Aggies battle back with 2 big commits

A&M has been in the shadow of recent UT recruiting victories.

“#YESSIIR #YESSIR #9’s are wild.”

Kevin Sumlin’s tweet told it all: Texas A&M made a couple of big scores in football recruiting Friday afternoon.

Katy Taylor defensive end Max Wright, the No. 3 player on the American-Statesman’s Fabulous 55 list of top state recruits, declared his intention to sign with the Aggies. Wright had offers from Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Texas, for starters.

Cypress Springs safety Leon O’Neal Jr., No. 29 on the Fab 55, also said he will be an Aggie. O’Neal was pursued by practically every top program.

A&M and Sumlin needed a day like this. They’ve been in the shadow of recent recruiting victories by the Longhorns. The commitments by Wright and O’Neal re-establish the Aggies as a major force with the state’s top high school talent.

Texas A&M now has nine recruits — five four-stars and four three-stars — and its 2018 class is ranked 13th in the 247Sports composite ratings.

Texas’ 10-man class is listed fifth because of seven fourstar commitments.

A&M is third among SEC teams so far, trailing LSU and Tennessee. Alabama, of course, and others will be heard from. a list of 35 schools, none of them in the Big 12 or future opponents of the Wildcats.

“After having further dialogue with Coach Snyder and the Sutton family, we believe that it is in everyone’s best interest to grant Corey his full release,” Taylor said. “We wish Corey the best as he continues his athletic and academic career.”

Sutton announced his desire to transfer last month, claiming that Snyder and position coach Andre Coleman did not follow through on playing time promises. The native of Charlotte, N.C., then took his plea to Twitter, calling Snyder a “slave master” in a series of social media posts.

Snyder denied making any promises of playing time during a local appearance in Manhattan, Kan., on Thursday night and said he was merely standing by his policy regarding transfers. Snyder said he believes prospects make a commitment to the program when they sign a national letter of intent, just as he makes a commitment to them with a scholarship.

Snyder also appeared to indicate that Sutton had “tested positive twice” for drugs while at Kansas State, though he declined to elaborate and later backtracked on the statement. Snyder apologized for making a comment “that included sensitive and private information.”

Sutton appeared in 10 games as a freshman last season, catching four passes for 54 yards.

Without a release, Sutton could have transferred but would not have been eligible for an athletic scholarship his first season.