Texas A&Ms much-discussed No. 1 recruiting class is finally on the field. How does it look?

June 2024 · 7 minute read

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Moments into Texas A&M’s open practice Sunday, freshman wide receiver Evan Stewart wowed the crowd.

As players began one-on-one drills, Stewart — sporting a maroon No. 1 jersey fitted snugly to his 170-pound frame and black shorts — lined up against veteran cornerback Brian George.

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The 5-foot-11 Stewart gives up at least two inches and 25 pounds to George, a senior with six starts and 15 appearances in the past two years. The size and experience difference mattered little in that moment. As Stewart burst off the line of scrimmage on a fade route, George stayed with the speedy Stewart step for step. But when a perfectly placed pass arched toward the sideline, Stewart leaped, twisted his body and hauled the ball in as he fell to the turf, drawing vocal praise from the few thousand watching at Kyle Field.

“He’s explosive,” receivers coach James Coley said earlier Sunday. “His speed … it’s there. The DBs feel it.”

Four months after Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher and his staff put the final touch on the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation — the highest-rated in the modern era, according to the 247Sports Composite — the ballyhooed class has finally hit the field in Aggieland in full.

The historic group was subject to constant offseason talk. It broke Alabama and Georgia’s 11-year reign atop the recruiting rankings. It sparked a feud this spring between Nick Saban and Fisher after Saban accused A&M of “buying” players via name, image and likeness deals, accusations that Fisher, a former Saban assistant, called “despicable.” A&M said then that most of its 2022 recruits didn’t have NIL deals.

But with talking season replaced by the long hot days of camp, it’s time to see what this class is actually made of. And though it’s too early to proclaim the long-term impact, one thing is clear: Several players will immediately impact the 2022 Aggies.

Stewart and 10 others had a head start by enrolling at A&M in January. The other 18 arrived this summer, and only one member of the class, defensive lineman Jadon Scarlett, of Argyle, Texas, has yet to make it in. The 29 who are on campus include a record-matching eight five-star recruits and 18 top-100 prospects. If the Aggies are to break through to win their division, the SEC or make the College Football Playoff in the coming years, this class figures to be the catalyst.

Texas A&M 2022 five-stars

NamePositionOverall ranking

Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy

DL

17

Denver Harris

CB

23

Chris Marshall

WR

25

Walter Nolen

DL

2

Lebbeus Overton

DL

14

Evan Stewart

WR

11

Shemar Stewart

DL

9

Conner Weigman

QB

22

*All rankings per the 247Sports Composite

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During Sunday’s practice, the fifth of training camp and the only one open to the public this month, freshmen were seen contributing all over the field. Anthony Lucas, one of the standouts from A&M’s spring game, continues to use his 6-5, 290-pound frame well. Safety Bryce Anderson, another spring enrollee, jumped a pass in one-on-ones that would have been a pick six if the whistle wasn’t blown. Tight ends Jake Johnson and Donovan Green moved well and looked sure-handed in drills and 11-on-11 work.

The newcomers are competing. Fisher joked Sunday how players often ask, “Coach, am I going to get a chance to play (early)?” in the recruiting process only to have an attitude that sometimes changes during a 100-degree August practice. “Make sure you want all those reps,” he said with a laugh.

At SEC media days last month, Fisher said, “I ain’t seen a rule in the rule book that said freshmen can’t play, but I haven’t seen one that says they have to play. That is all up to them.”

Even in a class as highly regarded as this one, not everyone will immediately see the field. Three of A&M’s 2021 starting offensive linemen return, and the top contenders for the other two spots are returnees, creating a challenging path for the four freshmen O-linemen. The Aggies will likely lean on more experienced players at linebacker, though freshmen Martrell Harris Jr. and Ish Harris drew praise from their teammate, projected starting linebacker Edgerrin Cooper, on Sunday.

At running back, A&M has one of the fastest players in the country in junior sprinter Devon Achane, a preseason All-SEC pick. And though five-star freshman quarterback Conner Weigman’s ability is substantial, veterans Haynes King and Max Johnson have an experience edge that could prove decisive in the race for that starting job.

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But there are clear needs for newcomers in other areas, like tight end, where two-time Mackey Award finalist Jalen Wydermyer departed this offseason for the NFL. Green, Jake Johnson and Theo Melin Öhrström are all competing. Offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Darrell Dickey called Green and Öhrström future first-round draft picks and predicted greatness for Johnson, too.

“They all have got a little bit different thing that they are good at, but they’re all very gifted players,” Dickey said. “We’ve got a room full of guys that can do well in this offense.”

Every starting defensive lineman from A&M’s 2021 team is gone, opening opportunities. A host of returnees, led by McKinnley Jackson, Isaiah Raikes, Shemar Turner, Fadil Diggs and Tunmise Adeleye will be in the mix. But the seven defensive line recruits on campus were national top-100 prospects, and some of them will play.

Lucas looks likely to break through. Five-star Shemar Stewart (6-4, 285) looks SEC-ready physically. Edge rusher Enai White boasts impressive length, with his fingertips nearly reaching his knees.

Walter Nolen, the highest-ranked player in the class, did not participate in Sunday’s practice. He was among a handful of true freshmen who were held out with minor ailments, none of which are long-term issues according to a team spokesman.

Three other freshmen, defensive lineman Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy and defensive backs Marquis Groves-Killebrew and Bobby Taylor, are all still recovering from offseason injuries. Fisher said last week that Brownlow-Dindy and Groves-Killebrew are close to returning, while Taylor will be out “for a while.”

The secondary returns four of five starters, but with the spring Anderson and five-star cornerback Denver Harris each had, it’s hard to envision either being kept off the field for long.

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The most visible impact freshmen could have is likely at receiver, led by Stewart, even though A&M returns preseason All-SEC selection Ainias Smith and senior Chase Lane, who impressed on Sunday. Five-star prospect Chris Marshall, who was held out on Sunday, and four-star receiver Noah Thomas are 6-3 and 6-5, respectively, and have large catch radii “that makes them an issue on the perimeter,” Coley said.

The Aggies are counting on Stewart to help A&M stretch the field. Downfield passing was a deficiency in 2021. They were second-to-last in the SEC and in the bottom 35 nationally in completion percentage (43.6), yards per attempt (9.3), touchdown-to-interception ratio (11-10) and passing efficiency (132.7) of throws of 10 or more yards downfield, according to Pro Football Focus. They were moderately better on throws of 20-or-more yards downfield, but still no higher than sixth in the SEC and 45th nationally in any of those categories.

“We have to throw the football better,” Fisher said last month. “We know that, and we will.”

Stewart could spark better deep passing success. He earned team offensive MVP honors in spring football and has continued to impress.

“He’s fast in short areas, he’s fast with long speed, and that all helps route runners get open,” Coley said. “He’s also very bright, extremely intelligent. He brings a really good package to that room, especially as young as he is.”

Stewart and the other newcomers have raised the talent and depth level in Aggieland.

As good as they all look now, the Aggies are only a week into preseason camp. Fisher preaches patience as these recent high schoolers adapt to major college football.

“Their body types, size, speed … that gives you the ability to be a good football player,” he said. “But performing and being able to produce as a football player is different than being a great athlete. Don’t confuse that.

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“That’s what we have to do now and develop these guys.”

(Photo of Evan Stewart courtesy of Kate Luffman / Texas A&M Athletics)

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