Texas A&M locks in a huge recruiting class with D.J. Hogg and Tyler Davis

Texas A&M reached the NCAA Tournament six consecutive years before Mark Turgeon made a sudden move to Maryland in 2011. His successor, Billy Kennedy, hasn’t even been able to send the Aggies to the NIT during his three seasons in College Station, but after a strong month on the recruiting trail it seems like the program’s track back to playing meaningful games in March is now only a matter of time.

Kennedy received a verbal commitment from forward D.J. Hogg on Sunday, his second commit in the class of 2015. Hogg is the fourth member of the Texas Titans grassroots team Kennedy has locked up over the last two years, the second player currently from Plano West High School to choose the Aggies, and, most importantly, the second top-35 recruit for Texas A&M set to enter the program a year from now.

In no small way, Kennedy’s ability to secure what sure seems like a package deal from standout big man Tyler Davis and Hogg, teammates in high school and on the AAU circuit, has Texas A&M set up for its most successful stint since Billy Gillispie and Turgeon made the Aggies tournament regulars. Throw in incoming freshman point guard Alex Robinson, another local top-100 recruit, and the makings of the Aggies’ next contender start to become evident.

Texas has quietly been producing a lot of great basketball players in recent years, from Marcus Smart and Julius Randle to Chris Bosh and LaMarcus Aldridge. There’s no need for the college coaches there to spend much time looking for players outside the state -- recruit your own backyard and there should be enough talent to go around.

In honing in on one AAU team and one high school club, Kennedy is showing he realizes the type of local connections it takes to build a winner. Hogg and Davis are good enough to play, if not start, as freshmen, and their arrival on campus will give the Aggies a dimension they don’t currently have.

Hogg, rated the No. 32 player in the class by Rivals, is a 6’7 forward who can shoot the lights out. He averaged 20.2 points per game for Plano West last season and hit 76 three-pointers. Hogg’s size and shooting ability give Texas A&M the option of going small by putting him at the four, or throwing a super-sized lineup on the court by putting him at small forward.

Kennedy will likely be able to get away with Hogg at power forward because he also has Davis coming in. Davis is ranked the No. 27 prospect according to Rivals, and he’s developed into a consensus top-10 center in the class of 2015. At 6’10, 270 pounds, he’s not going to get pushed around by anyone, even in the SEC. He isn’t a top-notch athlete, but his size alone gives him the ability to control the glass and lock up the paint.

Aggies fans can make the three-hour drive to watch Hogg and Davis go through their senior season at Plano West if they want, an option they didn’t have last season. Davis was suspended for his junior year when it was ruled his family’s move from Frisco Liberty High School to Plano West was made for basketball reasons, not academic ones. It didn’t matter that his mother said she moved into a home in Plano West’s zone to be closer to work. Marcus Eckert, the coach at Frisco Liberty, indicated that he felt Davis transferred strictly for basketball reasons, and because of that Davis couldn’t play.

It was a long and frustrating ordeal for one of the best players in the country, but it’s behind him now. What’s next for Texas A&M is a future looking more and more like it’s ready for a program rebirth. It’s not every day you can find size and shooting from the same high school, but Kennedy’s ability to make two quality players Aggies has Texas A&M set up for a revival.