Q: Does Childress's departure impact any recruits that are dual sports? (Longneck 80)

A: No.

Q: How many Safeties and CBs is the staff planning on taking this year? It looks like safety could have some serious attrition by seasons end. (Oamj)

A: They’re taking at least two corners, probably three. At safety, I think they need to take three. They will lose Keldrick Carper after this season, and could lose Leon O’Neal and Demani Richardson. Having only brought in one this year, they’ve got to rebuild the depth chart.

Q: Seeing how we recently offered a 2025 kid. My son a pretty good ball player (c/o 2028) his stats are .627avg, .815obp, 1.526ops, 23 walks, 6 k’s, 51 stolen bases on his 11uAAA team. Should I start putting together a recruiting video? He’s also thrown out 3 runners at first from CF. (fasstcamarosss)

A: I think you’re kidding, and hope so. Let the kid enjoy himself and the game. There will be plenty of time for that other stuff once he gets to the level where the bases are 90 feet away.

Q: Demas, Chapman, Smith, Cupp, King, and Achane…that’s a stupid amount of speed to put on the field at one time. Can you list their forty times?

A: Nope.

For giggles, can you include Spiller, Wydemyer…heck, how about the whole two deep at offensive skill positions.

A: Nope.

It feels like we’re finally developing elite team speed. You agree?

A: Absolutely yes.

Take A&M out of the discussion. Is Bama @ Florida early in the season before they get rolling the best shot at a loss? Could they slip up elsewhere, or is the West in too much of a rebuild mode? (EliCrow)

A: The only one I see that could be a threat is Ole Miss, because the Rebels have given Alabama fits in the past. Otherwise, maybe LSU — but that team is just a huge question mark from top to bottom. So yeah, I think you’re right.

Q: Seems obvious, but would our chances be better or worse this year had Kellen stayed?

A: I definitely think it would have been better, especially if he continued to improve the way he did from 2019 to 2020. Add in a bunch of offensive weapons and the offense could be very dangerous.

How do you think the offensive tempo will be affected this year? Slower, to allow the new QB more time to process info, faster to take advantage of the skill positions we'll have on the field, or about the same as last year?

A: Oh, I think it’ll be pretty similar. They’ve controlled time of possession each year Jimbo’s been here, and I doubt that’s going to change.

What do you see as the future for ESPN? What was once a sports oasis where a guy could go to get away from all the other day-to-day politics, trouble, etc. is now almost unbearable to watch unless there is a game on, and even then many times. More importantly, as ESPN continues to tumble how does that affect the money we get from television rights? (TAMU-83)

A: I only watch ESPN when a game’s on. I don’t like TV celebrities who clearly don’t know their backside from Bermuda telling me how to think. That’s just the absolute height of arrogance and I’m not going to endure that garbage if at all possible.

As for the money issue— thankfully, the SEC is set for the next several years already and Disney seems pretty content to continue throwing money at ESPN for broadcast rights, even as they gut other parts of the network.

Q: Who will be the next commit? (Ringdunker93)

A: I really don’t know. But Ish Harris said he’ll be committing in July and Kojo Antwi is committing somewhere July 5. So if there isn’t one in June, the streak should end there.

Q: What kind of drills, testing, or workouts are coaches allowed to give when recruits visit? Are there some recent changes to the rules, and does it apply to official visits only? (SGMan)

A: I think they can do about anything in terms of drills and stuff like that. They can’t get them in pads or anything like that, but a 40, or 3-cone or something like that seems like it’s on the table.

Q: Did we reject Humphrey’s commitment ? (Prater1978)

A: No, but they weren’t ready to take it, either. They wanted to see more from him, as in to visit for a camp.

Q: If I said we would have 9.5 articles over the summer (starting on Jun 1 to start of fall camp) discussing whether or not Texas and Texas A&M should or should not play again outside of a bowl game just to fill the lull in CFB news over the summer, would you take the over or the under? (Aggie_in_NB)

A: I’m going to take the under, but it’ll probably be close. I just wish people would get over it, and themselves, and find something else to write about. I guarantee you there won’t be a story on that here (unless someone makes news on that front).

Q: How about a way too early prediction for records of each West team? (Elicrow)

A: Not yet. 1) it wouldn’t be an educated guess and 2) I like hearing the coaches at media days and get their general vibe. I’ll give you an order of finish, though: Alabama and A&M fight for first; LSU is third, then Ole Miss, Auburn, Arkansas and Mississippi State.

Q: Obviously, the coaching staff isn’t bringing in Tennessee OT Johnson to sit on the bench, so I take it the staff likes him. Watching our game last year, with the notable exception of one play, he seemed to generally hold his own against a very good A&M defensive line. Assuming he starts at RT what are your expectations from him this coming season. I went back and watched him vs us but since they only had the ball about 40 plays it was hard to assess his ability. (Agcatter123)

A: I think he’ll be solid. If he can play at Carson Green’s level from last year, I’ll take it and run. That would mean whoever the quarterback is will feel pretty comfortable about having a rush in his face being dealt with.

Q: does this team have enough character to avoid a slow start in the season against the early cupcakes? (Mrdoctore86)

A: Do you want to make DeMarvin Leal or Kenyon Green mad?

Q: I’ve heard a lot of people putting the over/under for the Ags wins this season at 9.5. Is that where you would put it? I just cannot see three losses. Bama is always great, @ LSU is always tough but we’ve recently won there. Maybe @OldMrs? I don’t see Auburn being great on Year 1 with a new coach/system. Help a brutha out! (DXB19)

A: I take 9.5 and round it up. It’s a tricky number in A&M’s case. You know Alabama is out there and they’ll be a challenge, to put it mildly. But then what else is there? Ole Miss will have an offense that can score, but can they stop anyone? Does anyone have a clue what Auburn or Mississippi State will look like, and do they have the talent to challenge anyone? Arkansas is improving, but isn’t there yet. South Carolina is going to be bad. Missouri has no offensive firepower at all. That leaves LSU, which could be very good or just average. They’ve got a lot of talent on paper, but the program seems like a mess right now. So how can you project what they’ll be?

Anyway, that’s a long way of saying I see 9.5 and think 10-2 more than 9-3.