Texas A&M Aggies: Stanford Cardinal
With summer drawing closer, Texas high school football teams are transitioning from spring football to 7-on-7 competition and there were a handful of teams in attendance at the inaugural Crosby Cougar 7-on-7 tournament in Crosby, Texas, on Saturday.
Among them was a talented private school squad, Houston Kinkaid, which appears to have major Division I prospects in the 2014 class and beyond.
Among them was a talented private school squad, Houston Kinkaid, which appears to have major Division I prospects in the 2014 class and beyond.
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True to his word, Bossier City (La.) Parkway quarterback Brandon Harris named his top schools after spring practice concluded.
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ESPN 150 DE Thomas pondering decision 
April, 22, 2013
Apr 22
10:30
AM CT
By
William Wilkerson | ESPN.com
ESPN 150 defensive end Solomon Thomas (Coppell, Texas/Coppell) is about as unassuming a high-profile recruit as one will come across.
He doesn’t get tangled up in the vastness of recruiting. He's not one to openly speak of his achievements. He’s also not one to rush a decision as important as his commitment to the college program of his choice.
Go ahead and ask him where he’s going or who he’s favoring and you’ll get an answer you’d swear was stuck on loop.
He doesn’t get tangled up in the vastness of recruiting. He's not one to openly speak of his achievements. He’s also not one to rush a decision as important as his commitment to the college program of his choice.
Go ahead and ask him where he’s going or who he’s favoring and you’ll get an answer you’d swear was stuck on loop.
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#BlueChipBattles: ESPN 150 release edition
April, 19, 2013
Apr 19
11:49
AM CT
By RecruitingNation | ESPN.com
Student Sports, ESPN, ESPNSpeedy Noil, Adoree Jackson and Da'Shawn Hand are three of the most coveted recruits in the Class of 2014.
: RecruitingNation summoned its writers from around the country to outline the recruiting battles for the ESPN 150's top 10 prospects.
Plus, rank the battles in SportsNation.
#TopFBMixtapes: Athlete mixtapes are all the rage in this highlight-crazed era of sports. We reached out to our Twitter followers to find out which 2014 football stars had the best highlight reels on YouTube, then had our staff rank and comment on the top submissions.
Tom Luginbill writes
: After talking to many coaches across the country and hearing their frustrations, here are their five biggest complaints about homemade highlight videos.
HOUSTON -- Most of the nearly 200 athletes that attended the Next Level Athlete South Houston Video Showcase on Sunday at Houston Kinkaid came from all around the Houston area, and in some cases, from other parts of Texas.
But a handful of players didn't have to go farther than their current daily commute, as Kinkaid had its own set of hopefuls hitting their home turf at Barnhart Stadium to compete against other up-and-coming football prospects.
One Kinkaid Falcon whom colleges are already taking notice of is 2015 quarterback J.T. Granato.
But a handful of players didn't have to go farther than their current daily commute, as Kinkaid had its own set of hopefuls hitting their home turf at Barnhart Stadium to compete against other up-and-coming football prospects.
One Kinkaid Falcon whom colleges are already taking notice of is 2015 quarterback J.T. Granato.
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Aggies fifth in Way-Too-Early Top 25
January, 8, 2013
Jan 8
4:30
PM CT
By RecruitingNation staff | ESPN.com
Streeter Lecka/Getty ImagesAlabama, with three of the past four national titles, is No. 1 in the Way-Too-Early Top 25 for 2013.There are still seven months before the start of the 2013 season, and the teams and their order figure to change frequently, but it's never too early to take a look at the Way-Too-Early Top 25 for 2013.
And with three national championships in the past four years, there's no reason to change the team that's on top. Perhaps no team was hotter at the end of the season as the Aggies, who are at No. 5.
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Recruiting set to pick up for Braden Smith
January, 4, 2013
Jan 4
4:37
PM CT
By
Corey Dowlar | ESPN.com
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- ESPN Watch List offensive tackle Braden Smith (Olathe, Kan./Olathe) has taken the last few weeks to sit back and relax.
