Fact or Fiction: Texas A&M is the team to beat for five-star Jonah Williams
Rivals national recruiting director along with Rivals national recruiting analyst Marshall Levenson, Jason Higdon of 1stand10Florida.com and Jefferson Powell of DeathValleyInsider.com tackle three topics and determine whether they believe each statement is FACT or FICTION.
MORE FACT OR FICTION: Tramell Jones is worthy of a rankings bump
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1. Texas A&M is emerging as the team to beat for five-star Jonah Williams.
Gorney’s take: FACT. For months, it looked like Jonah Williams, who plays safety but will probably move to linebacker in college, was a lock to Oklahoma. There were rumors about an imminent commitment numerous times but it never came. The Sooners are still very much in the running along with Ohio State, Texas and others but it now feels like Texas A&M has taken the lead in his recruitment. From the very beginning, the five-star has talked about having his family closer to home to watch him play and come to visit and Texas A&M is the closest. Now that coach Mike Elko and his staff appeal to him after the disappointing Jimbo Fisher years, it feels like the Aggies have the momentum.
Levenson’s take: FACT. When Williams' recruitment started to take over a year ago, Texas A&M was the program talked about as the potential top option given the proximity of just under 2.5 hours away and his heavy Houston-area ties. After the Aggies subpar season and Jimbo Fisher's firing, other programs were able to make some noise with him as the future was uncertain in College Station. But over the past several months, Mike Elko has established a culture and put pieces in place that has Texas A&M's recruiting buzzing and several blue-chip prospects already in the fold. The Aggies will have a defense-first mindset and will likely look to feature a defense that fits the skill set of what Williams does. We also know Texas A&M can compete with the best in the NIL department, so the Aggies will be able to put their best foot forward to close with the five-star defender.
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2. Florida is making a serious run at Tramell Jones. Florida State should be concerned.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. Concerned is too strong of a word here. Watchful? Sure. But Tramell Jones has been committed to Florida State for more than a year, he knows the exact situation he’s entering in Tallahassee and the same cannot be said at Florida. Will coach Billy Napier be there with another disappointing season? Will DJ Lagway be the man for the coming years - and how does that affect Jones’ role? The Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin standout is definitely interested in Florida and has shown the Gators a lot of love especially recently but I don’t think the Seminoles should be concerned - yet.
Higdon’s take: FACT. Florida is making a determined push to secure Tramell Jones. The competition is heating up, and Florida State should be on high alert. The Florida Gators are looking for a signal-caller in the class of 2025 and have zeroed in on three. Right now, it's a three-man race between Jones, Antwann Hill and Keelon Russell.
Jones has been committed to Florida State for over a year but Jones still needs to look around and visit Florida. His close relationship with Vernell Brown III will be a big-time factor moving forward. This is not a layup by any means, and the Gators will need to prove it on the field and win some games, but if you are a fan of the Garnet & Gold, you should be concerned about the status of Jones.
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3. Five-star DL Jahkeem Stewart is from Louisiana and has LSU among his top schools. The Tigers should be confident in landing his commitment eventually.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. From 2013 to present day, the only No. 1 prospect in the state of Louisiana not to pick LSU was Arch Manning so history is definitely on the side of the Tigers when it comes down to locking up the top-ranked player. But Jahkeem Stewart seems more in the vein of Manning than some others who had considerable ties to LSU and it looked almost ordained that they would end up in Baton Rouge. The No. 1 player in 2026 from New Orleans (La.) St. Augustine could certainly sign with LSU but USC, Oregon, Ohio State and others are very seriously involved in his recruitment.
Powell’s take: FICTION. LSU should certainly be considered one of the favorites and will almost certainly be involved with Stewart's recruitment all the way down to the wire, but Stewart to LSU is far from a lock. He's actively interested in other schools, has visited some of the top programs in the country and will be garnering plenty of attention from programs around the country over the next 19 months. As a clear No.1 overall prospect programs like Alabama, Auburn, Texas, Oklahoma, USC, to name a few will pull out all the stops in their efforts to land one of the most elite prospects 2026 has to offer. So they'll certainly be in it to the end, I just don't think they're at a point where they should be confident in landing his commitment. There's a long way to go and his interest in other programs is very real.