are you sick? Is everything OK?’ I was like, ‘Well, no one leaves these jobs on their own,’” he continued.

She said, “‘It’s time. I want to leave on top.’ I was like, ‘Are they forcing you out?’ She’s like, ‘No, Craig, I’m OK. I’m leaving.’ I was legit stunned, so much so that after she left, I went back to her dressing room, and I was like, ‘Are you sure you’re OK?’ It takes a certain kind of courage to leave anything when you’re at the height of your game,” Craig explained.

“Obviously I had my kiddos late in life, and I was thinking that they deserve a bigger piece of my time pie that I have,” Hoda said at the time she announced her departure. She adopted 7-year-old daughter Haley Joy in 2017 and added to her family again with the 2019 adoption of Hope Catherine, 5.

Fortunately for Craig, working alongside Today cohost Savannah Guthrie every morning is a breeze, as they’ve been pals ever since their days working in Washington, D.C. during the late aughts.

“We’ve become legit friends. We’ve got kids that have hung out together, and we’ve hung out together, so we don’t have to fake it,” he told Parade about Savannah, 53. “The audience can tell when the chemistry is manufactured, and we haven’t had to manufacture anything, which makes it even easier. I’m really excited to be on this adventure with my sister.”