Ar'Maj Reed-Adams shares something in common with his mother, Crystal Reed: They both sought a chance to play sports at Texas A&M out of high school. Crystal was a basketball player out of Dallas Lincoln and had a scholarship offer with the Aggies. She passed on the opportunity and stayed home though, when her mother had a heart attack.
Ar'Maj never came to a game at Kyle Field, but he grew up watching the Aggies and has a photo of his mother and aunts in A&M gear. In high school, he came down to an A&M junior day as a three star prospect from powerhouse DeSoto. The Aggies didn't take him in the class of 2020, though.
"I'm still upset Jimbo didn't offer me," Reed-Adams joked on Monday. Instead, Reed-Adams went north on Interstate 35 to Kansas. He appeared in 31 games and made 15 starts for the Jayhawks in four seasons.
In 2023, he started in 11 games. Kansas went from 0-9 his freshman year to a 9-win team his senior season. After the bowl game, Reed-Adams entered the transfer portal.
When an opportunity to play at A&M came, the Dallas native jumped on the chance to come home. All roads look different, but for A&M's 20-plus transfers like Reed-Adams and tight end Tre Watson, the journey led them to Aggieland. With less than three weeks before the 2024 season, both Reed-Adams and Watson are eyeing to nail down starting roles at their respective positions.
"When you look at Texas A&M, you look at the facilities, obviously," Watson said. "You look at the conference that this beautiful school plays in. I honestly just saw a great opportunity for myself in getting to the next level and reach all my goals.
" Watson was a three-star prospect in the Class of 2021 out of Rio Rancho, N.M., a suburb of Albuquerque, and opted to play at Fresno State.
Last season, he started in all 13 games and had four touchdown catches. His freshman year, he was roommates with a quarterback named Jaylen Henderson. Watson had a chance to reunite with Henderson, who transferred to A&M last year, this offseason when the Aggies offered him out of the transfer portal.
"I just think that everything fell in the right place to where now I'm back with one of my best friends," Watson said. "It's been a lot of fun." Transferring to A&M was a roller coaster for Watson.
He first committed to Washington and even traveled with the Huskies to the national championship game in Houston as an enrolled student. But when Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer left for Alabama, Watson reopened his commitment and circled back to see if the Aggies would still take him. "Thankfully, Ms.
Molly and Mr. Mike, our academic advisors, they were able to get everything set out and get everything fixed for me," Watson said. "So, I got in just smooth.
" Offensive line and tight end are two positions the Aggies are looking to square away in fall camp, and Reed-Adams and Watson are both in the mix. Body transformation was a key part of Reed-Adams' story at Kansas. He arrived at campus weighing over 400 pounds.
He said he started to eat in moderation and make better decisions to bring his weight down, along with doing multiple workouts per day. He was down as low as 295 pounds but is currently up to 330. Last season at Kansas, Reed-Adams became a starter at guard by the second game of the season, but slid over to right tackle in November and for the Jayhawks' bowl game, due to an injury.
Reed-Adams said he feels comfortable playing anywhere on the offensive line, including tackle and guard. "I joke around with the guys," Reed-Adams said. "I always tell them I'm not an offensive lineman.
I'm an O-W, meaning offensive weapon. I'll line up out there at X if you need me to." Watson said the Aggies have a young tight end room that he expects will make a number of plays this season.
He's battling the likes of Theo Ohrstrom and Donovan Green for a starting role. "Just knowing that I can come in and help those guys develop and I could play a leadership role, I thought that'd be good for me in growing as a person and growing on the field," Watson said. "So, I wanted to take that challenge on.
" A&M has its eyes on a strong start to the Mike Elko era this fall. Watson said he's told a number of his A&M teammates about how even though he didn't get to play in last season's national championship game, it didn't feel good being on the losing side. "I would love to be back there in that game, playing in it this time," Watson said, "And with our school colors coming down [as confetti this time].
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