By BRENT ZWERNEMAN, COLLEGE STATION BUREAU
Updated 12:35 a.m., Monday, January 30, 2012
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| First-year Aggies head coach Kevin Sumlin has led the program's fierce recruiting charge as it prepares to move to the Southeastern Conference. Photo: Brett Coomer / © 2012 Houston Chronicle |
COLLEGE STATION - With national signing day on Wednesday and
Texas A&M's 2012 recruiting class all but wrapped up, the Aggies
turned their attention to another talented bunch this past weekend -
the youngsters next in line.
And for the first time, A&M offered a clear message to a fresh set of recruits during new coach Kevin Sumlin's first "junior day" at A&M: With the Aggies' shift to the Southeastern Conference this summer, the nation's top football league is at most a few hours from the state's largest cities.
"We're the only school in Texas where the state's top players can stay close to home and still play in what is undoubtedly the best conference in all of college football," said Justin Moore, A&M's new associate athletic director for football. "That's something we're now selling."
Is it working? Early indications are yes - and no.
"You want the best players who want to play against the best competition, and the SEC offers the best competition," Moore said of the league that has won the last six national titles. "That hits home with a lot of these guys - that challenge and the opportunity to do so while staying in-state. Now, you may have some guys who shy away from that, but at the end of the day you don't want those guys who aren't the right fit for the SEC anyway."
New coach leads charge
Sumlin inherited a highly ranked 2012 class from Mike Sherman, who was fired on Dec. 1 after posting a 25-25 record over four seasons. Sherman's reluctance to even address the move to the SEC from the Big 12 certainly didn't help his case for staying on board after a 6-6 regular season.
That hasn't been the case, however, with Sumlin, the former Houston Cougars coach who has embraced A&M's brave new world and trumpeted the move with every opportunity.
"Three things - facilities, the brand of Texas A&M with its reputation and tradition, and moving into the SEC - give you a great possibility to be successful in recruiting," Sumlin said.
When Sherman first started rounding up the '12 class about a year ago, it appeared the Aggies would be in the Big 12 for the foreseeable future. That changed late in the summer, however, when school president R. Bowen Loftin propelled A&M toward the SEC. The 2012 class, currently ranked 10th nationally by Rivals.com, has changed little, however, even after Sherman's firing and Sumlin's hiring.
"We knew that in order to be the best, we have to beat the best," Klein Forest quarterback Matt Davis said recently when asked why the class mostly stuck together, first through the conference change and then the coaching change.
Early returns positive
But the true indication of whether A&M's move to the SEC will offer a marked difference in its recruiting - for better or worse - will start with the 2013 class.
"When surveying the landscape, more kids are listing A&M now that might not have listed them in the past," said Brian Perroni, a national recruiting analyst for Rivals.com, of the early returns. "There's a prestige associated with the SEC because it's won the last six titles, and kids see A&M to the SEC as something new and something cool."
Running back Trey Williams of Dekaney, a 2012 Rivals five-star prospect who has verbally committed to A&M, told Rivals, "You're going to have competition no matter where you are, (but the SEC) is really just getting you ready for the NFL."
Perroni said the Aggies' move to the SEC has offered an early positive concerning recruiting, but it's what the Aggies do going forward that will tell the rest of the story.
"The question becomes what happens if A&M doesn't win in the SEC or if they struggle for a few years," Perroni said.
A&M's recruiting classes have ranked 16th, 22nd, 17th and 27th the last four seasons under Sherman. Sumlin expects an uptick in recruiting based on the SEC move.
