Q: Since A&M generates a significant amount of ticket revenue from a full football stadium and based on the rumblings of not seeing a full capacity stadium due to COVID-19, how do you see that rolling downhill to other sports? Will we see budget cuts like Stanford, cutting 1-2 sports for the year to break even?

A: So far, A&M hasn't had to cut anything. They're in the top 1% in terms of financial health for athletic departments. If they are able to keep 50% level, they should be ok. But no season at all could be a real problem.

Hate to ask another question, but has there been a proposal on how the after-game interviews would be handled with press (You and Courtney)? (Apollo1914)

A: Not yet. We (the A&M media) were supposed to have a Zoom conference with the athletic department a couple weeks ago, but that was postponed. Hopefully we'll have that conversation soon.

Q: Is Jimbo recruiting K. Daniels as a S or LB? How does he compare to someone like Okeke or Chattman? Strictly talent and projection wise. (Prater1978)

A: They want him as a safety. In fact, it looks like if they get him, he would probably be the only safety in the class. I really don't see him comparing to either Okeke or Chattman. He's probably already bigger than Chattman, who has remained long and lean, and looks like he's got better speed than Okeke.

Q: The short piece on Blake Trainor piqued my interest. Are there any reports about his recovery or practice results that are any newer than 2019? Big, big guy whose HS highlights show a guy who should be a devastating run blocker. (Rick77)

A: Not really. He was out all of last season and our next chance to see him was going to be the spring, and that was cancelled. So now we wait (and hope) to see him in a couple of weeks. He and Cole Blanton are two guys people aren't thinking a lot about who could have a big impact over the next couple of years.

Q: As of now, where do you see these players being drafted after next season? Which won't get drafted but will likely get shots as UFA's?

QB: Mond WR: Jhamon Ausbon WR: Camron Buckley OL: Dan Moore OL: Jared Hocker OL: Ryan McCollum OL: Carson Green DT: Bobby Brown DT: Jayden Peevy LB: Buddy Johnson LB: Anthony Hines LB: Aaron Hansford DB: Elijah Blades DB: Miles Jones

It's hard to really project these things, because final seasons can mean a lot. Joe Burrow may not have been drafted after the 2018 season, and ended up #1 overall in the 2020 draft. If the draft were held tomorrow, Mond, Ausbon, Brown, Peevy, Johnson and Hines would probably get draft. None would go before the middle rounds. I think all six of them could really help their stock in 2020, and Blades could really make a move if he stays healthy and is as good as I think (hope?) he is. Hansford remains an interesting case. Will he get enough playing time to be seen as a difference maker? That's the question for me.

Q: to piggyback if we go to a spring schedule do you see any of the players electing to go into the draft instead of play? (Pharm11)

A: They would be making a mistake if they did. None of them are at the level of a Trevor Lawrence, where they can be drafted off of past performance. They need that extra year.

Q: Do you and/or the coaching staff have high hopes for our new Aussie punter? (Phastman)

A: 1 punt, 57 yards. Yeah, I high hopes for him.

Q: Long time lurker, trying to involve myself more in conversations....

With the potential options to fill the schedule noted previously (TCU, Tech, BYU, Temple, etc.). Where would you rank which ones most advantageous to play and why. As a Philly Ag, I would love to watch them play Temple and would be a good showcase across PA and NJ with Maryland Northern VA only couple of hours away.

A: First off, greetings! Thank you for taking the time to get in on this. Here's my thoughts on those guys:

Temple is intriguing for the reasons you mention. But A&M would want that game at home, and I'm not sure Temple would bite on that. Their original schedule had them playing at Rutgers the weekend of Sept. 19, when A&M would have played Colorado, so it's possible. But going over to Jersey and coming to College Station are two very different animals.

Tech is a rivalry game and would spark a lot of in-state discussion. A&M would also likely roll them, which is another plus. But how do you get two teams who lost home games to come to an accommodation?

TCU is going to be desperate for a game. Their schedule is already pretty messed up, but they could add Alabama to start the season and they wouldn't want another SEC West team after that. So I think that precludes the Aggies, and honestly, I think they'll be much better than most think this year, so that's a more than slight concern (even though I'd think A&M would be a considerable favorite). And, honestly, I don't want to have to talk about the running back who will not be named.