With the dead period in full effect, he was given some time to himself. But now that the contact period is about to get going again and teams are finishing up their bowl schedules, it will pick up again.
"Pretty much it has been going slow," he said. "But I think it is going to pick back up in January after all the bowls and stuff. I will try to take some visits to Texas and Notre Dame, places like that."
With the dead period in full effect, he was given some time to himself. But now that the contact period is about to get going again and teams are finishing up their bowl schedules, it will pick up again.
"Pretty much it has been going slow," he said. "But I think it is going to pick back up in January after all the bowls and stuff. I will try to take some visits to Texas and Notre Dame, places like that."
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Savaiinaea eyes signing day decision
December, 30, 2012
12/30/12
6:59
PM CT
By
Mitch Sherman | ESPN.com
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Former Stanford commit Isaac Savaiinaea (Honolulu/Punahou School), down to Texas A&M and UCLA, will likely wait until signing day to reveal his decision, the linebacker said today after his arrival here for Under Armour All-America Game.
The Aggies’ initial season in the Southeastern Conference impressed Savaiinaea.
“They went to the No. 1 team’s place and beat them,” he said. “You see that they actually do have a shot at a national championship. That’s appealing to me.”
The Aggies’ initial season in the Southeastern Conference impressed Savaiinaea.
“They went to the No. 1 team’s place and beat them,” he said. “You see that they actually do have a shot at a national championship. That’s appealing to me.”
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ESPN 150 Isaac Savaiinaea sticks with it
November, 30, 2012
11/30/12
8:00
AM CT
By
Sam Khan Jr. | ESPN.com
Texas A&M and UCLA linebacker target Isaac Savaiinaea received his honorary game jersey during the American Family Insurance Selection Tour for the 2013 Under Armour All-America Game on Thursday. Here's an excerpt from the story:
When Isaac Savaiinaea first encountered football, it was far from his favorite endeavor. As a 7-year-old who was introduced to the sport by his father, he didn't take kindly to defeat.
"My first four years of football were rough," Savaiinaea said. "We lost every game, literally. It was kind of discouraging and I wanted to quit."
He started his career playing on the offensive line, and he didn't particularly enjoy the way he was pushed around and hit by defensive players. By time he got to Honolulu Punahou School, he changed that, moving to the defensive side. Now he does the hitting and he does plenty of it -- enough to be recruited by quality college football programs across the United States.
"Getting put on my back every play wasn't too fun," Savaiinaea said. "I switched [to defense] my freshman year. I started to like it when I started getting the chance to hit people and not get hit."
The 6-foot-3, 231-pound inside linebacker and ESPN 150 prospect has had quite a successful last two seasons, which culminated Thursday when he accepted his game jersey during the American Family Insurance Selection Tour for the 2013 Under Armour All-America Game.
Read the full story here.
When Isaac Savaiinaea first encountered football, it was far from his favorite endeavor. As a 7-year-old who was introduced to the sport by his father, he didn't take kindly to defeat.
"My first four years of football were rough," Savaiinaea said. "We lost every game, literally. It was kind of discouraging and I wanted to quit."
He started his career playing on the offensive line, and he didn't particularly enjoy the way he was pushed around and hit by defensive players. By time he got to Honolulu Punahou School, he changed that, moving to the defensive side. Now he does the hitting and he does plenty of it -- enough to be recruited by quality college football programs across the United States.
"Getting put on my back every play wasn't too fun," Savaiinaea said. "I switched [to defense] my freshman year. I started to like it when I started getting the chance to hit people and not get hit."
The 6-foot-3, 231-pound inside linebacker and ESPN 150 prospect has had quite a successful last two seasons, which culminated Thursday when he accepted his game jersey during the American Family Insurance Selection Tour for the 2013 Under Armour All-America Game.
Read the full story here.
