Texas A&M is deadlocked in a high-stakes recruiting battle at the moment for Mark Matthews, the nation's top offensive tackle, with the Miami Hurricanes. Despite Matthews hailing from the greater Miami area, the Aggies have been able to wrest control of the recruitment away from the Canes and Mario Cristobal at this point.
Where a commitment seemed all but entirely imminent earlier in the week, though, things have now slowed down. Cristobal and Miami have hit back with everything they have, and the Aggies are now wondering if they still have the same footing as they once did.
If the Hurricanes are able to get Matthews to commit there, though, the Aggie faithful should rest assured of the plan Mike Elko has in place. Even if this one doesn't go in a maroon and white direction, the pivot that the Aggies can make will be legendary.
Mike Elko's backup options for Mark Matthews should still make Texas A&M fans very happy
Five-star offensive tackle Oluwasemilore Olubobola
Mark Matthews is not the only five-star offensive tackle who is down to the Aggies and the Hurricanes. Oluwasemilore Olubobola— or "Olu Olu," for short— out of New Jersey is also giving both programs a long look.
The common wisdom has been that whichever of Olubobola and Matthews commits first will likely have an effect on the other. If Matthews does indeed make his choice first, it could send Olubobola in the opposite direction.
The logic is clear, then, that Olubobola could head the Aggies' way if Matthews heads to Miami. This could be a timing thing more than anything else, as both of these are excellent prospects, and while A&M would love to have both, it simply doesn't seem realistic.
Five-star offensive tackle Ismael Camara
Camara is still somewhat new to football after coming over from France only a couple of years ago, but he is already a complete monster. His mix of athleticism and size is shocking to watch, which has made him quicly rise into the ranks of the five stars.
The problem is that this is a recruitment where Texas seems absolutely determined, at all costs, to defeat the Aggies. Even though the Ags have the upper hand nationally in this cycle— pretty inarguably so— the Longhorns can still be a problem in one or two key recruitments.
Maybe missing out on Matthews changes the calculus a bit here, but the Aggies will have to work hard no matter what to defeat the Longhorns for Camara, especially having already landed Kennedy Brown. Texas will do a lot to not be shut out from landing the top two in-state tackles, so the Aggies have a battle on their hands.
Five-star offensive lineman Albert Simien
This one seems like it's been bound to fall the Aggies' way for some time now. Up until this point, however, Simien has remained uncommitted, even through some heavy pushes by both Notre Dame and the in-state LSU Tigers.
The Aggies still seem like the team to beat here, as Simien has never shown a whole lot of interest in the Tigers. You can never pencil in that you're going to pull off a stunner over LSU when it comes to Louisiana kids, but the Aggies are still somehow in good position here.
Simien and Matthews don't play the same position, as the former is more of an interior lineman while Matthews is a true tackle, but this would still be a nice place to land if Miami were able to turn the tides and pick up the Fort Lauderdale native. Mike Elko and Adam Cushing have done great work here for the Aggies so far, and it should pay off.
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