Texas A&M fans are not exactly rejoicing after Lamar Brown committed to his hometown LSU Tigers over the Aggies earlier today, but neither are they surprised. It was always going to be a herculean task to pull a guy like that out of the state of Louisiana, much less Baton Rouge itself.
However, lost among the weeds of what we saw unfold this afternoon as Brown donned the oversized LSU hat on the table was a domino set to fall that could mean big things for the Aggies. Even as they lose out on one five star, they could be picking up another.
The information began to leak out mid-morning that the Tigers would be the pick for Brown, and amid the meltdown that the Aggie fanbase began to engage in, a prediction came in for a different player to head to a different school— but make no mistake, this could mean big things for Texas A&M.
KJ Ford Alabama prediction could mean Tank Jones momentum has swung back to Aggies after Lamar Brown goes with LSU
This prediction from Rivals came out earlier today, showing that KJ Ford, an erstwhile Aggie target who was considered a Florida lean for some time, is likely headed to Alabama. This is noteworthy, given that Alabama did not make the top three schools for Ford, so they likely swooped in to scoop up the defensive end prospect at the last second.
Why is this significant for the Aggies? Bear with me here for a moment while I conjecture. In this NIL and revenue-share world that we now occupy, it's clear that the Aggies had a sizable offer on the table for Lamar Brown ahead of his commitment. Now that he's pledged to the Tigers, those funds will head elsewhere.
As the information came in mid-morning, you can bet that the Aggie recruiting staff was ready to activate plan B and move those NIL funds to other vital recruitments. One such vital recruitment? Five-star defensive end Tank Jones from Mobile, AL, for whom the Aggies have been battling Alabama for quite some time.
So now we return to Ford. Why would the Tide swoop in like this and scoop up a guy for whom they were not a significant player before now unless they were having to activate a contingency plan? Why would they need a contingency plan activated at the defensive end spot unless they were about to miss out on a primary target?
I think it's entirely possible that this Texas A&M staff rerouted part of their NIL funds to the Tank Jones commitment, all but shutting out the Tide— who already are pretty highly committed given some of the names they have currently in their class. Lose one five-star prospect, pick up another.
Now, this is all conjecture. This could all be inaccurate. But I think it's possible that we see the Aggies pivot in a major way here to pick up Jones in the coming days— and if they do, that's a masterstroke by Elko and company.