Savaiinaea decommits, A&M, UCLA lead
November, 9, 2012
11/09/12
1:32
AM CT
By
Sam Khan Jr. | ESPN.com
There are two schools atop the list of ESPN 150 inside linebacker Isaac Savaiinaea (Honolulu Punahou School) and neither one of them is Stanford.
Savaiinaea, the No. 140 player in the ESPN 150, decommitted from Stanford on Thursday night. The 6-foot-3, 231 pound prospect confirmed to RecruitingNation via text message that he rescinded the commitment and that Texas A&M and UCLA are his top two choices.
The nation's fourth-ranked inside linebacker originally committed to Stanford in March, but came into the fall with the intention of visiting other schools. He took official visits to Texas A&M when the Aggies played Arkansas, to Notre Dame when the Irish hosted Stanford, to Stanford when the Cardinal hosted Washington State and to UCLA when the Bruins took on Arizona.
Savaiinaea indicated that he does not have any more visits planned and that he's likely to make his decision on where to go on national signing day in February.
Savaiinaea, the No. 140 player in the ESPN 150, decommitted from Stanford on Thursday night. The 6-foot-3, 231 pound prospect confirmed to RecruitingNation via text message that he rescinded the commitment and that Texas A&M and UCLA are his top two choices.
The nation's fourth-ranked inside linebacker originally committed to Stanford in March, but came into the fall with the intention of visiting other schools. He took official visits to Texas A&M when the Aggies played Arkansas, to Notre Dame when the Irish hosted Stanford, to Stanford when the Cardinal hosted Washington State and to UCLA when the Bruins took on Arizona.
Savaiinaea indicated that he does not have any more visits planned and that he's likely to make his decision on where to go on national signing day in February.
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Notes: Aggies make mark on Savaiinaea
October, 4, 2012
10/04/12
1:00
PM CT
By
Sam Khan Jr. | ESPN.com
There was a sadness that came over Honolulu Punahou inside linebacker Isaac Savaiinaea when Sunday afternoon arrived.
That's because it was the end of his official visit to Texas A&M, a trip that the Stanford commitment called "amazing." He enjoyed the visit so much that he said he didn't want to return home to Honolulu.
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Since reopening his recruitment last month, four-star offensive guard Caleb Benenoch (Katy, Texas/Seven Lakes) has been enjoying the process on all angles. Part of his fun has been hearing from the already-committed players on a regular basis.
“I hear from Jake Raulerson a lot,” Benenoch said of the Celina, Texas, offensive lineman who has committed to Texas. “We’re pretty good friends and very good competitors. It’d be fun to be teammates with him. I’m probably going to let him know which school I’ll commit to before I announce it.
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Four-star guard Caleb Benenoch (Katy, Texas/Seven Lakes) has enjoyed the courting that began when he decommitted from Michigan State last month, but two schools still remain out front for his pledge.
Benenoch told HornsNation he considers Texas and Oklahoma his two favorites so far, but several new schools have entered the mix since he ended his pledge to MSU on June 12.
“After Texas and OU, I like Northwestern and I like Texas A&M, too. That’s where I’m at right now,” he said. “I’m going to visit Stanford, take a trip to Baylor, Texas A&M, hopefully Arkansas and possibly a return trip to Texas.”
Benenoch told HornsNation he considers Texas and Oklahoma his two favorites so far, but several new schools have entered the mix since he ended his pledge to MSU on June 12.
“After Texas and OU, I like Northwestern and I like Texas A&M, too. That’s where I’m at right now,” he said. “I’m going to visit Stanford, take a trip to Baylor, Texas A&M, hopefully Arkansas and possibly a return trip to Texas.”
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ABOUT GIGEMNATION
Sam Khan Jr.
Sam Khan Jr. joined ESPN.com in 2012 after nearly seven years with the Houston Chronicle, covering the University of Houston, college sports and high school sports. Khan lives in Houston with his wife. He can be reached at skespn@gmail.com.