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RECRUITING: Aggies winning H-Town recruiting battle in a landslide
Overall, Texas signed 13 of the Top 100 players from Texas, while Texas A&M brought in 14. Out of that number, only three - Derrick Harris Jr. (New Caney), Terrence Cooks (Shadow Creek) and Hayden Conner (Katy Taylor) - came from the Greater Houston area.
For the Aggies?
Jimbo Fisher and staff swooped into Houston and inked nine of the Top 100 players, with five of those being ranked in the Top 20 in Texas by 247 Sports.
"I believe that they are having so much success because players can go to Texas A&M, play in the SEC, stay in Texas and play in a system proven to have success in the NFL," Foster coach Shaun McDowell said. "And they just do a really great job of creating relationships and being visible with recruits."
Among the Top 20 players in Texas, the Aggies signed seven, which was the most by any single university. The next closest amount was four, which National Champion Alabama and perennial College Football Playoff selection Oklahoma tied for.
Texas only had one.
In that group of seven included No. 7 Tunmise Adeleye (frm. Tompkins), No. 8 LJ Johnson (Cy-Fair), No. 12 Bryce Foster (Katy Taylor), No. 15 Reuben Fatheree II (Foster) and No. 18 Shadrach Banks (North Shore).
"I think the proximity of A&M to Houston has always been an asset in their recruiting. In the eyes of some recruits, their move to the SEC separated them from the other Power 5 schools in Texas," North Shore coach Jon Kay said. "They have some coaches with strong ties in Houston. Coaches like Bradley Dale Peveto (who no longer works at A&M) and Darrell Dickey (dad and brother were both HC's in the Houston area) have always been mainstays in the Houston area.
"I think the success they had this year will only help the pipeline from Houston."'
247 Sports Recruiting Class Rankings (Class of 2021)
No. 7 - Texas A&M
No. 17 - Texas
No. 44 - Baylor
No. 53 - SMU
No. 61 - TCU
No. 64 - Texas Tech
No. 81 - Houston
Nol 93 - Rice
That is the other factor that is fueling this 12th Man surge - the Aggies went 9-1 overall this past season and finished on the verge of playing in the College Football Playoff in 2020. The Aggies' biggest win of the year came over then-No. 4 Florida (41-38) at home and their only loss came to eventual National Champion Alabama (52-24).
In the end, after an Orange Bowl victory over then-No. 13 North Carolina, Texas A&M finished No. 4 in the final poll and should be in the Top 5 in the country to start the 2021 season.
"I think they have done a great job of being aggressive in recruiting Houston players," Fort Bend Marshall coach James Marshall, whose former player Devon Achane was named the MVP of the Orange Bowl, said.
"The players see where that program is going and they want to be apart of it."
Overall, nine Houston area players did just that.
Along with those five previously mentioned, No. 60 Remington Strickland (Fort Bend Christian Academy), No. 63 Matthew Wykoff (Magnolia), No. 66 Albert Regis (La Porte) and No. 100 Fernando Garza (Katy) also signed with the Aggies.
"They are all over the place," Marshall said. "It's all about relationships with kids and high coaches and they are doing that very well."
The Class of 2021 has gone very well for the Aggies - being ranked No. 7 nationally (Texas coming in at No. 17) - and they have already started turning the page to 2022.
Texas A&M already has four hard commits - including Bridgeland quarterback and pitcher Conner Weigman - for the next class and take a wild guess where they are from.
