Recruiting Country: The latest recruiting news surrounding the Maroon & White

TexAgs' recruiting analyst Ryan Brauninger joined TexAgs Radio on Wednesday morning for another edition of Recruiting Country, highlighting the latest news and notes from the recruiting trail surrounding Texas A&M.

Key notes from Recruiting Country

• It’s been a busy couple of weeks. I am trying to be as efficient as I can be. 
   
• Coach Mike Elko’s first camp was very well run. Very efficient and organized. Just like everything else that we have seen him do. It is different than the Jimbo Fisher camps. We had written articles about. It is not as big of a deal as the official visits that start this week. Those are massive events, but the camps are important.
   
• There is still a push by this staff to get the best players they can to camp. My perception after one camp is that they were looking primarily at 2026s.
   
• There was a 2025 safety from Whitehouse named Julius Simms‍, who has gotten real buzz as an overall athlete. A lot of power programs in the region are super interested in this camp.
   
• There were talented 2025s, but for the most part, the kids that caught our attention were underclassmen. I am not saying that will be a them for all these camps. 
   
• Once the players check in and you get an idea of who is there, you wonder what the structure will be. How will it look? Jimbo’s camps were notorious for being massive in numbers. You would overnight and day campers together. There was a crazy number of kids. 
   
• With this first camp, the numbers were not nearly as high. Elko isn't doing overnight camps. They do measurements first. Just some baseline stuff to have data. At Jimbo’s camp, fourth-quarter drills were the first thing they did. It was a ton of conditioning-style stuff. There are pros and cons to that. 
   
• Some kids were going to their own high school’s strength and conditioning camps in the morning, then coming to Texas A&M for camp. The first thing is those fourth-quarter drills. They are zapped. How much of a real evaluation will you get then? You can see how the kid responds to being tired, and there is mental fortitude to work through it, but there were more kids’ evaluations that got hurt by that.
   
• Jimbo would have the guys run the 40-yard dash and shuttles at the end of the day. At Elko’s camp, once the kids stretch, they get tested. They do it when they are fresh. 
   
• They do movement drills after that. Running through bags, cones, etc. After that, it's football-specific drills and then one-on-ones. It was very differently structured, but very well structured. 
   
• Lamar Brown‍ is a 2026 legitimate OL/DL prospect. He might be the best OL/DL prospect in the country, regardless of class. This kid is different. He is going into his junior season, so it's hard to make evaluations on kids that young, but I have not seen many on my list who can move like that.
   
• LSU will be a big hurdle to clear there, with Brown being in Baton Rouge. I was blown away. A lay-down five-star, as close to 100 on your rating system as you can get. 
   
• I was talking to DL coach Tony Jerod-Eddie. He said he was glad camp was getting started, but once this thing was over, we were all high-tailing it over to Blue Bell Park. They have added it to their recruiting weekends in the spring, which was non-existent before. It is a compliment to what the ballpark has turned into but also really savvy by the coaching staff.
   
• When you have a new crop of kids and want to give them an example of what the 12th Man looks like in January, you take them to Reed Arena. As the spring goes on, you can bring them to Blue Bell Park. They did it again this weekend, and the returns were outstanding.
   
• Lamar Brown was not the only standout at that camp. They offered Paris Melvin Jr‍, who is a 2026 do-it-all athlete. He worked out at defensive back.
   
• His high school coach was at Ford Bend Marshall when Devon Achane was there. After A&M offered Melvin, he sent me a message saying, “Love that A&M did this. This is the best player I have had since Devon.” That is saying something. 
   
• I think Melvin is a legitimate two-way player like Terry Bussey. 
   
• They were young 2027 tight ends that I liked. Evan Goodwin‍ is an OL out of Arkansas who was really impressive physically. He is big, super nimble and athletic. Jake Hildebrand‍ picked up an offer earlier this spring, and he came back for camp. He looks like a million bucks for a 2027 tackle prospect.
   
• This is our first time seeing those coaches coach at length. You hear a lot about Trooper Taylor's energy, and then you see it for a couple of hours. Sean Spencer's coaching style is not the exact same, but it reminds me of Terry Price, a high-energy, likable dude. 
   
• Jordan Peterson is a great dude. Tony Jerod-Eddie is now in a full-time coaching role. There are a lot of good data points for those who analyze this.
   
• A lot of kids love the way Adam Cushing teaches at the offensive line. He is very detail-oriented. Cushing has put together a round of drills that best highlight the attributes he is looking for in a player. 
   
• Jason Howell will have a list of who is visiting this weekend. It’s less guess work because kids will put it out. There could be a surprise or two. 
   
• Jonah Williams‍, last we have heard, is coming to College Station this weekend. That is a massive visitor. There are a few more.
   
• Mason Posa‍ and Noah Mikhail‍ are the two big LB prospects.
   
• Mason Posa had this thing widdled down to a couple of programs, Texas A&M being one of them. If you made me pick based on the information I have gotten, I think he is leaning heavily towards Wisconsin. That is a kid A&M thought they could get.
   
• Wisconsin has done a great job of recruiting him. He has a wrestling background. That is wrestling country up there. I am not saying he will do it in college, but maybe they are able to draw on that a little bit more. He and his family are great people, and he will be beneficial to whatever locker room he is in. 
   
• For Noah Mikhail, he has a list down to a final three: A&M, Oregon and USC. I think it will come down to A&M and Oregon. I would give the Aggies an advantage right now. 
   
• I think they are still very open in 2026 for QB recruiting. Legend Bey‍ is a kid who is on the radar for A&M. I don't think they have narrowed that down. They don't need to yet. You make sure Husan Longstreet‍ is happy and not looking around.
   
• Taz Williams‍ announced his commit date is July 13. Zion Williams‍ announced his commit date is July 4. 
   
• Taz and Zion would probably be leaning elsewhere. I still feel good about A&M’s WR recruiting, even though they don’t have one in the boat yet. There is a pathway for them to close in top targets.
   
• Tanook Hines‍ ‍has quietly climbed the ladder on their wide receiver big board. He had eye-opening track times this spring. He is teammates with Nicholas Townsend‍, who is one of A&M’s big targets in the class.
   
• Andrew Marsh‍ has been navigating the recurring process throughout the country. He is reliable on and off the field. I would like to see him add another piece to his game in terms of explosiveness and separation. He is a very well-rounded receiver. He is among the guys whose progress is being heavily evaluated by the A&M staff.