Aggies Sign Massive DL Samu Taumanupepe

Samu Taumanupepe is listed at 380 pounds and moves into the Aggies' talent pipeline at interior defensive line.

Matt Galatzan | Jan 24, 2023

The Texas A&M Aggies added to the depth on the defensive line in their 2023 football signing class by officially signing Atascocita (Humble, TX) defensive tackle Samu Taumanupepe on Tuesday, the school announced.

Taumanupepe, a 6-3, 380-pound lineman was considering schools like Ball State, Baylor, Central Arkansas and Colorado before he committed to the Aggies in August.

He joins a defensive line group that included no seniors last season. Two freshmen made starts for the Aggies last season — Walter Nolen and LT Overton. Some of that defensive line depth has already been submitted to the transfer portal, including Marcus Burris, Dallas Walker IV, Tunmise Adeleye, and Elijah Jeudy. All are leaving with four years of eligibility remaining. The line’s most experienced player, McKinnley Jackson, has already announced he will return for 2023.

Texas A&M is hoping to rebound from an uncharacteristic 5-7 season in 2022, one that saw them enter the season with high expectations, including potential contention for a berth in the College Football Playoff. Instead, the Aggies lost in September to Appalachian State at Kyle Field, which turned out to be a sign of things to come.

The Aggies lost six straight games, all in SEC play to miss bowl eligibility for the first time in coach Jimbo Fisher’s five-year tenure in College Station. More urgently, the Aggies saw a flood of current players enter the transfer portal, as more than 20 have opted to leave the Aggie football program.

The Aggies open the 2023 season at home against New Mexico.

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Published Jan 24, 2023

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.