It's time for this week's AggieYell Mailbag, sponsored by Tres Hermanos 1850, a hunting ranch with native and exotic game, near Gatesville, Texas. Check out their website here.
Q: Supposedly next week is going to be huge for recruiting. What specific predictions do you have? (KeithDB)
A: You've been around here long enough to know that I don't like giving out specific predictions because they invariably backfire. So I'll just say that guys like Terry Bussey and Jaylan Hornsby are out there, and there could be more.
Q: Any thoughts on Samu T getting playing time, maybe in goaline situations? Saw videos of him before he committed and his level of agility was outstanding. At his size could he possibly be in the three-deep?
A: The three-deep? Maybe. But you've got a lot of talent and experience ahead of him, so he would have to have a great summer to play in 2023 (barring injuries, of course).
Do you ever get intelligence on player performance during summer drills? If so, heard anything newsworthy yet? (pebbycree)
A: Yeah, they're tearing it up in the weight room, everyone looks ripped and they're killing it in conditioning drills.
In other words, not much yet. Still kind of early.
Q: How many plays do we (will we) average per game?
A: Hard to say, given a new offense with a faster pace AND changes to the way time is kept.
Fix the distribution:
Pass - 35W/R - 23
Smith 5
Moose 4
Stewart 6
Noah 3
Other 5
TE - 9
Green 4
Johnson 3
Other 2
RB - 4
Run - 38
Moss 17
Daniels 10
Owens 8
QB 4 (Richard23)
A: Interesting exercise, but I don't know how realistic it is. The number of plays, and who gets the ball, will depend on each opponent. I think the "other" at WR is too high. Donovan Green will likely get more targets than 4, and I think you're giving Moss too many carries and Daniels is not getting enough.
Q: Do you think we’ll ever see the day when A&M publicly claims the 2012 SECW championship? (phastman)
A: Ha! Heck no.
Q: What would it take for our D to reclaim the “Wrecking Crew” name? (FoxCo73)
A: Three things: 1) a top 10 defense; 2) a lot more sacks and 3) a desire to use the nickname. Look, the Wrecking Crew moniker means absolutely zilch to these kids. A&M fans think of the glory years and love it -- they don't care. They'd much rather something else.
Q: Are we done getting players in portal?
A: Probably. They're starting fall ball in about a month.
Based on film and stats, why isn't Reliford ranked at all (position, state, etc)?
A: Probably got overlooked. It happens when you have thousands of guys and the regional position is open for a while. I've already brought it up with the folks who do those things.
Any scenario you see Johnson getting the start over Conner? (Ag_2000)
A: Sure, if he's terrific and Conner has an awful summer.
Q: It looks like this recruiting class is starting to shape up nicely, but I understand we'll know better in the next few days. Now that you have a better perspective, how do you think it's going?
A: They're on a heater right now that I'd love to have in Vegas at some point. It shows that the rumors of A&M's recruiting demise were greatly exaggerated.
What range do you anticipate this class ends up being ranked?
A: Top 10 for sure, really good chance at a top 5.
Do you anticipate we'll end up with one or more 5 star recruits? (thepassag)
A: I think they will get some guys who will eventually be 5-stars. The list grows as the year goes on.
Q: interesting NCAA has come out so strong against 12th Man Foundations w/o saying the name specifically
1) are they specifically targeting the 12th Man only or are there other schools they are pointing the finger at?
A: No, they're aiming at a number of schools, but A&M was the first and most obvious school to go down this road.
2) state law seems pretty clear - do you see court battles coming up or will NCAA go back to lying in the fetal position in the corner?
A: They're welcome to try a court case, but they have no standing.
3) if a court challenge is not in the short term, what is the next step NCAA could do? continue to make statements to see if anything shakes to continue looking like they have a pulse?
A: They could actually try to sanction someone in a state where no laws have been violated, which would take them right to court.
4) if you had to guess why this is the hill the NCAA seems willing to die on, was this prompted by the serial Pre-NIL cheaters not wanting to get lapped? Yes Bama, looking at you. (Rooster77)
A: I am quite sure the Alabama's of the world are fully in support of the NCAA here, but they're fighting this in an effort to restore their own relevance. Not going to happen.
