Take Two: Could Demas convince Evans to join him at A&M?
MORE TAKE TWO: Are Tom Herman and the Texas Longhorns mired in mediocrity?
Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling a handful of issues in the college football landscape. Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney lays out the situation and then receives takes from Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and a local expert from the Rivals.com network.
THE STORYLINE
Demond Demas committed to Texas A&M on Saturday night after seeing the electric atmosphere at Kyle Field as the Aggies tried to upset Clemson. That did not happen, but the high four-star receiver from Houston (Texas) North Forest made a huge pledge to the Aggies.
Ranked as the third-best receiver in the 2020 class, Demas has also talked extensively with Houston North Shore five-star running back Zachary Evans about playing together in college. After looking so good at the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge presented by adidas this summer, Evans could make a push for No. 1 in the 2020 class.
Over the summer, Demas and Evans discussed possibly playing together at Georgia. That was the school both Texas standouts had considered but now with Demas’ pledge to Texas A&M - along with the pledge of 2020 four-star QB Malik Hornsby to the Aggies - could Demas convince Evans to join him in College Station?
FIRST TAKE: NICK KRUEGER, TEXAS RECRUITING ANALYST
“The snap commitment of Demas is massive for Texas A&M and softened the sting from a heartbreaking loss to Clemson on Saturday night. I wrote following our last rankings update for the 2020 class that Demas has a chance to push for a top-five finish in the national rankings, and after watching the reins come off in the passing attack in that Clemson game, it’s suddenly easy to visualize the sort of impact a player like him can make very early in his career.
“Demas showed this offseason that he’s more than just a long, athletic wide receiver prospect, he’s dedicated to improving his route-running and he’s on track to potentially finish his high school career as the most polished wide receiver in the 2020 class. Even though the Aggies have been pulling some strong commitments from other wide receivers - should Demas remain committed - he shouldn’t be waiting long to get some reps.
“His commitment to Texas A&M in and of itself is not a huge surprise, but he is teammates with Texas offensive line commit Javonne Shepherd - who is also close with 2019 Aggies commit Kenyon Green - and if there was any potential for him to flip to A&M, that case just got stronger.
"In the summer, Demas spoke about his mutual interest in Georgia with Evans, but Evans has also been taking a closer look at A&M in recent weeks and now this certainly changes the discussion between the two of them. The commitment of Hornsby to A&M cannot hurt with Evans either since he’s another top Houston prospect. Even though Demas doesn’t immediately come to mind as a player that publicly influences other recruits, he’s a really charismatic personality and should impact other players that the A&M staff recruits in the Houston area.”
SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, NATIONAL RECRUITING DIRECTOR
“It will help. Anytime you get a top in-state kid you’re definitely going to influence other top kids. Zach Evans recently came out with a top 25 so he’s clearly not close to making a decision, but the more Texas A&M is able to reel in big-named guys like this especially after the way they played last night with Kellen Mond, it’s certainly going to help getting Evans and other top players from the region.”