And there's BYU. They're not good, have no real advantages for A&M to exploit from a recruiting perspective and don't cause any buzz. But they're an independent and would likely travel, so they may be the team who makes the most sense.

Are their any reclassifications issues if California players want to enroll early (a la Vaka)? Is A&M advantaged by CA high schools not playing in the Fall? Who does it help? Are there any other states with significant recruiting grounds where the Fall schedule moving to Spring is a distinct possibility? (JoeFried)

A: Well, Vaka backed off and decided to wait. I don't think anyone is really advantaged by having schools postpone sports. They can't scout and that makes recruiting an even bigger crap shoot. I think most of the east coast will end up moving their football seasons, which hurts even more. The only positive, from A&M's perspective, is that Florida and Georgia won't.

Q: Can you walk us through what the team is doing now, and what the future training schedule/timeline is? If it needs to be said, this is assuming a regular season start, or whatever facts need to be considered as current.(Ag98)

A: Right now, they're in the "advanced" stage of offseason activity, where they can meet 20 hours a week. They're working out and doing other football activities (read: 7-on-7 and the like) that the coaches can't observe or evaluate. This should go on for another couple of weeks, then they'll start practices in early August.

Q: I believe California cancelled high school football for the upcoming season.Will this help or hurt our recruiting? (4cag)

A: Well, it's sure as heck not going to help. A&M was probably only getting Victory Vaka out of California this recruiting cycle, but now they're losing evaluation time on other prospects for 2022 and beyond. They also can't build those relationships.

Q: The teasips put out a public statement on 50% capacity and ticket holders. I do not remember anything about students. I presume A&M has not announced anything other than a suggestion of 50% capacity. Commandant said the other day he meets weekly with the AD and right now does not know how they will handle the students or Corps. When will the university clarify the plan for Ags in the stadium. (DentonAg80)

A: A&M will also likely be at 50% because that's the threshold Gov. Abbott set and is in place right now. There's nothing special about what Texas decided. As for A&M, they're taking things slowly because we don't know what will happen in the next few weeks.

Q: Updates on K Phillips? E Crownover? J Sheppard? (Mozilla)

A: Phillips -- recovering, should be in the 2021 class.

Crownover -- on campus.

Shepherd -- JUCO.

Q: Let’s assume social distancing applies to Corps March Ins and the FTAB. Step Off will probably be right after Midnight Yell Practice ends for any 11 o’clock kick off, but what about halftime? How are they gonna seat the band 6’ apart, what will the T look like and are close quarter drills done for? Are the benches for the players going to be marked so players don’t sit together? Are huddles allowed?

Yeah, I’m bored. (h273)

A: Take it up with the band.

Q: Due to the reduced football practice & meeting times this year compared to prior years, could you comment on the relative importance of each area below? Which teams will have the biggest advantage/disadvantage?

Talent - will talent simply rise to the top, so the most talented team wins? Or will teams with superior talent like bama, georgia, and clemson have less of an advantage this year? Experience - will veteran teams have a bigger advantage this year? How will this affect A&M, especially at OLine and in the secondary? Senior Leadership - how much more important is senior leadership this year? How is A&M's player leadership this year compared to our opponents? Scheme - will simpler schemes be more effective this year and might this affect A&M's more complex schemes? Coaching stability - how much will teams with new head coaches (e.g. Ole Miss, Miss St, Arky) or new coordinators (tu, lsu, auburn) be affected? Overall - will less practice time give A&M a better chance or worse chance at reaching 10+ wins?

P/S Sorry for the complicated questions, but I'm kind of at a loss for this season, and I would greatly appreciate your detailed reply. (SGMan)

A: Here's my take on it: the most experienced and most talented teams will have a clear advantage this year -- even more clear than usual. That means teams like Alabama, Georgia, Clemson and Ohio State -- teams that are not only talented, but well-coached -- are in good shape. It also means teams that are veteran-heavy, like A&M, are also well-positioned. If a lot of players make the junior to senior leap in quality of play that we have seen many make over the past several years, the Aggies are in particularly great shape. Another plus for A&M is that a lot of the freshmen were in at the midterm, so they have more time in the S&C program and learning the system. Teams that are undergoing coaching changes and massive adjustments to scheme are pretty screwed. Time in the classroom is good for freshmen, but when you have to teach an entire team how to do things your way on the fly, it's going to be very difficult.

