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Former Cal Poly cornerback Donovan Saunders made his time as a TCU commit a short one, flipping from the Horned Frogs to Texas A&M Thursday night.
Saunders was the fourth player to commit to A&M Thursday, capping one of the busiest days of recruiting in recent program history. New coach Mike Elko has now added a dozen players from the portal, more than coach Jimbo Fisher did in all of 2022.
The 6-foot-3, 210-pound Saunders is rising junior and is coming off a splendid season where he earned second team All-Big Sky honors. Opponents learned quickly not to throw Saunders' way, and he only had 19 tackles on the season -- but still picked off three passes.
Taking advantage of his strong 2023 campaign, Saunders entered the portal on Dec. 5. He picked up a number of offers, but committed to TCU 13 days later. The Aggies offered him after that verbal commitment, on Dec. 22.
That offer was enough to get Saunders' interest, and he made the trip to College Station for A&M's big transfer prospect weekend. His stay on Thursday was enough to get him to flip his commitment, giving the Aggies five defensive back transfers to date.
What this means for the Aggies
Saunders is a critical addition to a secondary that is in dire need of help at corner. Former K-State starter Will Lee immediately jumped into a starting spot when he committed, and if the season started tomorrow, Saunders would likely be the other. His ProFootballFocus season score of 79.2 -- 80.6 in coverage -- easily surpasses any corner on the 2023 Texas A&M roster.
The season, however, does not start tomorrow and the Aggies will likely work to add another two corners to their existing group. All the same, Saunders brings size, speed and experience to a group that desperately needed it. He will almost certainly be in the rotation one way or the other.
