Aggies enjoy a fantastic Friday
Crossing two of your top targets for a recruiting class is always a big deal. When they commit to your program at the same time, it's phenomenal. That's what happened to Texas A&M Friday afternoon.
After a couple hours of delay, the Aggies landed their much sought-after 99 and 9: Katy Taylor's Max Wright and Cy-Springs' Leon O'Neal. In the process, they landed the number 50 and number 116 player in the nation according to Rivals.com, pushed their commit total for the 2018 class to nine and filled some major needs in the process. AY takes a look at the talent heading A&M's way.
Speed and power: DE Max Wright
Chose A&M over: Alabama, LSU, Texas, Florida, Georgia, USC...you get the idea.
Why he's important: Wright is the best defensive end in the state and, really, this part of the country. Defensive end is the biggest glaring need the Aggies have, both this year and next. He was a critical target, and one Terry Price, Jeff Banks and Clarence McKinney have been after for a long time.
2016 stats: 75 tackles, 18 TFL, 9 sacks
What he brings to the table: When an NFL player (Patrick Lewis of the Buffalo Bills) watches a player's tape and says, "I like him a lot," you know you've got something.
In Wright, the Aggies don't have "something", they have the best defensive end prospect they've landed since Myles Garrett. He's got size, he's athletic and out-thinks opponents as well as out-plays them.
When you look at his film, the plays of him at running back are almost as instructive as the ones where he's at defensive end. Wright -- at much closer to 270 pounds than 230 -- gets the handoff on a sweep, has the speed to get outside of the containment, the agility to keep his balance when a defender tries to take him out at the knees, then has the strength to run over guys on the way into the end zone. Those aren't things you can teach; those are gifts. In another highlight, he shows his leaping ability by simply jumping up at the line of scrimmage to block a field goal attempt.
Then there's his work on defense. Wright definitely has the speed to play a three technique (outside of the tackle's outside shoulder), or the strength to play the five technique (inside, in the tackle/guard gap). He uses his hands extremely well to keep tackles from closing on him, then has the speed to run down quarterbacks or running backs from behind. One of the most remarkable talents he has is running to where the ballcarrier will be, not where he is, allowing him to make up even more ground more quickly. That's great vision and tremendous instinct.
Where he fits: He'll be in the rotation immediately, and with Tyree Johnson, Micheal Clemons and Ondario Robinson, he starts to give the Aggies reason to feel better about the 2018 defensive front. But he's at a level all his own.
Hammer in the secondary: S Leon O'Neal
Chose A&M over: Alabama, Oklahoma, Clemson, LSU, Texas, Nebraska, Ohio State, Michigan, among others
2016 stats: 114 tackles, 2 INT, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries
Why he's important: The Aggies were probably only going to take one safety in this class, and O'Neal is about as good as they get. He brings, speed, range and hitting ability to the secondary.
What he brings to the table: This guy can flat-out hit. He's got the ability to go for the highlight film knockout blow every time he tackles someone, but is smart enough to know not to do it. He definitely leads shoulder-first, but he also wraps up and knows how to strip the ball from a back if they're not careful with it.
O'Neal doesn't have to wait for a back or receiver to find him to lay a good lick on them; he's got plus speed for a safety. He can turn and run with a receiver in pass coverage, or he can cover a lot of ground to find a back and make a play on them. He's got solid footwork and, maybe just as importantly, he knows how to find the football in flight.
O'Neal is playing at 190 pounds now, but he could easily get to 200 or 210 once he gets to A&M. That will make him truly dangerous.
Where he fits: O'Neal's addition ensures the Aggies will have a second generation of outstanding safeties roaming the defensive backfield after Armani Watts and Donovan Wilson are done. With O'Neal, Larry Pryor, Ikenna Okeke, Derrick Tucker and Keldrick Carper, A&M now has a unit of safeties who are big, athletic, can move and can hit. He'll be a big part of that moving forward.