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Portal Needs

Now that the class is signed, what do we need to add from the Portal? At this moment, and it will change based on who transfers out of A&M, I'm thinking...

QB - 0
RB - 0
WR - 3
OL - 2
DT - 2
DE - 2
LB - 0
CB - 2
S/N - 1

That's 12 additions, plus more additions as current players leave the program, or perhaps another addition if you can add a star player at any position. But I don't know if we'll have that many spots open? Perhaps Elko will aim for 1 OL instead of 2 and 3 DL instead of 4?
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Holdovers and portal will still be the key next season...

If we are lucky, we will have a few true impact fish. Some may play by sheer talent. Others by necessity. I trust the staff will be extremely aggressive in the portal, where will depend on who leaves by their own decision or by or "mutual agreement." From what we saw this year, here is my breakdown of assuredly where we I believe we will need help next year.
  • RB - I'd be lying if I didn't say Owens' and Moss" injuries weren't concerning. Foot injuries are always worrisome to get back to 100%. I'm amazed he came back as soon as he did. Prayers for his continued recovery. Moss is fantastic when healthy, but he has been nicked a lot for us and he runs to contact...a lot. Prayers for him as well. A back in the portal to hedge is a lot to ask, so I think we'll have to ride with the fish if required.
  • TE - Unquestionably a need in the portal again. TE are just too important in our offense. We need at least 3 serviceable ones to make this offense hum. Green is 100% Ag and a leader so praying for him to return to full health, too. Would not like to have to push Armstrong to field early as he requires some bulking up.
  • WR - Really?! Do I have to even write this?! We need it all. Speed to take the top of the defense, slots who can run precise routes, 50/50 guys who can box out, but mostly guys who can run routes and get open, especially against tight coverage. We've got a couple of building blocks as solid possession guys if they stick it out, but we desperately need more explosiveness outside. I do like Bussey's development, though. Myles might push his way into playing time. Wish he was an EE.
  • O Line - Really depends on who stays and who goes. We won't know that for a bit. I don't know how aggressively we go into the portal because truthfully I'm not sure how the staff feels about the 2s and 3s if we have to replace. I trust Coach Cushing to make the evaluations and shake them out. If not good enough, we hit the portal. I suspect we may look at tackles if Zuhn or Crownover test the waters, but could Rogers play early? Perhaps. Hard part. Portal guys want to be recruited to start. Understand that.
  • D Line - Say it with me. Rebuild. And the way we played this year that's not a bad thing. No unit was more disappointing. Looking at what we need going forward, I'm going to do something I don't usually do...compare us to that hated school in Austin. Yeah, sorry Ags, gotta do it. There was a reason the sips were working so hard at flipping our fish DT signees. Yeah, that's right! It's because our fish look a lot more like them now and that's not a bad thing at all. Still, there is a lot of work to be done. I would be stunned if we didn't sign at least a couple of guys at DT and DE. Love our fish class! If they can learn the ropes without having to play a ton of snaps, that will be great.
  • LBs - This is one of our position groups I feel best about going forward, though I really don't like how York was utilized this season. I just get the feeling he was pressing from game 1 trying to make every play and the schemes did little to help that. Scooby was a lot better than anticipated and our backups are very solid. I'm not sure we add in the portal. Maybe one hybrid. Our fish look great!
  • CBs - Absolutely have to have at least one to flight corner in the portal. End of story. Probably need a nickel, too. We have an outstanding fish class, but let's not put that kind of pressure on them. Lee coming back helps even if he's not a # 1. A better pass rush would certainly help the back end.
  • S - We've certainly got some players back there even if some had off years this season. That said, I wouldn't mind seeing us get one or two guys in the portal to help shore it up. Safety is a key position in our defense and we were really inconsistent there this year, both in tackling and coverage. Again, better pass rush will help. I really do like Davis. He's a monster hitter already.
Always Next Year Gig'em!!!

Position need of improvement

I think one of the biggest needs of improvement next year is nickel. Chappell going down was a big problem. I loved what Mayes did from a coverage standpoint but teams ate us up on outside runs, screens, swing passes etc. Last season Bryce Anderson ate that shlt up.

Hopefully Chappell is the answer but we need to find another complete nickel if we're going to continue running with 2 LB's.

Jamal Frilot- uncommitted edge rusher

Not the portal but a HS kid from Dekaney HS (where Trey Williams went). I've seen him play and think he's underrated. Plus, he's grown 3" in the last year from 6'2" 220 to 6'5" 230 and can run. 3* with offers from Nebraska and Arizona State. Anybody have any thoughts on him?

From what I saw he's raw but athletic and maybe didn't shine as much as he could have since he played both TE and DE. Needs time in the weight room since he's a basketball player too.

Who are you most excited about?

Jerome Myles (obvious answer here so I'll move on)

Defense
Noah Mikhail (dude just seems like he will be a run stuffing, gap filling, tackling machine)

Offense
Deondre Riden (a do it all type back, good vision, hits the hole hard, runs through tackles, has some lateral quickness when needed and has break away speed. Reminds me a lot of Moss actually).

