AM placing emphasis on Georgia recruiting

Texas A&M is heading to Georgia for the Chick-fil-a Bowl game on New Year's Eve in Atlanta, but the Aggies are already making in roads into the state for the 2015 and 2016 classes with a number of recent offers.

Actually, this isn't the first foray into the state for Kevin Sumlin's staff. Defensive line coach Terry Price recruited Georgia when he was at previous Southeastern Conference stops such as Auburn and Ole Miss. In fact, the Aggies already have had success with Price in recruiting the state. A&M's 2013 class featured a couple of prospects that originally hailed from the state in Fork Union Military Academy's JaQuay Williams and Butler County Community College's Tommy Sanders. Now, A&M is returning using the attention of the bowl game as an attraction in a two year run that will include a top five finish, a Heisman Trophy winner, and multiple high NFL draft picks.

The Aggies have even reached out to the 2016 class to extend an offer to dual threat quarterback Jawon Pass. The 6 foot, 5 inch, 225-pound Pass already has offers from Clemson, Ole Miss, and North Carolina in addition to A&M. He still needs to refine his skills (particularly his passing ability) but he's an accomplished athlete who also plays basketball.

In addition, A&M offered 2016 Savannah Country Day School athlete Demetris Robertson. The 6 foot, 170-pound Roberston plays both ways and also returns kicks. In addition, he runs tracks and also excels in basketball with his elusiveness, quick feet, and great handsThe Aggies will be battling not just in state Georgia and Georgia Tech for his signature, but also other out of state programs such as North Carolina and Ohio State.

In the 2015 class, the Aggies were the latest program to attempt to garner the attention of Montezuma outside linebacker Roquan Smith. Smith offers length and is an accomplished pass defender. For comparison purposes, he's considered analogous to Mesquite Poteet linebacker Malik Jefferson. Smith already has offers from 15 programs including A&M. Georgia has been on him last spring but they and the Aggies face challengers from all over the country -- mostly the southeast but also schools such as Syracuse and UCLA.

Four star 2015 linebacker Adonis Thomas out of Lawrenceville Central Gwinnett is a different cat than Smith. Thomas is an edge linebacker who has a quick first step and long arms that he can use to disengage from blockers. In addition, he covers a lot of ground and even when he's not moving he uses his long arms to reach ball carriers when they would normally be out of reach. Like Smith, Thomas has offers primarily from the southeast but also has an offer from Notre Dame as well.

The A&M staff has already made inroads into Georgia in the 2013 class as well as Louisiana and extended its reach into Arizona with the commitment of Rivals 250 prospects Kyle Allen and Qualen Cunningham in the 2014. Now, A&M is returning to Georgia for the 2015 and 2016 classes with the reputation of something of a national player on the recruiting scene and being able to use bowl game practices as a recruiting tool.