"There are a bunch of guys in this state who want to play at that level," he said. "They can now and will have a chance to win there."
brent.zwerneman@chron.com
twitter.com/brentzwerneman
Nine current or future SEC schools, compared to three Big 12 schools, are part of rivals.com's top 25 classes for 2012:
SEC
No. 1. Alabama
No. 4 Florida
No. 10 Texas A&M
No. 11 Tennessee
No. 13 South Carolina
No. 16 LSU
No. 20 Auburn
No. 21 Georgia
No. 24 Vanderbilt
BIG 12
No. 2 Texas
No. 8 Oklahoma
No. 23 Texas Tech
And for the first time, A&M offered a clear message to a fresh set of recruits during new coach Kevin Sumlin's first "junior day" at A&M: With the Aggies' shift to the Southeastern Conference this summer, the nation's top football league is at most a few hours from the state's largest cities.
"We're the only school in Texas where the state's top players can stay close to home and still play in what is undoubtedly the best conference in all of college football," said Justin Moore, A&M's new associate athletic director for football. "That's something we're now selling."
Is it working? Early indications are yes - and no.
"You want the best players who want to play against the best competition, and the SEC offers the best competition," Moore said of the league that has won the last six national titles. "That hits home with a lot of these guys - that challenge and the opportunity to do so while staying in-state. Now, you may have some guys who shy away from that, but at the end of the day you don't want those guys who aren't the right fit for the SEC anyway."
New coach leads charge
Sumlin inherited a highly ranked 2012 class from Mike Sherman, who was fired on Dec. 1 after posting a 25-25 record over four seasons. Sherman's reluctance to even address the move to the SEC from the Big 12 certainly didn't help his case for staying on board after a 6-6 regular season.
That hasn't been the case, however, with Sumlin, the former Houston Cougars coach who has embraced A&M's brave new world and trumpeted the move with every opportunity.
"Three things - facilities, the brand of Texas A&M with its reputation and tradition, and moving into the SEC - give you a great possibility to be successful in recruiting," Sumlin said.
When Sherman first started rounding up the '12 class about a year ago, it appeared the Aggies would be in the Big 12 for the foreseeable future. That changed late in the summer, however, when school president R. Bowen Loftin propelled A&M toward the SEC. The 2012 class, currently ranked 10th nationally by Rivals.com, has changed little, however, even after Sherman's firing and Sumlin's hiring.
"We knew that in order to be the best, we have to beat the best," Klein Forest quarterback Matt Davis said recently when asked why the class mostly stuck together, first through the conference change and then the coaching change.
Early returns positive
But the true indication of whether A&M's move to the SEC will offer a marked difference in its recruiting - for better or worse - will start with the 2013 class.
"When surveying the landscape, more kids are listing A&M now that might not have listed them in the past," said Brian Perroni, a national recruiting analyst for Rivals.com, of the early returns. "There's a prestige associated with the SEC because it's won the last six titles, and kids see A&M to the SEC as something new and something cool."
Running back Trey Williams of Dekaney, a 2012 Rivals five-star prospect who has verbally committed to A&M, told Rivals, "You're going to have competition no matter where you are, (but the SEC) is really just getting you ready for the NFL."
Perroni said the Aggies' move to the SEC has offered an early positive concerning recruiting, but it's what the Aggies do going forward that will tell the rest of the story.
"The question becomes what happens if A&M doesn't win in the SEC or if they struggle for a few years," Perroni said.
A&M's recruiting classes have ranked 16th, 22nd, 17th and 27th the last four seasons under Sherman. Sumlin expects an uptick in recruiting based on the SEC move.
"There are a bunch of guys in this state who want to play at that level," he said. "They can now and will have a chance to win there."
brent.zwerneman@chron.com
twitter.com/brentzwerneman
More Information
Stocking upNine current or future SEC schools, compared to three Big 12 schools, are part of rivals.com's top 25 classes for 2012:
SEC
No. 1. Alabama
No. 4 Florida
No. 10 Texas A&M
No. 11 Tennessee
No. 13 South Carolina
No. 16 LSU
No. 20 Auburn
No. 21 Georgia
No. 24 Vanderbilt
BIG 12
No. 2 Texas
No. 8 Oklahoma
No. 23 Texas Tech
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