Q: Are you hearing anything you can share about Eli's recuperation? Are you optimistic his game will be the same as it was before the injury? (Longneck80)

A: For those wondering, Eli is A&M commit Eli Stowers. And so far as I can tell, his rehab is on schedule and I have heard no worries about him recovering fully physically. The bigger issue may be recovering mentally, and that's not to say he's soft. Knee injuries are tough things to get past, and it'll take time.

Q: What's the latest that TAMU/SEC can make a decision about any restrictions on football fans in the stands?

A: I don't think there's any actual time constraints with respect to fans in the stands, except for maybe mailing out tickets. So they can probably wait until mid-August or later on that.

From the college coach's perspective, the only thing that has been impacted in the evaluation of a player is no spring football, 7 on 7, no summer camps and no in person visits during the summer. Most schools are going to play in the fall of 2020. How much does those peripheral events impact a typical recruits evaluation by the staff when compared to looking at actual game film, talking to HS coaches and keeping up with the recruit on social media/text/phone calls? (Boone8466)

A: It's a HUGE impact. I can't overstate that. You have lost a ton of evaluation time and the opportunity to build relationships via face-to-face interaction. These aren't peripheral events; these are critical parts of the process. That's why I think you could see some teams drop off rapidly over the next couple of years, because their scouting and evaluating will bust during the crap shoot of 2021 and 2022 recruiting.

Q: Have you heard any rumblings of changing the early signing period or NSD due to California (and possibly other states) postponing football until the spring? (phastman)

A: N-O.

Q: Recruits love to hint about guys they know we are getting.

who are some big names recruits told you we were getting long before they signed With us? who are some big names recruits told you we were getting up until the last minute but they signed elsewhere? (Aggiewoo)

A: I knew Daylon Mack was coming back long before he actually said so. In a lot of cases, I knew big names were coming but we couldn't say so. You can usually tell, because a story will go up the instant they commit. There's usually one guy per class who I become friends with and they'll spill the beans. As for big recruits I thought were coming until the last minute -- Vernon Broughton comes to mind because he told everyone who would listen at the 5-star Challenge he was committing. And it was all a big con. Most of the time, recruits are friendly and stay friendly regardless of where they go. Broughton got ghosted by virtually every A&M commit after that stunt.

Q: 1. Is the game at Colorado also canceled for the 2021 season?

A: No.

2. In recent Houston Chronicle articles, AD Bjork seems to be setting fans (especially donors) up for a delayed start to the 2020 season with reduced fan seating capacity at best, and cancellation at worst. How do you interpret the AD's statements? What is your frank assessment at this point given the inability of Texas to flatten the Covid-19 spread curve?

A: I interpret them as a man who has his options open, as he should. And the COVID-19 decline appears to be underway.

3. Where does the coaching staff need to focus their recruiting efforts to fill the remainder of the 2021 class?

A: Linebacker, one more corner, one more offensive tackle and defensive tackle. The rest you can go with the best player available.

4. If the SEC goes to a conference only schedule, how many games can be played, and who from the East Division do you think will be added to A&M's schedule? (Chuck70)

A: At this point, I don't think they're going conference only. That would be an absolute next-to-worst-case scenario, and they're not there yet.

Q: Is Mike Evans a better receiver than Keenan Allen? (BIMSAg02)

A: Mike says so. And i'm not arguing with Mike.

Q: A&M positioning for Shemar Turner? Do you think he’ll be an Aggie?

A: They're in the top three. I don't think he'll be an Aggie.

How many DTs do we take?

A: Probably two.

How many DEs?

A: Two at least, probably three.

Can you rate the highest Prospect probabilities for each of those two main positions?

At DE, Monkell Goodwine and Turner. At DT, Tywone Malone and Taleeq Robbins

Do we take 4 CBs this year?

A: Maybe.

Highest two probabilities remaining to commit? (haas89)

A: I don't know on that one right now. I think if they get another, it will likely be a JUCO.

Q: Updates on this year’s schedule? (BJK01)

A: Just that they're looking for options to replace Colorado and are probably looking for possible replacements for Fresno State.

Q: How out of shape is the team? Even with self guided workouts there’s probably quite a bit of work to do to get in real football shape. (Wlake_ag)

A: I don't know. That's not something they really like to publicize.