One thing Texas A&M has been pretty successful with in recent years is left tackle. The last two NFL drafts saw an A&M left tackle get drafted in the top 10, and for the third straight season the Aggies will have to replace an All-SEC member at the most important position up front. (Other posts in the Offseason Spotlight series.)
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Stacy Revere/Getty ImagesTexas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin needs someone to step in as the Aggies' new left tackle? Could Avery Gennesy be the guy?
Spotlight: Avery Gennesy, offensive tackle, 6-foot-5, 305 pounds, redshirt junior
2014 summary: Gennesy arrived in College Station last year as a junior college transfer but redshirted in 2014.
The skinny: The departure of All-SEC left tackle Germain Ifedi, who started 10 of 12 games at right tackle last season. Honestly, that will help both of them this offseason, which is great for the Aggies. One other thing to keep an eye on here is what changes -- if any -- are made for the offensive line, especially schematically, with new offensive line coach Dave Christensen overseeing the big uglies up front. Left tackle has been a position of prestige at A&M during Kevin Sumlin's tenure, so the Aggies won't accept any sort of drop off. And with a young quarterback, you simply can't have that. Gennesy has the size and, if his solid spring continues, A&M likely won't have an issue at the line's top position.
The plan this spring has been to work both Gennesy and Ifedi at the tackle spots, so in some form or fashion those two will most likely be the starters on the outside this fall. While Ifedi has wanted to move over to left tackle, Gennesy is built more naturally for left tackle, while Ifedi is more of a right tackle in the long run.
Offseason spotlight: Texas A&M
[+] Enlarge
Stacy Revere/Getty ImagesTexas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin needs someone to step in as the Aggies' new left tackle? Could Avery Gennesy be the guy?
Spotlight: Avery Gennesy, offensive tackle, 6-foot-5, 305 pounds, redshirt junior
2014 summary: Gennesy arrived in College Station last year as a junior college transfer but redshirted in 2014.
The skinny: The departure of All-SEC left tackle Germain Ifedi, who started 10 of 12 games at right tackle last season. Honestly, that will help both of them this offseason, which is great for the Aggies. One other thing to keep an eye on here is what changes -- if any -- are made for the offensive line, especially schematically, with new offensive line coach Dave Christensen overseeing the big uglies up front. Left tackle has been a position of prestige at A&M during Kevin Sumlin's tenure, so the Aggies won't accept any sort of drop off. And with a young quarterback, you simply can't have that. Gennesy has the size and, if his solid spring continues, A&M likely won't have an issue at the line's top position.
The plan this spring has been to work both Gennesy and Ifedi at the tackle spots, so in some form or fashion those two will most likely be the starters on the outside this fall. While Ifedi has wanted to move over to left tackle, Gennesy is built more naturally for left tackle, while Ifedi is more of a right tackle in the long run.
Offseason spotlight: Texas A&M
