Aggies add commitment from nation's top RB
This major commitment update is brought to you by Branch & Dhillon, P.C.!
Texas A&M lost one of college football's best running backs in Devon Achane when he declared for the NFL Draft after his junior season. His possible replacement is the best running back in the 2023 recruiting class.
El Campo's Rueben Owens, who had been committed to Louisville, has flipped to the Aggies. Owens was a longtime A&M target, but it seemed the Aggies were destined to be the bridesmaid for the nation's number one all-purpose back.
During his junior season, Owens committed to Texas, but changed his mind a short time later. The Aggies seemed to be in the driver's seat for him this spring, but an unofficial visit to Louisville in June quickly altered the equation.
Owens seemed solid to the Cardinals all season, but coach Scott Satterfield's sudden decision to leave for Cincinnati led the 6-foot, 200-pound back to reconsider. The Aggies, who were one of the few teams who never stopped recruiting him, were in prime position to land him once he de-committed Dec. 7.
Owens picked the Aggies over Texas, TCU, Georgia, LSU, Ohio State and many, many others. He has a total of 43 offers.
Once he arrives at A&M, he should quickly move into a rotation with current sophomore Amari Daniels and freshman Le'Veon Moss.
Analysis of A&M's newest commit
Owens is about as complete a package as there is for a running back. He has great speed, vision and elusiveness. He's not incredibly big, but he is very strong and tough to bring down.
One thing that stands out immediately about Owens is his lower body strength. He can take hits from multiple players and still keep his legs churning. It also gives an indication of his desire, because there are very few players who can take him down 1-on-1.
HIs vision is elite. He sees holes quickly, sometimes anticipating where they'll be, and hits them with remarkable quickness. Once he gets in the open field, he does an amazing job setting up defenders to make sure they miss him. He's not just instinctive, he's got great field smarts. He also has great "wiggle", which helps him get through holes and evade defenders at the line of scrimmage.
His straight line speed is excellent. He's not Achane, but he is at least as fast as Isaiah Spiller and appears to be comparable to Amari Daniels.
There are only three questions I have about Owens: first, how well does he block? We know that's a key part of the A&M offense, new coordinator or not. Second, how well does he catch out of the backfield? He's a weapon and you'd want him to get the ball as much as possible. Third, how long will it take to adjust to bigtime SEC football? El Campo, to my surprise, is a 4A program, so maybe not as long as you'd think. In any case, this is a massive get for the Aggies and helps stabilize not only their backfield, but the 2023 recruiting class as well.