ie Battalion
Sports
Page 11 • Thursday, February 4, 1999
Signing Day ’99 good to Ags
adliner Weber helps push A&M recruiting class into top 5
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BY JEFF SCHMIDT
The Battalion
orns rank No. 1, but Aggies get talent
FILE PHOTOTm Battalion
fnees like Bryan High defensive lineman Ty
men helped give A&M the No. 5 recruiting
iss in the nation.
D, Iraq (AP -:
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trees dot
vidence of
s grown rich
iViwinVdC A nother happy day.” A&M head coach
.nS,!S: ; A R - C - Slocum,
' Mercedes se, JLgrmning, uttered
rdan in defia: eselwords as he came to
anctions tful?podium Wednesday,
;o poor that! idy to tell the world
a struggle, oul the high school se-
embargo in arslvho had signed let-
invasion of s ol intent.
I and crushet Tie Aggies signed 28
has also crea tyers on Signing Day, one
ts who impc the best recruiting class
rossthe pora inichool history.
Christmas came 40 days late
for the Texas A&M Football
Team Wednesday, as 28 ath
letes signed letters of intent to
play for the Aggies.
Three of the signees are al
ready attending A&M and will
count towards last year’s
scholarship total.
“We spent a lot of time look
ing at tapes and visiting with
the young men when they
came in, and we got some guys
that fit our way of doing
things,” A&M coach R. C.
Slocum said.
“I think that if you look at
the [last] season there was
clear evidence that you could
come play football at A&M and
have a big-time experience.”
National Recruiting Advisor
editor-in-chief Bobby Burton
ranks A&M’s class as the fifth
best in the country, and five of
A&M’s signees were ranked
among the top 100 players in
the country: running back Joe
Weber (San Bernardino, Calif.],
defensive end Ty Warren
(Bryan), defensive back Jason
Frederick (Cypress), offensive
lineman Alan Reuber (Plano)
and defensive back Sammy
Davis (Humble).
Both Weber and Warren
helped to catapult A&M’s re
cruiting class into the upper
echelon.
Burton points to Weber as
the jewel in A&M’s crown.
“Weber is the guy a lot of
people are going to point to as
putting A&M among the elite,”
Burton said.
“Not necessarily one guy
can do that, but what’s going to
happen is people in California
are going to say they [the Ag
gies] got three guys UCLA
wanted.”
“He [Weber] has a great
smile and is just a class guy,”
Slocum said “He has big thighs,
is quick-footed catching the ball,
makes cuts, and when he gets
open he has another speed.”
Headlining the defensive
signees is Warren, ranked by
Burton as the top defensive
lineman in Texas.
“Going back to [former
A&M defensive star] Sam
Adams, we haven’t had a de
fensive lineman with the phys
ical talents Ty Warren has,”
Slocum said.
The Aggies also landed the
top quarterback in Texas for the
second straight year. Brown-
wood product Colby Freeman.
Although he is known more
as a runner, Freeman can de
velop into a top college player
Slocum said.
“We’ve had Colby in our
football camp for two years, and
we have a good feel for what his
talents are,” Slocum said.
see Recruits on Page 14.
Doug
SHILLING
ases, the new A big factor in this year’s recruiting was that
mple war pit the past season, the Aggies shed their image
intry in despr no t t-, e i n g able to win the big game. The vic-
ts, Saddams^gg over then No. 2 Nebraska at home and
encouraged p.|| n i<ed Kansas State in the Big 12 Champi-
nilies and Pi
onship game showed recruits A&M was a
bona-fide contender for the national title.
“Those kind of wins send a clear message to
the kids,” Slocum said. “It shows that you don’t
have to go elsewhere to play big-time football.”
The main thing that made this class superior
was the Aggies recruited players who suited
their strengths, the basics of “Aggie Football”: a
good running game and an even better defense.
The definite jewel of this year’s offensive
class is Joe Weber. The top-rated running back
in California, Slocum describes Weber as “a
bright-eyed, class guy. He’s quick-footed and
when he breaks into the open field, he seems
to kick into another speed. He’s special.”
The Aggies also recruited some “big uglies”,
to help block for Weber. Alan Reuber, an All-
American out of Plano, and Andre Brooks from
Brazoswood, highlight the offensive line.
The Aggies also snagged the state’s top-rat
ed quarterback Colby Freeman. Slocum
stressed that a mobile quarterback is a necessi
ty, and the Aggies got that in Freeman.
But when you look at the Aggies’ recruits,
one spot stands out above the rest: Defense.
After signing only one defender last year, the
Aggies made it a priority this year, signing possi
bly the nation’s best group of defensive players.
And it all starts with the defensive line —
namely, Ty Warren and Brian West. Warren is
an immense talent with tremendous speed for
a man of his size, in terms of talent, Slocum
said the Aggies haven’t had anyone as skilled
since Adams anchored the defensive line.
1999 A&M
FOOTBALL SIGNEES
f i
j i-.:.:
u
NAME
POS.
HOMETOWN
Andre Brooks
OL
Brazoswood
Tashumbrae’ Brown
TE
-
Dallas
Ellison Collins DB
mm mnmnr™*
Sammy Davis
DB
Humble
Oschlor Flemming
RB
Denton
» DB
Houston
Colby Freeman
QB
Brownwood
MatHice Hams
RB
Aldine
Jesse Hunnicutt
ATH
Amarillo
Terrance Kiel
DB
Lufkin
John Kirk
OL
Athens
Jason LeDoux
LB
West Monroe, La.
Britt Lively
OL
Silsbee
James Milkavich
OL
Alief 2 J!
Shannon Mitchell
DL
Navasota
Jared Morris
LB
Brownwood
Jarrod Penright
LB
Aldine
Alan Reuber
OL
Plano
Everett Smith
DB
Compton
Fred Spiller
TE
Aldine
Reggie Waddell
DB
Missouri City
Ty Warifc
Bi yaa
Joe Weber
RB
San Bernardino, Ca.
Brian West
DL
West Monroe, La.
Damien West &mm
LB
Ijj Sugar Land
Sean Weston
DB
Gardena, Ca.
Richards Whitaker H
RB
till
Jacksonville
Toron Wooldridge
p
LB
In
Houston
see Aggies on Page 14.
TOP 5 NATIONAL RECRUITING CLASSES
1. University of Texas
2. Ohio State University
3. Notre Dame University
4. UCLA
5. Texas A&M University
6. University of Alabama
7. Louisiana St. University
8. University of Tennessee
9. University of Miami
10. University of Michigan
Rankings compiled by National Recruiting Advisor magazine
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