Notes from Pylon 7on7
Spent most of the day Saturday watching a lot of greater Houston's (and some of DFW's) top prospects compete at the Pylon 7on7 tournament at CE King HS. Our recruiting intern Walker Lott shot something like 1,000 pictures throughout the day so I'm thinking we may have a photo gallery coming soon, as well. Here are some of my key takeaways...A&M commitsDickinson TE Donovan Green and Clear Springs WR Noah Thomas were the only two current commits playing this weekend. Their South Texas Elite squad brought home their 2nd title so far this off-season in the 18u Seniors Allowed division. Both Green and Thomas had just come off the basketball court for good prior to competing this weekend. Thomas looks like he's grown even since we shot his commitment video a few weeks back. Green has added weight but still moved around very fluidly and had a really impressive grab on Sunday. The two talked a lot about adding more of their Houston area buddies to the A&M class.https://twitter.com/donovangreen23/status/1366089633914712066?s=21https://twitter.com/r_brauninger/status/1365735573374271495?s=21Katy DE Malick Sylla was out there watching the action on Saturday. We chatted for a short bit before he had to go, but he said he's currently checking in at 6-6, 220 pounds and would like to get north of 240 before arriving in College Station. His teammate and fellow A&M commit Bobby Taylor is nursing a knee issue so he didn't play on the weekend, but he did show up to do some recruiting for A&M on Sunday. A&M targetsI'll do these quick hitter style...- Clear Lake CB Julian Humphrey confirmed with me that his April 1st decision date isn't some kind of April Fool's joke. He told he's been talking with TJ Rushing almost daily and is impressed with how the Aggie corners performed in 2020. He plays on the same team as Green and Thomas. - Port Arthur Memorial CB and Texas pledge Jaylon Guilbeau told me he had just spoke with Coach Rushing prior to arriving at the tournament. That's the second time he's told me that he's still talking with A&M in the last month or so. However, it doesn't sound like a flip or decommitment is imminent in any way. - By now, most of you have heard my interview with Beaumont West Brook S Bryce Anderson. Mike Elko has gotten much more involved in the day to day aspect of his recruitment, as has Jimbo Fisher. The Longhorns and their media are extremely confident in landing Bryce, but it sounds like Texas A&M is going to have every opportunity to land the kid. LSU is still making a hard push, as well. Bryce wants to take all 5 of his official visits and is on record of saying he's going to take his time with the decision. https://twitter.com/r_brauninger/status/1365834938222858243?s=21- I've never spoken with Garland S Chace Biddle until this weekend, but it sounds like Mike Elko has certainly made a big impression. I don't know why, but I was kind of surprised how positive/upbeat he was when talking about the Aggies. He was wearing an Alabama hoodie at the event, and some sources there mentioned how close he is with Jay Valai who is now in Tuscaloosa. Oklahoma also remains a legitimate option while his WR teammate Jordan Hudson (who was really stinking good on the weekend) remains committed to the Sooners. However, there was quite a lot of buzz around the event that Texas was pushing hard for a flip of Hudson. We'll see how much that would affect Biddle. - 2023 El Campo RB Rueben Owens showed up a little late on Saturday after being stuck in traffic, but he did compete a bit for Texas Stars. Fresh off his verbal commitment to Texas, he told me he's been on the phone with the A&M staff in the last couple of days, specifically mentioning conversations with Tommie Robinson and Jimbo Fisher. - I've always felt good about A&M's chances with Ft Bend Marshall WR Chris Marshall, and nothing I saw/heard this weekend changed that at all. I was told Dameyune Craig has been a key cog for the Aggies. Chris is also very close with Devon Achane. The more Marshall plays, the better he's getting. He looked more comfortable and explosive than I've ever seen him on Saturday. He's ultra competitive and a monster in 50/50 balls. https://twitter.com/r_brauninger/status/1365772738686812171?s=21https://twitter.com/r_brauninger/status/1365765119381303300?s=21- I don't think we've talked enough about Lexington S Jarred Kerr when discussing A&M's outlook at safety in this class. He was playing with Juice 7on7 out of Austin, and he more than held his own against some of the best in Houston. Kerr was on a virtual visit with A&M last week, and he spoke about the appeal of playing in the SEC close to home. Kerr is heady, smart, and has a ton of quality leadership traits. The kid knows just knows where to be, and what makes it even more impressive is that he spent much of his HS season at positions other than safety - much like Bryce Anderson. https://twitter.com/bamperformance/status/1366062495132221443?s=21- 2023 North Shore CB Jacoby Davis was his usual sticky self on Saturday night. He's incredibly good in terms of staying tight to receivers due to his willingness to be physical at the line of scrimmage and his elite change of direction skills. Texas A&M was one of his first offers, and he likes what the Aggies have done in the secondary. https://twitter.com/r_brauninger/status/1365835830053502978?s=21Other 2022 names/notes- Pearland LB Dylan Dixson won defensive MVP. A source there told me he's been in contact with area recruiter Darrell Dickey and LB coach Tyler Santucci recently. He's committed to Colorado, but he's starting to get the attention of a lot of the big boys in the region. - WR Kevin Coleman out of St Louis and 5 star DB Travis Hunter were there with Fast Houston. From what I've heard, Ohio State may have the inside track with Coleman, and Hunter remains solid in his pledge to Florida State. - Ft Bend Marshall WR Jaydon Johnson was the best overall player I saw on Saturday. He's 6-2, 200 pounds and can absolutely go get the football. He transferred to the Buffalos this off-season from nearby Stafford. The offers have started to come in, but don't be surprised if he explodes with a lot more here soon. He was that good on Saturday night. Underclass names to watch- 2024 Manvel WR Andre Thompson - extremely twitchy. Ole Miss has already offered. - 2023 CyRanch DL Ashton Porter - wasn't playing but was impressive just walking around out there. 6-4, 235 pounds. - 2024 Clear Lake CB Hunter Moddon - kid is built like a senior already. Will be a highly offered DB prospect in short order. Has Pitt offer in hand.- 2023 Dripping Springs QB Austin Novosad - still a bit skinny but spun the football real well on Saturday. - 2023 Klein Oak ATH Kaleb Black - do-it-all playmaker for Jason Glenn. Big time explosive traits. Power 5 player. - 2023 Beaumont West Brook WR Javon Sorrell - wiry but explosive. Showed next level play making ability down the field. Lots of upside/room for growth.- 2023 Clear Falls LB Corey Kelly - 6-4, 215 pounder that projects as a OLB/WDE. Showed impressive athletic traits while playing receiver all weekend. - 2023 Shadow Creek LB Scott Koumado - very impressive kid on the hoof. He just needs some varsity film, and he'll explode with offers. - 2023 Ft Bend Ridge Point WR Braylon Gardoni - difficult cover in the slot. Shifty, quick, tough kid who looks like he'll slide right into John Paul Richardson's spot next season. - 2024 Klein Cain OL Gibson Pyle - already checks in at 6-4, 240 and played varsity ball as a freshman. Great frame for a young offensive lineman.
