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Biggest transfer portal misses for Mike Elko and Texas A&M football in 2024

We take a look at the names that could have helped this Texas A&M football team the most in 2024—ones that the Aggies almost closed on.

By Graham Harmon

Penn State wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith (1) motions to the crowd after scoring a touchdown on a 57-yard reception late in the fourth quarter of an NCAA football game against Indiana at Beaver Stadium Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023, in State College, Pa. Lambert-Smith's touchdown broke a 24-24 tie and helped seal a 33-24 win for the Nittany Lions.
Penn State wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith (1) motions to the crowd after scoring a touchdown on a 57-yard reception late in the fourth quarter of an NCAA football game against Indiana at Beaver Stadium Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023, in State College, Pa. Lambert-Smith's touchdown broke a 24-24 tie and helped seal a 33-24 win for the Nittany Lions. / Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK
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Transfer portal misses for Texas A&M football: S De’Rickey Wright

. Withdrew from portal. . S. De'Rickey Wright. player. 537. bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb. . De'Rickey Wright

This is another one that was really quite strange. Wright entered the portal and committed to the Aggies not long afterwards. It was viewed as a possible diamond in the rough pickup for the Aggies—the Vandy safety was not highly-rated coming out of high school nor in the portal, but his positional versatility was what made him seem so intriguing to Aggie fans.

Wright stands at about 6’4”, 220 LBs, meaning he can quite easily spin down to a linebacker position if needed. Not full time, mind you, but having a guy out there who the offense has trouble reading presnap in this way is a big advantage for the defense, scheme-wise.

Because of this factor, Wright was one of the names that Aggie fans were most excited to see in Elko’s defense, even if he wouldn’t be a guy who saw a large raw number of snaps. 

But then, over the summer, there was a strange lack of discussion of his name among other transfers. Coupled with some posts he made about his Vandy teammates, it looked like he may have been thinking about returning to Nashville. Now, it looks like that exact thing has happened.

The Ags still have elite options at safety, but the switchability of Wright would have been the cherry on top for defensive minds like Elko and Bateman.

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