Texas A&M's Top Offseason Priority? A Change To Transfer Portal Approach

Texas A&M must change its way in approaching the transfer portal.

There are two things you can't teach in football; experience and desire. Right now, Texas A&M needs both entering 2023. 

 Jimbo Fisher has been at the forefront of the former. Experience matters, regardless the age, year or position. A player can't evolve while holding a clipboard on the sidelines. 

A prospect can't produce when watching from afar. No wonder why the fifth-year Aggie coach gave 25 freshmen ample playing time amid a 5-7 season. 

Multiple first-year players will return in 2023. Others have already hit the transfer portal. And for Fisher, knowledge and reps are needed in Aggieland. 

Proven experience. Transfer experience to be precise. 

“Guys don’t stay in the portal a long, long time it doesn’t seem to be,” Fisher said earlier this season. “If they’re in the portal for a while and you get them on a visit, that’s great. If they already know where they’re going, that can be a problem.”

Texas A&M currently leads the nation in transfers with a whopping 18 Aggies hitting the portal since Monday morning. Some already have received offers to play elsewhere next fall while others could potentially have a change of heart a return for another season. 

That shouldn't stop Fisher from being like every other coach in the country when it comes to ambushing the portal. It can't after the first losing season in College Station since Mike Sherman stood on the sidelines when Texas A&M was still a member of the. Big 12.

Since his arrival, Fisher has followed Nick Saban's philosophy of adding veteran talent. Does a premium position need fixing? Say no more. Last season, the Aggies added LSU starter Max Johnson to compete for reps at quarterback. The year prior, Tennessee tackle Jahmir Johnson filled the void on the blindside left by the departed Dan Moore Jr. 

There are dire needs in certain spots for the Aggies entering the offseason. Off-ball linebacker might be at the top of the list following the transfers of Tarian Lee Jr. and Andre White Jr. Cornerback could use depth with Jaylon Jones declaring for the NFL Draft, while five more — including freshman sensation Denver Harris — all elected to test the portal. 

Last season, Johnson was the only player added via the portal for Texas A&M. That number should quadruple before the start of fall camp. 

“You look at every high school kid out there, and you look at everybody in the portal,” Fisher said of the portal. “And if they can help your team, yeah (you sign them).”

The roster of Texas A&M might change. The expectations haven't. Fisher was able to build one of the greatest recruiting classes in the history of college football, adding 12 players from SI All-American's top 99 prospects in 2022. Prospects like quarterback Conner Weigman, receiver Evan Stewart, tight end Donovan Green, and offensive lineman Kam Dewberry seem to be established building blocks. 

Other high-profile recruits, including defensive lineman Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy and Walter Nolen, along with receiver Noah Thomas, defensive back Bryce Anderson and running back Le'Veon Moss left fans wanting more in rotational roles. All five players have already announced their intent to return in 2023. 

A sign in the right direction? Perhaps, but it still isn't enough for a program with College Football Playoff aspirations, not just bowl bids and an extra 15 practices. 

Fisher said one of the biggest challenges of maneuvering through the portal is finding players who are willing to listen with open ears. Thanks to conversations with high school coaches, former teammates and other players, most prospects often have an idea where they'll call home even before they enter their name in college football's version of free agency. 

 "If they stay in the portal a while, you can recruit guys, but if they’re in the portal for (only) one day, how do you recruit him, and how do you know they’re going in?” Fisher said. “To know that, you’d have to be doing what? Tampering."

The Aggies won't tamper under Fisher. Then again, maybe they should explore other avenues. Fisher is paid like a top-10 coach. Since being hired the Aggies finished ranked in the top 10 once. Even then, Texas A&M failed to total double-digit wins during the COVID-19 season in 2020. 

Fisher stated prior to the Aggies' upset win over then-No. 5 LSU that change was coming to the program. So far, Texas A&M has fired offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey and watched a dozen players leave for greener pastures. 

Those changes are warranted. So is the approach to how Texas A&M attacks the transfer portal. 

And after last season's mishaps, change could be the only way Fisher guarantees his mailing address remains the same entering 2024. 

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