Wednesday Practice Notes

<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-texas-a-amp-m-football-picked-a-typical-summer-day-to-move-practices-to-the-morning-and-move-to-full-pats-hot-very-humid-and-not-a-whole-lot-of-clouds">Texas A&M football picked a typical summer day to move practices to the morning and move to full pats: hot, very humid and not a whole lot of clouds.</h2> <p>Today was the turn of the Aggie defense to go under the microscope, so here are a few observations that I got today:</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-looking-at-the-defense">Looking at the defense</h2> <p>DBs coach Ishmael Aristide was not happy with the tackling of the safeties or their approach to it during drills. He was on their case in a big way, using words that one would not consider family-friendly. On the other hand, the safeties can go three deep, with Dalton Brooks, Marcus Ratcliffe and Bryce Anderson at the top of the list. Brooks and Ratcliffe, especially, look good physically. Anderson looks like he’s built up some too.</p> <p>Former 4-star safety Jordan Pride has moved to corner. I’m not sure this is breaking news, because he was playing there in the spring game. I thought that may have been due to depth issues, but nope, he’s now there full time. </p> <p>Speaking of corner, Will Lee sure looks like he’s on a level all his own. The way he gets through drills looks effortless. But frequently, he stops and asks questions of the coaches after his rep. </p> <p>I thought, for what little we saw, that this was the best Dezz Ricks has looked. He was very fluid, turn and ran well and seemed…I don’t know, <em>comfortable. </em>A lot was asked of him last year and if he starts to let his talent and experience lead him (and not his brain), he can be really good. </p> <p>I’m honestly not sure that Jayvon Thomas will be the fourth corner — or fifth, if Tyreek Chappell moves outside at times as I expect he will. One of the true freshmen may pass him up.</p> <p>I am playing a hunch here and absolutely nothing else, but I think they really like Jamar Beal-Goines, one of those true freshman corners.</p> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="652" src="https://on3static.com/uploads/dev/assets/cms/2025/08/06114752/TC25p4-Jordan-lockhart-1024x652.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-3509938" srcset="https://on3static.com/uploads/dev/assets/cms/2025/08/06114752/TC25p4-Jordan-lockhart-1024x652.jpeg 1024w, https://on3static.com/uploads/dev/assets/cms/2025/08/06114752/TC25p4-Jordan-lockhart-300x191.jpeg 300w, https://on3static.com/uploads/dev/assets/cms/2025/08/06114752/TC25p4-Jordan-lockhart-768x489.jpeg 768w, https://on3static.com/uploads/dev/assets/cms/2025/08/06114752/TC25p4-Jordan-lockhart-50x32.jpeg 50w, https://on3static.com/uploads/dev/assets/cms/2025/08/06114752/TC25p4-Jordan-lockhart.jpeg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Jordan Lockhart has been extremely impressive in camp.</figcaption></figure> <p>We know that Taurean York and Scooby Williams are the starting linebackers, but two others jump out every time we see them: Jordan Lockhart and Noah Mikhail. Lockhart, a sophomore, wowed his teammates and coaches in the spring, so he got a closer look from me this summer. It sure seems like there’s a reason for the hype; he’s fluid, instinctive and hits, even if it’s a tackling dummy in a drill. Each rep gets maximum effort. In the case of Mikhail, it’s more his size than anything. He’s just massive for a linebacker, but he can run. If A&M’s starters at linebacker in two years — heck, maybe next year depending on how things go — are Lockhart and Mikhail, I will not be surprised in the least.</p> <p>The defensive line was broken up into three groups today, which I will call fast, regular and big. The fast guys look like the rush ends or JACKs — Cashius Howell, Sam M’Pemba, Marco Jones and Nana Boadi-Owusu. The regulars were Dayon Hayes, T.J. Searcy, Solomon Williams and Kendall Jackson, your normal-sized defensive ends — but DJ Sanders and Landon Rink also took some snaps with that group before returning to the defensive tackles. I’ve noticed Sanders doing that a fair amount, and I expected Rink to be a guy who plays some end in the hybrid role we’ve seen in the past. Maybe they’re going to be some of the bigger ends in heavy run situations.</p> <p>The bigs were Rink and Sanders (later), DJ Hicks, Tyler Onyedim, Albert Regis, Dealyn Evans and Chase Sims. Maybe it’s wishful thinking, but Hicks looks like he’s gotten quicker. Onyedim has a nice quick twitch off the snap in drills. I don’t know if Evans is going to be a player — more recent reports indicate he’s trending towards a two-deep spot — but he sure looks like the part. He’s gained 35 pounds from last year and it’s not fat. He looks built.</p> <p>This is not a perfect defensive roster, but they’re starting to stack talent. I’d look at the young corners and the three they have committed for 2026, Lockhart, Mikhail and Tristan Jernigan at linebacker, Tom Tom Jones and Myles Davis at safety, Marco Jones and the three young defensive tackles. All of these guys can play, but none of them will start. They could be a year or more away, giving them even more time to develop. The Aggies are starting to stack positions two and three deep with legitimate talent, which is what you absolutely must do — no matter how difficult it is to do it.</p>