He was a liability in coverage and obviously not a good fit for what Jimbo is trying to build. Those that think this is a big loss don't have a great understanding of what it takes to be great on defense. We will be better at safety in 2020 without him.

PVAMU here we come...

Ahhhh forum over reaction...

That is interesting.

Richardson
B. Williams
Blades
George

That is a pretty darn good secondary.

This isnt good.

Objectively speaking, this is a stupid and seemingly rash decision by Leon. He needs to take a step back, breathe, evaluate his priorities and stick with it at A&M. He's got a chance for serious playing time under a championship coach, great education and alumni network, and gets to play close to home.

vander54 said:

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oldschoolcat said:

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Our transfer portal reminds me of my mailbox. Money always going out...patiently waiting for anything to come my way though. Do A&M have an "in" portal?

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No. We need to get rid of players not bring more in.

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We need to get rid of non-starting/non-contributing players. Leon was not one of those - he was a starter, and a solid one, at a crucial position.

In no way is this a GOOD thing (at best it's a maybe-not-that-terrible thing).

I never said it was good. I just said we aren't using the transfer portal to bring a bunch of players in because of numbers.

Traveler said:

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vander54 said:

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oldschoolcat said:

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Our transfer portal reminds me of my mailbox. Money always going out...patiently waiting for anything to come my way though. Do A&M have an "in" portal?

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No. We need to get rid of players not bring more in.

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We need to get rid of non-starting/non-contributing players. Leon was not one of those - he was a starter, and a solid one, at a crucial position.

In no way is this a GOOD thing (at best it's a maybe-not-that-terrible thing).

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Yeah that would be better for us but if they're 3rd or 4th string at A&M, they're most likely not going to start for any other Power 5 schools. So they're just better off staying here and get a free education.

Hopefully a youngster will step up and we will never miss Leon.

Tugg Speedman said:

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Snap E Tom said:

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Let me highlight this part of Lucci's tweet:

Quote:

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But it wasn't something 'expected' or desired.

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Translation for those of you with reading comprehension problems: "This is not good." In other words, "this is bad." So, with the other part of the tweet, O'Neal may not have been perfect, but he helped the program more than some people here are willing to give him credit for.

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Let me help your reading comprehension. Just because something wasn't expected or desired does not mean it's bad. In fact, when you are recruiting the way Jimbo and Co have been in the last two years, there is a good possibility the program will be in better hands. Leon flashed in a couple of games, but the consistency wasn't there. Blown coverages, poor angles were a problem. You think he starts at Bama, Clemson or LSU? No. Could he help with depth? Yes. However, we saw (when he was benched) he doesn't handle adversity very well. Time to let the younger more talented players step up.

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If Lucci's speculation is correct, it means the coaching staff/certain members of it anticipated having him - for some purpose - and his leaving is not a positive/helpful for the program overall.

Is the frequency with which A&M players enter the portal a necessary symptom of natty-winning coach taking over and recruiting lights out? As in, Bama, GA, LSU, Ohst, Clemson have this problem year-in, year-out?

The transfer portal is ruining college football

9 and 99!!!

Not my joke, but its a good one

Quote:

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What do my dad's selfies and Leon O'Neal have in common?

Terrible angles.

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Needs to spin down to LB or a joker. He always seemed slow but was physical.

jsmc71 said:

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Is the frequency with which A&M players enter the portal a necessary symptom of natty-winning coach taking over and recruiting lights out? As in, Bama, GA, LSU, Ohst, Clemson have this problem year-in, year-out?

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That's a good question. I'm not sure if those other programs had this kind of portal action when there was a significant coaching change (meaning a big upgrade at HC - or at least a perceived upgrade). Our classes have been better across the board, so it seems like there has been quite a few athletes that have seen the writing on the wall, and moved on for better chances at playing time elsewhere. I think the higher caliber of player is 1. coming up through the ranks, and 2. being continuously recruited. That, coupled with the fact that Sumlin and Jimbo recruited/are recruiting different styles of players to fit their own schemes and style of expected play, it would seem reasonable that some of the older players may be looking elsewhere. They see the younger talent, and may not like the rigors of life under Jimbo. No idea, just speculation, obviously, but seems like a rational reason to think that's the situation(s) going on...

The good news is safety is probably our best position of recruitment the last 2 classes. We will be fine. Leon probably would have been pissed if he lost minutes and could have spread over into the locker room as a problem.

The bad news is that 18 class is starting to look horrible. Hopefully some big uglies develop from it (like Matthews) or it will be a total bust.

AggieBlu said:

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The transfer portal is the devil

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It has made it way too easy IMO

oldschoolcat said:

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Our transfer portal reminds me of my mailbox. Money always going out...patiently waiting for anything to come my way though. Do A&M have an "in" portal?

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Transfer players count against your current year recruiting numbers now. We signed a full class and didn't leave any spots for potential transfers this year.

UnderTheHillAg said:

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Nothing "happened"...The kid was a loudmouth who never shut up on twitter and it made hims seem like he was better than he actually was. He had one good game (gator bowl) and was consistently beat from there on out. Remember this is the guy who handled his poor play by quitting on the team and walking to the locker room during the middle of the game. I hope he goes somewhere that will make him content, and I hope he plays well there, but the kid needs to learn a valuable lesson from his time here about balling out during the game instead of on social media after it.

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This! The guy has probably always been faster than his competition and never needed to take proper angles. At this level, his failure to properly diagnose the correct route to the ball carrier has been costly at times. It's unfortunate because he has the raw talent to be an NFL caliber player. I hope he goes to a system that is more conducive to his personality or he begins to accept coaching in a way that develops that talent. Either way I hope nothing but the best for him unless hes playing us.

He needs a phone call from Vonn Miller's Dad. Sticking it out would be best for his professional career. I hope Dodson can talk some sense into him.

Add Jaylon Jones, Antonio Johnson and Erick Young. That is why he left.

just watch the Clemson game - he was out of position several times -- good talent physically but a mental midget it seems when playing disciplined.

GumboMaverick said:

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just watch the Clemson game - he was out of position several times -- good talent physically but a mental midget it seems when playing disciplined.

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He got out played by the 2nd best team in the nation?

Don't care, got Jimbo

GumboMaverick said:

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just watch the Clemson game - he was out of position several times -- good talent physically but a mental midget it seems when playing disciplined.

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the term is tiny person

merch said:

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If you don't remember him quitting in middle of game then you didn't watch Aggie football last year. I never understood how he didn't get kicked off the team.

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Apparently I didn't watch Aggie football last year, or flat can't remember either.

Way to not answer the question and come in with a self righteous comment at the same time. Talent.

Not worried, consistently out of position and when there was a free RB running straight at him his feet were in concrete and he could never make the tackle. He could play off the ball and deliver a big hit but that was about it. Safeties have to be able to get the RB on the ground in one on one situations and he was terrible at that.