Mike Elko's unlikely source for early recruiting success with Texas A&M football

Mike Elko and Texas A&M football finding early recruiting success out west in the Golden State; Why this strategy is replicable

I've written at length over the last few months about how key the state of Texas will be in recruiting during the 2025 cycle. Just like was the case in 2022, the Lone Star State boasts an inordinate amount of talent this year, and so keeping those prospects close to home (read: in Maroon and White) is a must this year.

As things stand, though, only three of the composite top ten recruits in the Aggies' home state have yet given a verbal commitment—and only one of the top seven. The Aggies are in the race for nearly all of these prospects, and some decision dates are coming soon—Kaliq Lockett and Riley Pettijohn being those most imminent.

It is not success in Texas thus far, then, that is primarily responsible for the Aggies' prodigious start in recruiting. No, that would be thanks to a state some often deem the polar opposite of Texas: California.

Going by 247Sports's composite ratings, each of the top three recruits for the Aggies in the class of 2025 come from the state of California. That's three of the four top-100 recruits that the Aggies currently have pledged in this class, with recent commit Kiotti Armstrong of Jasper being the other one.

QB Husan Longstreet, CB Adonyss Currie, and LB Noah Mikhail were all three huge gets for the Aggies and figure prominently in the future of the program. But the question should be asked—is it wise for Elko and company to put so many eggs in an out-of-state basket?

Well, I'm not so sure they're overleveraging themselves in that regard in the first place—as I said, many of their top targets in Texas still have yet to announce, and the Ags are in an enviable position for more than one at the moment.

But I don't think this strategy is a poor one, by any means. USC, the traditional power in the Golden State, is becoming a less and less attractive destination by the year; despite adding Lincoln Riley, the Trojans have failed to get over the hump even with Caleb Williams behind center. The Oregon Ducks pose a serious problem, but they share an issue with USC: after conference realignment, the headaches of Big 10 travel figure to be a strain on the recruiting for these programs.

West Coast programs will struggle more than they would otherwise after the shifting and shunting around that the major conferences have been engaging in over the last few years begins to take hold. In that respect, these recruits will be ripe for the picking when a strong SEC program with a lot to offer comes calling.