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Alabama was poised to land a commitment from its top defensive end target on Nov. 4. Then, out of nowhere, Bobby Brown decided to move up his decision date a few days before taking an official visit to Texas A&M.

Brown, a 4-star defensive tackle from Lamar High School (Arlington, Texas), committed to the Aggies over the Crimson Tide in what was a big win for Texas A&M. Fast forward to Friday, and the Tide finally got the player they’ve wanted since the summer.

The nation’s No. 16 defensive tackle (though he’s being recruited as a defensive end) de-committed from Texas A&M on Wednesday night. Alabama had chipped away at Brown’s commitment after Kevin Sumlin was fired before landing his commitment on Friday. Brown is not signing with the Tide during the early signing period.

Brown told SEC Country why he chose the Tide.

“If I want to be the best then why not play for the best?” Brown said. “Period. Point blank.”

The 6-foot-4, 282-pound prospect said he knew that Texas A&M was no longer the place for him when Kevin Sumlin was fired by the school shortly after the regular season.

“I chose A&M because that’s where I had wanted to play because of [defensive line] Coach [Terry] Price and Coach Sumlin, but once Coach Sumlin got fired, the element changed and I didn’t feel the same.”

What Alabama also has going for it is outside linebackers coach Tosh Lupoi, Brown’s primary recruiter. Lupoi is arguably the best recruiter on the Tide’s staff outside of coach Nick Saban himself. Lupoi is one of the main reasons why Brown backed off his commitment to Texas A&M. He’s been at Brown’s home three times in the past few weeks.

“He played a big role, and it wasn’t even about recruiting,” Brown said. “He’s just real.”

Brown is also aware that Alabama is in need of several linemen in this class. The Tide signed 4-star prospects Christian Barmore and Stephon Wynn on Wednesday. But early playing time isn’t a necessity to him. He knows wherever he goes that he’ll have to put in the work to see the field.

“Early playing time is guaranteed to nobody,” Brown said. “Coaches can say that and it may not be true. So, that’s not a factor for me at all. When coaches tell me that, it goes in one ear and out the other.”

There’s also some comfortability at Alabama. Redshirt freshman offensive lineman Chris Owens is a former high school teammate of Brown’s. Those two still talk to each other and hung out this past weekend, but Brown would not disclose what he and Owens have discussed regarding Alabama.

Those two used to go against each other in practice every day. Owens usually got the best of him.

“The harder you get hit, the harder you have to hit back,” Brown said with a laugh when asked what he learned from Owens. “He won the majority of the battles back then. He was just so powerful. I was only a sophomore at the time, so he was much stronger than me.”

With Brown on board, Alabama lands its top target at a critical position of need.