re: Official 2018 Recruiting Thread

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Perroni: One target left: Where do things stand with A&M, Dorian Gerald?

Texas A&M has one target still left on the board for the class of 2018 in JUCO DE Dorian Gerald.

Originally thought to be an A&M/Florida battle, Arkansas jumped into the picture with a midweek visit last week. The Razorbacks were considered the only other team in it.

From talking to some people, there have been some shakeups as of late.

Florida is possibly full and, as of right now, it does not sound like he has a spot with the Gators. However, that is not a done deal and could change so I am not counting them out. They have definitely not decided either way but it is trending toward them not being able to take him. They were Gerald’s longtime favorite prior to his A&M official and also received the final visit from him.

Arkansas snuck into the picture with the late visit and things went well on the trip to Fayetteville, according to a number of sources. The Razorbacks are moving back to a 4-3 and are pushing him hard. Arkansas feels it did its best but does not know what Gerald is going to do.

A&M did an incredible job on the visit and he left College Station with the Aggies as his leader. They also sold him on early playing time – which is important to a junior college recruit with only two years of eligibility and an eye on playing in the pros. Without the longtime connections to Florida with the staff and having family in the area, the Aggies would have been the clear leader even after that visit.

I don’t think it’s a done deal yet but there is a lot of talk among schools that A&M will end up with him.

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There is nowhere near the variety or fun you can have w/the L gifs.

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Behind the scenes at Texas A&M as Jimbo Fisher starts to put his stamp on the Aggies

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- To be clear, Jimbo Fisher is killing it in recruiting. Texas A&M proudly boasts the nation's No. 4 class according to 247Sports.

Well, in 2019.

"We'll end up being one or two," Fisher said Wednesday during the 2018 National Signing Day. "I'm talking about 10 guys that are right [there]. I'm talking about first-, second-round draft pick guys. There's some phenomenal players."

Again, next year.

As for Wednesday's signing day, the second of the 2018 cycle, consider it a heck of an appetizer for Fisher and Texas A&M. That's maybe the best you can expect when you arrive 15 days before the first Early Signing Period in December having to go head-to-head in the state of Texas against the likes of Lincoln Riley, Mike Gundy, Tom Herman and Gary Patterson.

But after a few last-minute flips and fast closings, the Aggies finished a respectable 17th, according to the 247Sports Composite. In eight years as a head coach at Florida State, Fisher finished out of the top 10 only once (11th in 2013).

CBS Sports spent Wednesday with the Aggies and their 52-year-old coach. Jimbo is still that ball of energy, that national championship coach who is now also the highest paid coach (total dollars) in history.

The day dawned at Texas A&M with 15 scholarships still to give. That was the most in the nation's top 35 -- at least. During December's Early Signing Period, a large portion of coaches signed 75 percent of their classes.

"It's like the old days 15 years ago," Fisher said as the fax machine whirred, "when everyone waited until the last minute."

The day ended with an official signing class of 22. Quite a recovery. Fisher's hiring was announced Dec. 1, 2017, and made official Dec. 5. After that, he had to move from Tallahassee, Florida, round up an early class and hire a staff. In the case of one staffer, that meant lining up his new linebackers coach who came close to death.

Wednesday, then, was a bit of a recruiting mulligan. Fisher signed only 10 players in the early period. Wednesday marked a back loading of a class that will be charged with winning the SEC West -- for starters.

Both sides hope this relationship lasts forever. His first A&M class was sprinkled with what Fisher said were main needs -- running backs, tight ends and linemen.

But the best is still to come. With two signing days and a lot of time to kill in between, Fisher -- like a lot of coaches -- got an early start on a 2019 class that will include at least one five-star.

Still, there's nothing to apologize for in 2018. But even one of the country's top coaches endured the typical job-switching transition in recruiting.

Wednesday began a return on that massive investment. The Aggies haven't won a conference title since 1998. Their only national championship came in 1939. If recruiting is a case of, What have you done for me lately?, winning is a case of, What can Jimbo do for the Aggies in seven months?

"We have enough guys that we think we can win SEC championships with and national championships with," Fisher said.

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