Category: Auburn News

2024 RB Caden Durham picks up Auburn offer

Durham is the No. 10 RB of the 2024 class according to 247Sports.

[autotag]Hugh Freeze [/autotag] has not been messing around on the recruiting trail since taking over the Auburn Football program.

Auburn has offered 2024 running back [autotag]Caden Durham[/autotag], a four-star recruit from Duncanville, Texas.

According to 247Sports, Durham is the No. 98 ranked player nationally, the No. 10 ranked running back and the No. 19 ranked player in the state of Texas. He has a 0.9540 composite rating.

[autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag] has earned a reputation as one of the best running backs coaches in all of college football and is an effective recruiter at the position.

Other notable offers held by Durham include Alabama, LSU, Oklahoma, and Texas A&M.

As a junior in 2022, Durham rushed for 1,960 yards and 36 touchdowns off of 210 carries while also catching nine passes for 93 yards and a touchdown.

Durham has not set a commitment date yet.

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D.J. James ranked among highest returning cornerbacks by PFF grade

James is Auburn’s highest-graded returning defensive player from last season.

In a secondary that struggled last season, [autotag]D.J. James[/autotag] was a bright spot for the Auburn Tigers.

James, a 6-foot-1, 174-pounder from Mobile, AL recorded 25 tackles, an interception and eight passes defended.

In a 247Sports article written by Brad Crawford, the top returning cornerbacks by PFF grade are ranked and James checks in at No. 10.

Pro Football Focus (PFF) grades rank players by how they perform on each individual play.

247’s take on James: Last season, James led the SEC in both coverage grade and reception rate — and ranked top 10 nationally in both categories among cornerbacks. He’s a physical corner with tremendous closing speed. The former Oregon transfer made an instant splash with the Tigers and drew comparisons to former All-American ballhawk Roger McCreary on The Plains. By the end of the 2022 season, opposing teams were aware of James’ talent level and often threw to the other side of the field given his lockdown abilities.

James is expected to be a difference-maker in a revamped secondary this season. He will play a vital role in helping the Tigers regain a reputation as one of the best defensive teams in college football.

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Auburn less than 300 tickets away from season ticket sell-out

Tigers fans are excited for a new era of Auburn football.

The energy around the Auburn Football program has drastically shifted since [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] took over in December of last year.

After two lackluster seasons, morale was down and Auburn Football, as many people knew, was dead. Six months and significantly better recruiting efforts later, the hype is back and perhaps more significant than ever.

Auburn announced Thursday that it had sold the most season tickets in program history and is less than 300 tickets away from a complete sell-out.

“My favorite thing in the World is about to be back,” said Jack Blanton, a junior at Auburn University and a lifelong fan of the Tigers. “It should be new, exciting, and fresh.”

Excitement is an understatement when describing how Auburn fans feel about the new era of the team.

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SEC opponents confirmed for Women’s Hoops

Head coach Johnnie Harris is gearing up for her third season on the Plains.

[autotag]Johnnie Harris[/autotag] is gearing up for her third season on the Plains.

After Auburn fell 56-55 at the hands of the Clemson Tigers in the second round of the WNIT, the Tigers are ready to get back in the swing of things.

Auburn will face the Alabama Crimson Tide, LSU Tigers and South Carolina Gamecocks twice in the regular season. This is a tough draw as LSU is the defending National Champion and South Carolina is a perennial powerhouse.

The Tigers will face the Georgia Bulldogs, Kentucky Wildcats, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Tennessee Volunteers and the Texas A&M Aggies just one time in the regular season. Each matchup will take place at home in Neville Arena.

The teams Auburn will only face on the road in the regular season are the Arkansas Razorbacks, Florida Gators, Ole Miss Rebels, Missouri Tigers and Vanderbilt Commodores.

Additionally, Auburn will get a rematch with Clemson in the first year of the SEC/ACC Challenge. The contest will take place in Neville Arena on November 30th at 8 p.m. CT.