Elko NSD comments

Says that today is the culmination of multiple years of work, some of which were put in before he even got here.
Says their own internal rankings are a lot more important than anyone else's (Duh) and they're looking for "NFL Players".
Calls the class "Well balanced across the board ... we went out to sign a football team, and we think we did that."
Says they hit everywhere were they wanted to be, and noted they were "inside out", with the majority of players coming from in-state.
They wanted to find "winners", that that's a talent that they can learn before they get here. Signed a bunch of multi-sport players.
Says this class can lay a "phenomenal foundation" for where they want the program to go.

Says they had Brady Hart rated very high the whole process.
Notes that Tiger Riden has been "extremely productive" and has won back-to-back state championships at DeSoto.
Calls Jamarion Morrow a very versatile player that has played just about everywhere, and he's still playing for a state title.
Kelshaun Johnson is an "elite" wide receiver who runs the 100 meters and plays basketball. He "brings elite speed and elite twitch."
TK Norman has "elite twitch...what stood out was his ability to put his foot in the ground and create separation." Notes his long jump bests, showing his explosiveness.
Jerome Myles will not be in for the spring, but is a player that has tremendous explosiveness who can stretch the field.
Says Kiotti Armstrong will play at 265 as a true tight end, and he can create mismatches in the passing.
Says getting OL was a goal of theirs, that it was a really strong class in-state.
Marcus Garcia projects as a tackle. Says they felt like there was growth potential and could add another 30 pounds. (He's at 285). He's a discus national champion.
Nelson McGuire is a "road grader inside", says that he can help "move people."
Josh Moses was "the easiest kid I recruited", that he was committed and stayed committed. Never wavered.
Jonte Newman projects as a tackle, but he has the most versatility across the line.
Lamont Rogers was someone they wanted for a long time (duh), notes he plays hoops and is a goalie in soccer.
Tyler Thomas is a 6-4, 330-pound interior lineman who is a people mover.

on defense:
Marco Jones is defined as an edge. Notes how amazingly productive he is, and he's also going to play baseball for coach Earley. "he's just an elite football player."
Landon Rink is an "explosive and powerful kid".
DJ Sanders is "an extremely explosive athlete", was sought-after even after he committed and always felt like he was an Aggie.
Chace Sims is a guy they always felt like was an elite player. "We were very excited when we got him...we think he's a phenomenal player."
Noah Mikhail is a "two-way standout...a really athletic linebacker who can go sideline-to-sideline."
Kelvion Riggins was the first commit to Elko. "He has already become a great Aggie...he has tremendous twitch, speed and athleticism."
Says the story is "speed across the board" in the secondary.
Jamar Beal-Goines is playing for a state title. Ran a 10.43 100. "He can fly and he'll be an elite cover guy."
Adonyss Currie "Length and speed in the secondary."
Rashad Johnson has "The prototypical safety body." Likes that he's a two-way player, because that helps with your ball skills.
Deyjhon Pettaway has the most Aggie ties of anyone (Daymion Sanford's his brother, David Hicks, DJ's dad, is his coach), "Probably has the most versatility" and they project him at nickel (told you.)
Cobey Sellers is another "multi-sport, multi-position player...we think he'll be an elite corner for us."

The one SEC team that's getting bashed right now

is LSU. And it's so nice.

CJ Daniels has announced he's entering the portal. He had 43 catches for 480 yards this year.
Their backup, who I thought would replace Nussmeier when he went pro (Rickie Collins) is in.
They just lost their top defensive recruit to Texas. Looks like a couple others (maybe Keylan Moses) will flip away too.
They thought they had Jahkeem Stewart, but he's likely going to USC.
I'm not shedding any tears, as they still have a top 10 class, but it's nice to see Brian Kelly having to scramble.

***Official signing day thread*** updated at 4:10 p.m.

This link here will take you to the signing day page, where I'll have a breakdown and video of each commit.

6:30 a.m.: East coast guys in
S Rashad Johnson and QB Brady Hart have signed.

7:17 a.m.: Two offensive linemen make it official
Tyler Thomas and Marcus Garcia are in.

7:25 a.m.: Kiotti Armstrong is in.

7:45 a.m.: Kelvion Riggins, Deyjhon Pettaway, Cobey Sellers and Landon Rink are all in.


Got a lot coming, but Jerome Myles just signed.

8:07 a.m.: Updates on Lamont Rogers, Jonte Newman, TK Norman, Jamarion Morrow, Tiger Riden, Chace Sims and Nelson McGuire and I'm still trying to keep pace.

8:20 a.m.: Jerome Myles, Josh Moses and Jamar Beal-Goines are in.

8:47 a.m.: DJ Sanders is in.

9:14 a.m.: Noah Mikhail and Adonyss Currie are in.

9:20 a.m.: Marco Jones is in.

9:30 a.m.: Kelshaun Johnson is in.

4:10 p.m. added hometowns, schools and stats where they were available.
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