Aggies Make Nationally Notable Recruiting Haul
Feb 04, 2004 | Football
February 04, 2004
Texas A&M made waves nationally again this year as its 2004 football signing class ranked among the best in the nation.
In his second year as the Aggies' mentor, A&M coach Dennis Franchione announced the signing of 28 players during an afternoon news conference Wednesday on campus.
Comprised of 22 freshmen and 6 junior college transfers, Franchione was pleased with the make-up of the class.
"By filling our priority needs and signing at least two players at every position, this gives us two strong signing classes in a row for a solid foundation in our championship vision," Franchione said. "We signed over the 25 limit allowed to enroll next fall, knowing that a few need to go to junior college first before becoming Aggies."
The Aggies entered the recruiting season following a 4-8 record last season and national recruiting expert Bobby Burton of Rivals 100.com said Franchione and his staff posted one of the best efforts in recent memory.
"Given the circumstances with a 4-8 season, I think (Franchione) might have done the best recruiting job in the country this year," Burton said. "He's always been a hard working recruiter."
Franchione credited the University and his staff as factors contributing to the recruiting success.
"The factors in us signing an excellent group coming off last season were Texas A&M's history of winning, due diligence by our coaching staff in evaluation and developing relationships with coaches and prospects, and the tangible impact of our new facilities," Franchione said.
The Aggies' class is ranked No. 8 nationally by Tom Lemming and ESPN.com, and No. 12 by Rivals.com.
"Texas A&M has done a great job recruiting in Texas," Lemming said. "The Aggies' class is a good blend of several very athletic high school players and junior college all-stars."
Jeremy Crabtree of Rivals100.com says that A&M surprised the nation while laying a foundation for the future.
"There's no question they've exceeded expectations," Crabtree said. "They've secured a class to provide a foundation for the future. They've put together a nice little puzzle. A&M has to be one of the biggest surprises in the nation. Their class has a lot of punch to it."
The Aggies' class is made up of 14 players on offense, 13 on defense, and one special teams player.
Rivals.com ranked several of the positions within the class in the top 10 nationally.
"What we know is that we signed outstanding high school and junior college athletes and football players," Franchione said. "The responsibility now becomes to develop them into outstanding division I championship college players."
Three members of the class are already on campus.
Quarterback Stephen McGee graduated in December from Burnet High School in Texas. Ranked as the fourth best quarterback nationally by Rivals.com, McGee guided his high school team to the Class 3A state final game the past two seasons.
Linebacker Aaron Brown graduated in December from Compton Community College in California. A two-time junior college All-American, Brown recorded 67 tackles and 14 sacks last season.
Completing the trio is wide receiver DaQawn Mobley who graduated from San Francisco Junior College in December. Originally from The Bronx, New York, Mobley helped his team to a 10- record this season with his 27 receptions for 444 yards and four touchdowns.
McGee, Brown, and Mobley, will debut for the Aggies during the annual Maroon and White Game on April 17 at Kyle Field.