The dates and times for these games as well as the remaining non-conference opponents will be announced later.

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Auburn pitching coach Daron Schoenrock has reportedly stepped down

He spent just one season on the Plains.

For the second straight season Auburn head coach [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag] is looking for a new pitching coach.

[autotag]Daron Schoenrock[/autotag], who spent just one season on the Plains, has stepped down according to a report by Kendall Rogers of D1Baseball. Rogers added that Schoenrock “wants to be closer to family.”

Auburn’s pitching staff got off to a rough start under Schoenrock but improved throughout the season and was a major reason for their second-half turnaround. The Tigers were also without expected weekend starter [autotag]Joseph Gonzalez[/autotag], who only made one start due to injury.

The pitching staff finished the season with a combiner ERA of 5.76 and 502 strikeouts to 287 walks.

Thompson will now be looking for a pitching coach to pair with assistants Gabe Gross and Karl Nonemaker. Due to NCAA changes, the position will now be full-time and not a volunteer role.

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Auburn’s 2024 recruiting class among the highest average rating per commit

Sometimes its about quality over quantity.

Recruiting is the lifeline of any collegiate athletic program. Auburn football recruiting was in a bad spot when [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] took over the program in December of last year.

The program’s new frontman, however, has not sat on his hands and has been determined to turn things around. The Tigers are starting to see the fruits of Freeze’s labor as Auburn currently has the seventh-highest average rating per recruit according to On3 with an average rating of 89.99 across its eight commits, six of whom are four-star prospects.

Auburn’s 2024 class is currently ranked 17th in the country and eighth in the SEC by On3 with a score of 88.890. The class is led by [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag] and [autotag]Walker White[/autotag].

Phillips is a linebacker from Tuskegee, Alabama. He is a four-star recruit with a 92.57 rating and is the No. 133 player nationally, the No. 12 linebacker and the No. 9 player in the state of Alabama.

White, a quarterback from Little Rock, Arkansas, is a four-star recruit with a 92.55 rating. He is the No. 135 player nationally, the No. 11 quarterback and the No. 2 player in the state of Arkansas.

As Freeze’s efforts are far from over, Auburn’s 2024 class is bound to keep rising in the rankings.

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Where does Auburn stand in 247Sports’ 2023 SEC predictions?

This would be a slight step forward for the Tigers.

As football season is growing closer and closer, everyone is starting to make predictions of what things will look like this season.

247Sports is no different, as an article written by Brad Crawford lists the outlet’s predictions for how the SEC will shake out this season.

Some of the predictions not directly related to Auburn include the conference having six teams present in the preseason AP Top 25 poll and Alabama’s home winning streak, the longest in the SEC, coming to an end. Also, Georgia once again defeating Alabama in the SEC Championship Game, and an SEC team winning the National Championship for the fourth season in a row.

As far as standings predictions:

East:

  1. Georgia (12-0, 8-0)
  2. Tennessee (9-3, 5-3)
  3. South Carolina (7-5, 4-4)
  4. Missouri (6-6, 3-5)
  5. Kentucky (6-6, 2-6)
  6. Florida (5-7, 3-5)
  7. Vanderbilt (5-7, 1-7)

West:

  1. Alabama (10-2, 7-1)
  2. LSU (10-2, 6-2)
  3. Arkansas (8-4, 4-4)
  4. Texas A&M (8-4, 4-4)
  5. Ole Miss (8-4, 4-4)
  6. Auburn (7-5, 3-5)
  7. Mississippi State (6-6, 2-6)

Auburn is predicted to beat UMass, Cal, Samford, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and New Mexico State.

The Tigers are predicted to fall to Texas A&M, Georgia, LSU, Arkansas and Alabama.

247’s take on the Tigers: Considering the Vegas number is 6.5, Auburn fans will be excited if the Tigers hit seven wins this fall. On the contrary, a .500 finish is obviously not what Hugh Freeze has in mind for his first season on the Plains. This roster has vastly improved through the portal, but simply isn’t strong enough yet to fight for a spot near the top of the division standings. It will come, though.