Q: After next week, what areas of the team are they focusing on from a recruiting perspective?
A: Linebacker, defensive line, corner and running back.
Any real correlation between losing our recruiting coordinator and the pick up in commits?
A: It's a very interesting turn of events.
Any early insight into how they're going to handle T Price's absence before the beginning of the season? Any candidates that you like?
A: Tony Jerod-Eddie is my guy. It would be a tough job to just jump into, but I believe he can do it.
After next week, who's the one recruit that in your mind we "have to" sign?
A: Once again, kids, "Mark doesn't believe that there is any player that is a 'must have' and thinks that description is overblown blah blah blah eyeroll."
That being typed, it would not suck to get TyAnthony Smith under wraps, then go after an elite corner (besides Terry Bussey).
Favorite city (that you've been to) to go back and see on vacation? (TSip Despiser)
A: From my recent travels, I would say Cooperstown, N.Y., Charleston, S.C. or Flagstaff, Ariz. But St. Wolfgang, Austria, has been on the top of the list for 25 years.
Q: One of the most frustrating aspects of last year was opponent QB scramble yards as part of the passing game rather than planned runs. Could have cost us a game or two it seems. Does the team track this stat? What do you think is the outlook for improvement here? (DriverD)
A: I'm quite sure they track it. And if you want to cut it down, have your linebackers stay home and play assignment football. Hit the right gaps.
Q: I had a conversation today with another AY member about how the 2023 team compares to the 2022 team, position group vs position group. My opinion was we could/ should be better at every position group except RB. Obviously if our OL turns out to be really good which it should we could out rush last years team. With that said, unless Owens turns out to be a super star (95% of what Achane was) we don’t have an Achane on the roster, therefore we will weaker than last years team at RB. His opinion was Daniels and Moss could be great backs (I believe they are middle of the road SEC backs at best) with Owens being a wildcard. Thoughts? (David123)
A: Wait...you guys talk to each other? Scary.
Now, to the question -- I think you're right, but I also think you may be understating the ability of the backs on the roster. Do I think they're Achane? No, but I think they can more than get the job done.
Q: Playing Devil's Advocate to David123 I feel Moss has the potential to be extremely productive in every area except the ability to break tackles at the line of scrimmage, something Achane excelled at. He may have it but since coming here he hasn't had the carries to show us. Do you think Moss has the chops for Petrino to allow Rueben to develop while making our running game good enough to free up the WR's? (h273)
A: Everyone seems to be in the habit of forgetting Amari Daniels, but he was the better of the two last year and the first-teamer this spring. But I don''t think Owens is going to wait long, if at all, to get on the field. He may not be an Achane yet, but he will be very, very good.
Q: How many total HS recruits do you think we will sign? (win77)
A: Between 28 and 30. The 25-player counter is not in effect this year, and probably won't be next year either. Don't ask me for the logic behind it, because I can't figure it out.
Q: Saw an article saying the NCAA was 'denying an overwhelming number of 2nd time transfers'.
Could this, if true, start to stabilize the situation of players leaving programs knowing their are limits? (DentonAg80)
A: If it's true, it means the NCAA is doing what it was supposed to be doing to begin with. The idea of the portal was for a one-time, no-penalty transfer. And you've had players abusing it left and right. If they're graduates, fine. But players were treating it like they were free agents after a one-year contract, and that's not how it was supposed to be.
Now, more to the question: will that limit players leaving programs? A little, but not like i think you're hoping. If you want that, then the NCAA needs to slam the door hard on tampering, and they have shown no inclination or ability to do it.
Q: There is no way to fill the void of losing Coach Price, so how does Fisher go about hiring a new DL coach? What would you do and who would you target?
A: I think TP and Jimbo were getting someone ready for this for a while, and that someone is Tony Jerod-Eddie. I could be wrong, but I saw his role change last year and he was definitely more involved in the day to day activities this spring.
You also mentioned the loss of CP will affect recruiting this year, if you don't mind can you be more specific? (Big Smoothie)
A: I think it's obvious. You just lost an elite recruiter while in the middle of a recruiting cycle and A&M is still trying to add defensive linemen and players in areas he normally covered. It's a huge blow.
