Texas May Not Play Texas A&M, but Rivalry Is Still Heated on Recruiting Trail

The rivalry between the Texas Longhorns and the Texas A&M Aggies may no longer be played out on the field, but it is as heated as ever on the recruiting front.

The head-to-head battle between Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin and Texas head coach Charlie Strong has been fairly one-sided in the Aggies' favor. However, Strong may have leveled the playing field Friday.

2015 5-star linebacker and No. 1 player in the state of Texas Malik Jefferson announced his commitment to the Longhorns early Friday morning. Texas also received the commitment of Jefferson's high school teammate, 4-star wide receiver/linebacker DeAndre McNeal.

Numerous recruiting experts, including the "Crystal Ball" pundits at 247Sports, predicted the Aggies were all but locked in for both Jefferson and McNeal. Those predictions proved to be wrong.

Texas A&M not having named a defensive coordinator could have been the straw that broke the Aggies' back with Jefferson, which allowed Strong to swoop in and take the lead.

Regardless of the reason behind Jefferson and McNeal's decisions, Strong landed two coveted recruits over in-state rival Texas A&M.

What happened Friday goes to show the battle between the Longhorns and the Aggies may never die. In fact, Strong and Sumlin's fight on the recruiting front has only just begun.

Texas has needed a big break in recruiting, and Friday's commitments give the Longhorns significant momentum on the recruiting trail.

What will be interesting to watch is if the momentum can continue through national signing day.

A variety of top recruits are still on the table, most notably wide receiver Ryan Newsome as well as defensive backs Kris Boyd and Holton Hill. Of those three main targets for Texas, Boyd has high interest in both the Longhorns and the Aggies.

Jefferson and McNeal's commitments could be exactly what Strong and Texas needed to reel in some more top talent in the 2015 class.

The events that occurred Friday will be far from the end of the battle between Texas and Texas A&M on the recruiting trail. As it stands, the Aggies' 2015 class ranks No. 4 compared to the No. 14 Longhorns.

Texas still has a lot of catching up to do, but Jefferson and McNeal's commitments are the first significant step in Strong's recruiting in the state of Texas.

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained firsthand. Recruiting information courtesy of Rivals.com. Taylor Gaspar is Bleacher Report's featured columnist covering the Texas Longhorns. Follow her on Twitter @Taylor_Gaspar.