re: Official 2018 Recruiting Thread

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I do sense that the hour of cards in Austin is falling

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They are loading up on players based on rank for the hype/press of it, irrespective of team needs. They are going to be hurting in a couple years and half those perimeter players will transfer

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Fisher and the new guys in Maroon & White are setting their sights on the best prospects in the country and are supremely confident in their ability to first get their desired targets on campus and, ultimately, closing them out. If this is what we're already seeing, just imagine what Fisher and Co. will be able to do with a full cycle to recruit the Class of 2019. Get ready to change the way you think when it comes to Texas A&M's recruiting reach and the caliber of prospect that they go out and land, both in state and beyond. Oh yeah, and I've been told the 12th Man should buckle up for January because Jimbo and the Aggies plan on welcoming an absolutely loaded group of visitors to campus during the Signing Day home stretch.

-Another example of the Aggies making lightning-fast moves on the recruiting front is the staff getting Oregon commit and JUCO stud Mohamed Diallo in town for an official this weekend. The 6-4, 320-pound defensive tackle is still committed to the Ducks but word I'm hearing is that his visit to Aggieland was an eye-opener and perhaps even a game-changer. The only issue here - and it's a significant one - is that he would have to pass an extra math class (in the classroom and not on-line) in order to qualify to play in the SEC. It's a quirk I've mentioned before and one that has had an effect on the decisions of many a JC standout since the Ags joined the league six years ago. If he wants to be at A&M badly enough, however, the spring grad could be in Aggieland by mid-summer.

-An interesting visitor arrived on Saturday in the form of Kansas commit Clayton Tune. The quarterback was drawing serious interest from Ole Miss and Baylor but the Rebels landed five-star Matt Corral and BU seems to have Tune as a fallback option. Though he didn't leave with an offer, this is a player former Memphis OC Darrell Dickey is familiar with and probably someone to watch depending on how things go with the Ags' recruiting efforts at the position moving forward.

Another possibility worth monitoring on the QB front has to do with longtime Oklahoma commit Tanner Mordecai. On Sunday, I heard that the Aggies at least opened up the lines of communication with one of 2017's breakout Texas prep stars. Mordecai has accounted for nearly 5,500 yards of offense and 70 TDs as a senior while leading Waco Midway to an undefeated season and a berth in next weekend's 6A Division 2 state title game. An awful lot would have to happen here in a very short period of time (on both sides, mind you) because Tanner does currently plan to ink with OU during the early signing period. There are some strong family ties to A&M there, however, and it's not like the current A&M staff was the one that overlooked the semi-local star throughout the process. Again, I don't expect much to materialize here but it's just something worth keeping an eye on.

-The players whose status we'll update later this evening are Boling RB and Alabama commit Vernon Jackson and the two longtime A&M commits and Dallas-area defenders - Bobby Brown and DaShaun White. Brown deciding to drive down to College Station just days before the early signing period was a monster development for Fisher and the Ags and everything we're hearing is that White's visit was a home run. OU has been steadily chipping away at the Ags for both players and Alabama is also all over Brown and, to be honest, I think the Ags would have had a pretty difficult time hanging on to the four-star defenders. As it stands on Sunday evening, things are looking much more promising, provided the Aggies can navigate the fact that there isn't a defensive coordinator in place.

As for Jackson, Jimbo Fisher's visit to Boling on Thursday prior to his trip to the West Coast was particularly impactful, as the Aggies were able to really hammer home how they planned to utilize the 240-pound back in Fisher's offense. All of that sounded very intriguing for the Crimson Tide pledge, who now has sort things out. Remember, Jackson can still take an official visit to Aggieland in January if he doesn't sign with Bama this week. Either that, or he could shock Saban and the rest of the SEC and ink with the home state Aggies during the early signing period (less likely).

-With the Ags trending up for Jackson, let's take a quick look at the guys that A&M has generated the most momentum with in the two weeks since Fisher's arrival.

Based on what I'm hearing, I love the Ags' chances at keeping Episcopal WR Jaylen Waddle in state and outlasting Bama and winning a key head-to-head with the MerMan and Texas for Joseph Ossai. I like A&M as a slight favorite to close out both Terrace Marshall and Vernon Jackson. The same can be said with Jeremiah Martin in a key head-to-head against Oklahoma. As far as momentum trending upward, you can put Luke Ford (this dude is a Gronk clone who has included A&M in his top five before even giving College Station a look based on the Aggie depth chart and longtime recruiter Tim Brewster) and perhaps even Brey Walker on the list. Prior to this weekend, the Aggies had knocked it out of the park with JUCO tight end Dominick Wood-Anderson but the nation's top-ranked player at the position was at Tennessee this weekend so we're in the process of following up where things stand after the trip to Knoxville.

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