VYPE Football 2020 Preview: All-VYPE Public School Team
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Dematrius Davis, North Shore
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Trevor Woods, Katy Taylor
First Team
Quarterback
Kyron Drones, Shadow Creek
Jalen Milroe, Tompkins
Cardell Williams, Westfield
Offensive Line
Hayden Conner, Katy Taylor
Kam Dewberry, Atascocita
Reuben Fatheree II, Foster
Bryce Foster, Katy Taylor
Jaeden Roberts, North Shore
Running Back
Jaydon Blue, Klein Cain
L.J. Johnson, Cy-Fair
Julius Loughridge, Mayde Creek
Mitch Hall, Magnolia
Wide Receiver
Shadrach Banks, North Shore
Dylan Goffney, Bridgeland
Cody Jackson, Foster
Joseph Manjack IV, Tomball Memorial
Tight End
Elijah Bean, Summer Creek
Fernando Garza, Katy
Donovan Green, Dickinson
Landen King, Atascocita
Kicker/Punter
Carter Brown, Pearland Dawson
Nemanja Lazic, Katy
Defensive Line
Taurean Crawford, Elkins
Anthony Holmes Jr., Westfield
Albert Regis, La Porte
Malick Sylla, Katy
Cameron Whitfield, Pearland Dawson
Linebacker
Shepherd Bowling, Katy
Terrence Cooks Jr, Shadow Creek
Derrick Harris Jr., New Caney
Justin Medlock, Manvel
Secondary
Robin Neely, Cypress Ranch
Cameron Oliver, Fort Bend Travis
Hunter Washington, Katy
Mark Wilson, Clear Lake
Second Team
Quarterback
Ronald Holmes, Northside
Colton Marwill, Tomball Memorial
Daelyn Williams, DeKaney
Offensive Line
Kelvin Banks, Summer Creek
Canon Boone, Dickinson
Caleb Rodkey, Ridge Point
PJ Williams, Dickinson
Matthew Wykoff, Magnolia
Running Back
Dashawn Daniels, Chavez
JP Martin, Cy Falls
Alton McCaskill, Oak Ridge
Ahmonte Watkins, Klein Forest
Wide Receiver
Matthew Golden, Klein Cain
CJ Guidry, Shadow Creek
Charles King, North Shore
John Paul Richardson, Ridge Point
Tight End
Marcus Collins, Magnolia West
Ben Postma, Cypress Ranch
Mason Tharp, Klein
Jack Witmer, Cy-Fair
Kicker/Punter
Caleb Mendez, Pearland
Sean Nesemeier, Atascocita
Defensive Line
Keith Cooper, Dickinson
DeMone Green, Heights
Jacob Psyk, Strake Jesuit
Kason Tullos, Klein Oak
Trent Ward, Klein Collins
Linebacker
Rodney Dansby, Bellaire
Dylan Hazen, College Park
Ty Kana, Katy
Harold Perkins, Cy Park
Secondary
Jalen Emery, Shadow Creek
Denver Harris, North Shore
Bryce McMorris, Bridgeland
Blake Thompson, Elkins
Honorable Mention
Quarterback
Aldyn Bradley, Spring
Luke Grden, Friendswood
Jalen Morrison, Heights
Conner Weigman, Bridgeland
Offensive Line
Luke Lapeze, Summer Creek
Max Merril, Strake Jesuit
Ethan Onienwa, Cinco Ranch
Aaron Session, Morton Ranch
Lamont Vaz, Fort Bend Marshall
Running Back
Damon Bankston, Katy Paetow
Marquis Shoulders, Tompkins
Ja'Den Stewart, Dawson
Wide Receiver
Tre Harden, Montgomery
Randy Masters, Shadow Creek
Latrell Neville, Fort Bend Hightower
Tight End
Var'Keyes Gumms, Dekaney
Parker Menefee, Ridge Point
Trent McGaughey, Shadow Creek
Kicker/Punter
Enock Gota, Dekaney
Sergio Rubio, Fort Bend Travis
Defensive Line
Alonzo Brown, North Shore
Kevon Garcia, Dekaney
Michael Noubussi, Manvel
Tyler Onyedim, Foster
Lukia Rawls, Klein Cain
Ryan Williams, Shadow Creek
Linebacker
Dylan Dixson, Pearland
Jayhvion Gipson, Langham Creek
Aarun Lockett, Humble
KC Ossai, Oak Ridge
Joey Verret, Cy Creek
Secondary
Javon Gipson, George Ranch
Travis Greenawalt, La Porte
Julian Humphrey, Clear Lake
Dalton Johnson, Katy
Donald Lee, Klein Collins
Cameron Moore, Fort Bend Travis
Romario Noel, Cypress Ranch
Dru Polidore, Katy Tompkins