Texas A&M scores commitment from in-state TE Fernando Garza

Days after landing a highly anticipated offer, the verdict is in.

Texas A&M extended an offer in the direction of three-star Katy (Texas) tight end Fernando Garza on May 2. Four days later, Gerza committed to the Aggies.

Texas A&M edged out Colorado, Kansas, Houston, Virginia Tech, Virginia, Iowa State and Michigan State for the mid-three-star tight end, who took home positional MVP honors at the Rivals Camp Series stop in Houston in February.

Garza is the seventh commitment in the Aggies' 2021 recruiting haul that also features Houston-area four-star Shadrach Banks and in-state four-star quarterback Eli Stowers. Entering Wednesday, Texas A&M's recruiting class ranked No. 21 in the Rivals team recruiting rankings.

"Texas A&M has been texting me ever since the Houston Rivals camp, off and on, and I finally got on the phone with Coach (James) Coley a while back and he asked me to send me some videos of me at the Rivals camp so I did and ever since then he’s been super interested in me."

"When he got this offer out to me, it meant a lot. It’s like a dream school to me."

"He (Coley) is a great man and our relationship is getting stronger as the days go in ... Our conversations recently have been great. He has had conversations with my dad and they get along great. He sees me as more of a Travis Kelce/Gronk type of tight end and not so much an always flexed out type of tight end, and I love our relationship and where it is going, and the best aspects of it all are my family will get to see me play every home game."

"I would say the top three biggest reasons I’m committing to A&M is because of distance. Family means a lot to me and it is important to me that my parents can make every home game. Another reason would be the way they use their tight end; they use them how I like him and how I want to be used in college. And the third reason would be because Texas A&M was a dream school for me as a kid."

Garza is a two-sport athlete that competes on the Katy football and baseball teams. He was named the wide receiver/tight end positional MVP of the Rivals Camp Series stop in Houston back in February. Garza also pitches and plays first base on the diamond.

Over the past two seasons at tight end for Katy, Garza has 6 receptions for 97 yards and a touchdown. He's averaged 16.2 yards per reception in that span and about 19.4 yards per game. He's a well-rounded tight end built in a more traditional form for the position. Essentially, he's an added offensive tackle that can contribute to a power run game and catch passes in the short and intermediate parts of the field with reliable hands and presenting a big target for his quarterbacks to target.

It's fair to say that Garza's best football is ahead of him at Texas A&M.

During RCS Houston, Garza impressed with his sure hands and solid catch radius. At 6-foot-6 and 240 pounds with a big, broad frame, Garza is a colossal target in the passing game and doubles as a third offensive tackle in-line for max pass protection, setting the edge in the running game and serving a lead blocker in an H-back role.

As a pass-catcher, Garza has the glaring size. He's a big target out in the flats with excellent hands to catch over defenders and in contested situations. Garza isn't much of a playmaker after the catch, but has great power to muscle his way into the end zone and is hard to bring down with the ball in his hands.

Garza is a solid run-blocker that's capable of bullying defenders to their backside. He can set the edge in the run game and reach multiple defenders on a given play. When he lines up in the backfield as an H-back, Garza shows off his ability to be an effective lead blocker. He's a major asset in a team's power running game.

Moving forward, it would be great to see Garza get more involved in Katy's passing game. He can improve his blocking with better hand placement and arm extension.