Texas A&M Football: Is Jimbo Fisher Nick Saban’s biggest threat in the SEC?

The biggest news of the early morning of 2018 National Signing Day came in the flipping of a four-star defensive tackle for Texas A&M football.

Texas A&M Football pulled off a massive feat by hauling in four-star defensive tackle Bobby Brown away from head coach Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide, to kick off National Signing Day 2018. Brown’s flip from the Crimson Tide to the Aggies is really the first set of big news coming through on NSD.

This is the 16th commitment for the Aggies, boosting up the class even higher in the SEC recruiting rankings, and across the nation. Brown comes in as the top ranked recruit that has only signed their Letter of Intent for Texas A&M.

The talking subject here is not that the Aggies were able to flip just one commit from the usual top dog on the recruiting trail and the defending National Champions, but the effect that head coach Jimbo Fisher could have on Saban in the long-term. Saban is already getting tight competition from his former defensive coordinator, in Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart.

Fisher displays the ability to do what it takes to address positions of need for the incoming freshmen class, no matter what. He went up against the top head coach in the nation in terms of recruiting in the past decade, and snagged a valuable defensive tackle signee.

The impact that Jimbo makes on SEC recruiting

Known as the notoriously toughest conference to snag top notch prospects in, the SEC is a tough place for Jimbo to come in and immediately succeed. However, his track record of success with the Florida State Seminoles speaks for itself.

Fisher actually already knocked off the Crimson Tide for the top class in the country in the past seven years, since the star rating system was first introduced. Starting his tenure in College Station at such a weird point in time, Fisher is fighting an uphill battle in terms of landing some of the top targets for the Aggies.

Texas A&M can pull a top three class in the SEC

The Aggies have the resources and momentum before National Signing Day 2018 to pull a top three class in the SEC, easily, for their 2019 class. If Texas A&M shows out strong in 2018, in Fisher’s first year at the helm, their recruiting potential is endless.

That commitment from Brown shot the Aggies into the top 20 classes in the nation, according to 247Sports. So, the answer is yes, Jimbo does have the ability to make Saban not just sweat the recruiting process more now, but also upend him in the rankings here pretty soon.

Next: Top 5 remaining NSD targets for Texas A&M Football

Texas A&M has something special in store for their path to contention in the SEC West in the upcoming seasons. The polarizing hire of Fisher is just one of multiple factors that will power the Aggies to becoming a top contender in the conference.