Texas A&M football lands headline LB commitment from transfer portal

Texas A&M football lands Pitt LB Solomon DeShields to further develop the middle of their defense

Mike Elko and his Texas A&M football staff continue to impress with their acumen at portal recruiting. It’s becoming a rarity these days for this staff to host a portal prospect they would really like to land and let them leave without a commitment coming around.

That trend continued today with Pitt LB Solomon DeShields giving a verbal commitment to the Aggies. A rising redshirt junior, DeShields was third on the Pitt defense in tackles last year with 35, adding 8 TFLs and 2 sacks as well.

At 6’3” and 225 LBs, DeShields will certainly not look out of place on the field with SEC linebacker talent. As the above tweet says, he will have two years of eligibility left to play with Texas A&M.

I think it’s safe to say at this point that Taurean York has one of the starting spots at linebacker pretty much locked down. The other spot, especially with the departure of Alex Howard, is up for grabs, however.

The reports are that Daymion Sanford, York’s fellow member of the 2023 class, is coming on strong for that position. However, with the addition of DeShields, the Aggies get a guy who has played a lot of ball, which could help him edge out the young, athletic Sanford.

DeShields plays with a very high motor, which is something that Elko and Bateman will be sure to love. Originally a three-star out of high school, his turnaround from announcing his transfer to committing to the good guys was so quick that most services haven’t rated him yet—but judging from the tape, this is a high-value pickup no matter what number the services eventually assign.

This is a great pickup at a position of need for the Aggies—something I find myself writing every single time Mike Elko and Texas A&M football add a portal prospect. The new Aggie coach continues to impress.