Gabe Hall

Part Two of my notes and evaluations from Sunday's Nike Opening Regionals in Katy will examine the defensive side of the ball.DT/DEKori Roberson is more of a pads type of player. He was solid in drill work, but he wants to use his power in 1 on 1's and that setting is tough to do it in. He makes a ton of plays in game action because of motor and physical strength. The Oklahoma commit was pretty open about listening to other schools. 2020 Shadow Creek DE Alec Bryant will be one to watch. He's got an older brother playing college football, and he showed plus tools to go with his promising frame. 2020 Richmond Foster DT Chidozie Nwankwo is really powerful. He's got the biggest triceps I've ever seen on a kid. Made me a bit jealous. Anyway, he's a little on the short side, but he's going to be a problem for a lot of offensive linemen because of his strength and leverage.Ridge Point DE Nelson Ceasar recently picked up OU and Georgia offers. I may like him more as a standup OLB than a weakside DE though. He's certainly explosive and has a nice wingspan. He's under heavy evaluation from the Aggie staff and has been in contact in the past month or so. George Ranch DE Peter Mpagi is an interesting prospect. He's got a track type lower body. A&M went and saw him multiple times this past winter. He's got an older sister that runs track at Texas if I'm not mistaken. TCU is highly interested and probably the current favorite. Marcus Stripling didn't lose many reps from what I saw. He's wide, explosive, and strong. He will visit Georgia and Oklahoma soon, but he was rocking the A&M gloves and spoke very highly of the Aggies. He was at Saturday's Junior Day and has openly called A&M his leader. He spent some time working with Ty Warren as well. The surprise DT for me on the day was Houston Bellaire's Christian Njoku. He's got small school offers (ULM, UTSA), but I'd bet his list grows pretty quickly. He was making easy work of some of those OL during pass rush drills. He comes in at around 6-3, 270.Another intriguing interior guy is Waller's Gabe Hall. I wasn't able to see much of him during one on ones, but his 6-5, 285 pound frame had a lot of folks in attendance talking. He holds a UH offer currently.LBThere were three 2019 guys I had written down last night to talk about, and one of those got an offer from the Aggies - Cinco Ranch's David Gbenda. I was most impressed with his mobility. He moves like a running back. On film, he tackles everything. I actually like the offer. In terms of in state guys with sideline to sideline ability, Gbenda may be at the top of the list.The other two guys I had on my list were Alamo Height's Maki Carabin and Ft Bend Travis' Zach Zimos. Carabin looks like he's grown an inch or two in the last year, and he's as put together as anybody inside LB in the state. He doesn't miss many days in the gym. His parents told me that A&M went by the school a couple of times to see him, but there hadn't been much else in terms of communication. Zimos is interesting because he's 6-4 and most of his film is at safety. If that 205 on the scale can turn to 215 or 220 before the season, he's going to get a lot of looks. In 2020, I liked Josh White out of CyCreek. He's got broad shoulders and a good linebacker frame. He was recently offered by Baylor and has more schools in the region sniffing around. DBA&M commit Bobby Wolfe is really good. Like exceptionally good. He checks every single box when looking for an SEC corner and is quickly becoming one of the more vocal members of the 2019 commit class. At 6-2, he ran 4.51 on a cold, wet, windy day. In terms of football IQ and pure coverage ability, I think JaCorey Benjamin is being slept on. He's not as thick as some of the other DB's in the class, but he's got great feet, hips, and he plays the ball well. Somebody is going to get a steal with this kid. Spring Dekaney CB Marcus Banks is likely leaning toward Texas, but he showed up in an A&M hoodie. He had a pretty strong day as well. His burst and straight line speed really stand out. He's another one that has a thinner frame, but he's long enough that it should fill out. Ft Bend Bush S Jamal Morris is a big dude. I could see him being an in the box player at the next level. At one point, my money would have been on LSU, but he seems more open to a lot of places. I don't think the Aggies are a player at the moment.I liked what I saw out of Houston Lamar's Alex Hogan in the few reps I watched. He was in an uber talented defensive backfield last season so he's learned how to play the game. Ft Bend Bush CB Erick Young showed up but did not participate due to a broken hand. He will compete in Dallas in a couple months. The Aggies biggest competition right now is Oklahoma and LSU. I think the Ags win out ultimately.