A few Monday recruiting quick hitters
- As you'd imagine, the Aggies have not cooled on their pursuit of CyFair RB LJ Johnson Jr. I was told today that he's spoken to the A&M staff on more than one occasion since the Orange Bowl win on Saturday night. I also know that guys like Bryce Foster, Tunmise Adeleye, Deuce Harmon, and Eli Stowers have all reached out to him in the last 48 hours or so. - I spent all day Sunday hitting some 7 on 7 tryouts in Houston. I spoke directly with a handful of top prospects in the 2022 and 2023 classes, and there were a lot of people at those tryouts talking about the job Jimbo Fisher has done in College Station and the culture he's implemented. One current college player I spoke with out there told me, "There's a night and day difference between what's going on at A&M and what was going on in Austin."- 2022 Ft Bend Marshall WR Chris Marshall was at the Fast Houston tryout, but he was not participating due to a hamstring issue. I spoke with him for a while though. He's extremely close with Devon Achane and was pumped to see him take home the Orange Bowl MVP trophy. He said Devon called him after the game, but he had already gone to bed. So, Chris called him back the next morning and was able to talk about Devon's performance. My gut says Marshall has really sky rocketed up A&M's big board in terms of priority in this next cycle, and the Aggies will have a great chance to grab him. - Interesting note: Port Arthur Memorial CB Jaylon Guilbeau told me he had just gotten off the phone with A&M CB coach TJ Rushing yesterday when he arrived at the Fast Houston event. It doesn't sound like there's too much to get excited about at the moment, but he has not stopped communicating with Rushing or Jimbo Fisher while being committed to Texas. I suspect he'll give Steve Sarkisian a chance to keep him in the Longhorn's 2022 class. - Another Golden Triangle prospect committed elsewhere is Beaumont West Brook S Bryce Anderson who was spectating at the Texas Stars tryout in The Woodlands yesterday. He is still verbally committed to LSU, but he's talking with Texas A&M an awful lot. He's extremely tight with Ish Aristide and loves what the Aggies are building in terms of their defensive culture. Bryce understands football at a high level and is fond of the safety role in Mike Elko's defense. I still believe Texas A&M will be a major player in this recruitment whether Anderson is publically on or off the market. - I also spoke with elite 2023 RB Rueben Owens who released his top 5 last night and included Texas A&M. Owens isn't in a hurry to make a decision and told me he'd probably wait until around this time next year before committing. From talking to people near him, it sounds like A&M and Oklahoma have stood out earlier on with the Sooners using their typical "all out" approach to see if they could grab an early verbal pledge. Based on my knowledge of the situation, I suspect the Aggies to hang around in this one for more than a little while due to their on field success and their recruiting portfolio. - A few more 2023 names that I really liked that I saw yesterday: Beaumont West Brook WR Javon Sorrell - bouncy athlete with huge raw potentialShadow Creek LB Scott Koumado - highly impressive introduction. Early offer candidateStrake Jesuit QB Bryce Fucik - Great frame, clean motion, high IQManvel CB Corey Swiney Jr - physical, sticky young corner prospect- I continue to hear the Aggies are taking a strong look at 2022 Ft Bend Marshall CB Adari Haulcy. This kid's junior tape is very strong. He only allowed 3 catches all season and managed to pick off 7 passes. - Lastly, I've heard there's some mutual interest with 2021 Port Neches-Groves QB Blake Bost and Texas A&M in joining the Aggies as a preferred walk-on. We'll see what happens as Bost does have some lower level offers, but in terms of adding talent as PWOs, that would be a good one.
4:14
Highlights: Bryce Anderson, Javon Sorrell show out in win over Pasadena Memorial
Beaumont West Brook beat Pasadena Memorial 47-24 on Saturday, and recruits Bryce Anderson and Javon Sorrell turned in big performances in the game.
Recruiting News & Notes from a trip to the Golden Triangle
TexAgs' recruiting analyst Ryan Brauninger spent last weekend checking out some of the top prospects back in his old stomping grounds of southeast Texas. He provides his thoughts on a promising group of underclassmen, Bryce Anderson and Demetrius Hunter.
