Recruiting Update: A&M looks to close July strong with final event of summer
Ahead of the Ags' final recruiting event of the summer, Billy Liucci offers his prospects to be on alert for in both the 2020 & 2021 class, as well as his dream scenario for the Maroon & White to close out the '20 class.
My Three Things
1. The 2018 Class is on its way to College Station - Things have been moving at such a rapid pace on the recruiting front that this one honestly snuck up on me. But it is here all the same, and signees are moving in. In the last week I saw two future A&M DLs and it quickly reminded me just how much talent is in the class. The DL group of Tyree Wilson, Bobby Brown, Jeremiah Martin, Max Wright, and Mohamed Diallo is an SEC bunch. They may not all be ready to play from Day 1, but there is length, athleticism, and big time potential in all of those guys. It is hard not to smile when you think what those guys can do in the trenches. I know I am looking forward to watching them develop. And one last thing. To steal from the Dan Patrick Show, Stat of the day: Jeremiah Martin had 30.5 sacks and 47 TFLs in 16 games last fall. That's just ridiculous. https://twitter.com/Jason_Howell/status/9983093166786396172. Miami assistant Todd Hartley sit down - First here's Hartley's tweethttps://twitter.com/coach_thartley/status/998893294871547909Now that I know we've all seen it I'll just say he should have kept his mouth shut. I do agree that things can and often do get out of control with the recruiting process and top schools and favorite lists and all of that, but we all have to take some ownership of this thing especially the adults. The media, the college coaches, even the fans have some responsibility when it comes to this. But just for the sake of brevity let's stick with the college coaches and why Hartley just needs to take his seat. College coaches continue to recruit prospects committed to other programs all the time, and they certainly do not quit if they are left off a list of top schools. If they want a prospect they are going to pursue to the end, and they are going to do as much as possible to stay in the fight. So I cannot fault a prospect for flipping, switching, and shaking up his list. Even if he does it multiple times. It is also why I love how Jimbo Fisher's staff recruits the A&M commitments as hard as they do any other prospect on their board. It is why I love seeing how they doggedly pursue committed and uncommitted prospects. You have to in today's recruiting climate. It is part of the game especially with the most highly coveted prospects. If you do not like it then change the rules, but know change is only going to happen when the adults in the game start making the changes. 3. The Opening Finals in Frisco - I am sad to see the Opening Finals leave Nike headquarters in Oregon. It was always a fun trip and an incredibly unique experience for the prospects and reporters lucky enough to have the opportunity to go. That said, the star-studded event is now being held at the Star in Frisco June 30-July 3 and it should be amazing. The rosters are out and there are going to be plenty of reasons A&M fans are going to want to pay attention. The Aggies will be represented by commitments Brian Williams and Demani Richardson at the event, and there are several other targets. In the secondary alone Erick Young, Bobby Wolfe, Marcus Banks, Jeffery Carter, and Jaydon Hill will be in attendance. Others of note include RB Eric Gray who just took an unofficial visit, RB Isaiah Spiller, LB Nakobe Dean, DE Marcus Stripling, DT Ishmael Sopsher, OLs Kenyon Green and Javonne Shepherd, and underclassmen Jase McClellan, Zach Evans, and Bryan Bresee. There are others I'm sure I'm leaving off, but I'm trying to keep this post short. Just know this is one event I have circled on my calendar.
Miscellaneous weekend recruiting notes
-New offer out today to IMG OLB Jaleel McRae. He's originally from New Smyrna Beach, Florida and holds offers from Florida, Georgia, LSU, and North Carolina. -In case you missed it, A&M offered Chris Steele, the highly touted DB out of California, during his visit to campus yesterday. He came as a part of the Fast Houston group that spent the day in College Station. I've been told that early on Steele is very interested in leaving the west coast, and A&M signee Jeremiah Martin was tweeting at him last night.-It's a good bet the Aggies are going to go national at LB in 2019. The in state crop is just razor thin early on. Most of the best Texas LB's are probably playing other positions. Therefore, I believe you'll see guys like Nakobe Dean from Mississippi and Cajon (CA) native Jonathan Perkins as prime targets. I've been told by a source in the south that Dean is already getting a big push from A&M LB coach Bradley Dale Peveto. -Speaking of Peveto, his heavy Golden Triangle ties will come in handy down the road with guys like 2020 PNG OL Jaylen Garth, 2021 Bmt West Brook WR Landen King, and 2022 (yea, how old do you feel now) Bmt Legacy ATH Bryce Anderson. King and Anderson were in town yesterday as well. -Jason and I got through 50 in our update of the 2019 rankings. We will finish the back half soon and put those out for y'all to look it. I can tell you the top 5 goes Gunnell, Green, Whittington, Cain, and Williams. -Talked to a guy who saw Erick Young and new commit Bobby Wolfe play yesterday in 7 on 7. These two are probably the two most physical corners in the state this cycle. With Wolfe already in the fold, could Young be next? The two are extremely close.
Scattershooting the 2018 Texas A&M Football Signing Class: Part 2
With Jimbo Fisher's first recruiting class mostly in the books at Texas A&M, it's time to take a wide view of how the Aggies fared on National Signing Day. Billy Liucci breaks down the class Fisher's staff inked on a short schedule in the final piece of this two-part series.
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A 2018 signing class three-pack with Billy Liucci
During Friday's edition of TexAgs Radio, Billy Liucci joined TexAgs Radio to discuss three topics pertaining to the 2018 Texas A&M football signing class including thoughts on his favorite signees in the class, the most likely instant impact players from the class and more.