It will be a transitional year for the program, but Auburn is determined to take back its place as one of the top programs in college football and [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] will work tirelessly to help the Tigers get to that point.

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Auburn listed among most disappointing programs by Mike Farrell

Auburn football looks to get back to normal after a few disheartening seasons.

Football has not been the most significant source of happiness for Auburn fans over the last few years.

The resurgence of the baseball, gymnastics, and men’s basketball programs has caused football to be viewed as relatively insignificant compared to past years.

Mike Farrell listed his most disappointing Power Five programs and the Tigers came in fourth.

Farrell’s take on Auburn: “Are they a power program? They are to me with a natty in the last 15 years and another national title game appearance as well. But the Gus Malzahn days at the end were bad, and the Bryan Harsin hire was dumb. Hugh Freeze is a good hire, but it will take time and patience for them to get back to respectable.”

Apart from Auburn, the list from top-to-bottom included the Texas Longhorns, the Miami Hurricanes, and the Florida Gators ahead of the Tigers, with the Virginia Tech Hokies following Auburn.

Auburn will be on a mission to get back to prominence and [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] will lead the charge.

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SEC reveals Auburn basketball’s 2023-24 conference opponents

The Tigers will play home-and-home series against Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt this season.

Auburn basketball’s 2023-24 schedule is starting to come into focus.

The SEC announced which conference opponents Auburn will play Monday morning and the Tigers will play five home-and-home series against Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt. They will also host Kentucky, LSU, South Carolina and Texas A&M in Neville Arena.

In addition to Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt, they will face Arkansas, Florida, Missouri and Tennessee on the road.

The Tigers went 21-13 overall and 10-8 in conference play last season. In addition to bringing back [autotag]Johni Broome[/autotag] and J[autotag]aylin Williams[/autotag], [autotag]Bruce Pearl[/autotag] has made several key additions over the offseason. They landed five-star point guard Aden Holloway and transfers Chad Baker-Mazara, Denver Jones (FIU) and Chaney Johnson (UAH).

They are set to start the season on Nov. 7 against the Baylor Bears. The game will be played in Sioux Falls, North Dakota.

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Tigers pick up two more gymnasts for 2024 season through the transfer portal

Jeff Graba adds two experienced members to a stacked 2024 roster.

The Auburn Gymnastics roster just got deeper as head coach [autotag]Jeff Graba[/autotag] and company has added two transfers to an already deep roster.

The new additions are [autotag]Madelynn Crow[/autotag] and [autotag]Lila Smith[/autotag].

Crow is a former Georgia Bulldog coming to Auburn as a sophomore. She is a native of Williamson, Georgia with notable accomplishments such as qualifying for the USAG Level 10 Development Program National Championships and being the first female at her high school to bring home a state title in Gymnastics.

Graba’s take on Crow: “We are so excited to have Madelynn join the Auburn gymnastics family. She brings a wealth of experience with her and has been successful at nearly all the levels of our sport. Having experience in the SEC is also going to be very beneficial as we are looking to build our team depth on all events. Even though Madelynn is best known for her beam proficiency, she should add needed depth on all the events.

Smith is a junior and a former Kentucky Wildcat. She is from Atlanta, Georgia, and competed with the same gym as Crow, Georgia Elite. She was also a USAG Level 10 Development Program National Championship qualifier and won state titles on beam and in the all-around.

Graba’s take on Smith: “We are eager to have Lila join our program as she is coming off a very successful run with another successful program. Her experience in the SEC will help as our young team will be looking to their teammates with experience as we enter this next season. Lila should give us needed depth on all the events early on.”

These two transfers will be a great addition to the 2024 roster. Crow and Smith will join an experienced roster that will feature [autotag]Aria Brusch[/autotag], [autotag]Cassie Stevens[/autotag], [autotag]Sophia Groth[/autotag], and [autotag]Olivia Hollingsworth[/autotag].

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