Tag: auburn football recruiting

Tigers could make push for former Alabama commit Martavious Collins

On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine currently lists Auburn as the favorite to sign Collins, a three-star TE from Georgia.

Tight end is a specialty position for [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag]. One of the first big splashes Auburn landed in the transfer portal was [autotag]Rivaldo Fairweather[/autotag] from FIU, but the Tigers could be getting even stronger at the position.

An article from On3 written by Drew Schott explains how Auburn has become a potential landing spot for [autotag]Martavious Collins[/autotag], a three-star recruit from Rome, Georgia who is ranked No. 513 overall and the No. 28 tight end in the class of 2024 according to On3 and is currently given a 63.2% chance to commit to Auburn, the highest of any program who has offered Collins.

The article included input from Cole Pinkston of Auburn Live.

“Auburn, and tight ends coach [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag], have made Martavious Collins a top priority since January. At the time, he was still committed to Alabama. Now, Collins is the blocking specialist/H-back type that Aigamaua wants in his class. Auburn hopes to take two tight ends, but getting Collins was priority No. 1.”

Collins could make a recruiting class that already shows promise look even better for the Tigers in 2024.

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Auburn makes the cut in Malik Blocton’s top 10

Auburn is the current favorite to land the class of 2024’s No. 34 ranked DL.

Auburn continues to impress one of the state’s top 2024 prospects.

After a recent visit to campus, three-star defensive lineman [autotag]Malik Blocton[/autotag] revealed that the Tigers had made his top-10 list. Along with Auburn, Blocton is considering Alabama, Texas, Arkansas, Florida, and Georgia.

The Pike Road product took a visit in March to watch one of Auburn’s spring practice exercises, where he came away impressed.

“It was fun, the energy out there was high,” Blocton said in an interview with Auburn Live’s Cole Pinkston. “It was a real fun practice.”

While on campus, he also stated that he really enjoyed being around the new staff put in place by Hugh Freeze, and even said that he could see himself playing under DL coach Jeremy Garrett.

Blocton is a three-star DL from Pike Road, Alabama. According to 247Sports, Blocton is the No. 25 recruit from the state of Alabama for the 2024 cycle, and he is the No. 34 defensive lineman in the country. Blocton has not received a crystal ball prediction from 247Sports yet but has a 52% chance to commit to Auburn according to On3’s recruiting prediction machine.

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Auburn earns spot in 2024 receiver’s top schools list

Auburn is in the mix to land a priority four-star receiver from Tampa, Florida.

Auburn will look to boost its receiver room in the 2024 recruiting cycle and is on its way to making it happen.

[autotag]T.J. Moore[/autotag], a four-star receiver from Tampa, Florida, recently dropped his top 13 choices, and Auburn is in the mix.

Auburn was one of the first schools to extend an offer to Moore by joining Central Michigan and UCF in doing so last August. Since then, Moore has earned 36 offers from Power Five programs including USC, Michigan, Oregon, and Texas.

Since the start of the Hugh Freeze era, [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag] and wide receivers coach [autotag]Marcus Davis[/autotag] have taken over as Moore’s primary recruiters. This helps, as Moore plays high school for former Auburn receiver [autotag]Jeris McIntyre[/autotag] at Tampa Catholic.

According to a scouting report by Andrew Ivens of 247Sports, Moore is a “big play wide receiver with exceptional hands” and “should be viewed as a potential WR1 at the Power Five level.” In his 11th-grade season at Tampa Catholic, he caught 42 passes for 1,021 yards and 13 TD.

Moore is a 6-3, 190-pound four-star wide receiver that ranks No. 21 in the nation at the position and is the No. 22 overall prospect from Florida for the 2024 cycle. The 2024 recruiting class for Auburn currently ranks No. 22 according to 247Sports and is headlined by four-star QB [autotag]Walker White[/autotag] and four-star RB [autotag]J’Marion Burnette[/autotag].

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Auburn football adds fourth commit of the 2024 class

Four-star RB J’Marion Burnette has joined Auburn’s star-studded 2024 commitment list.

Ever since he committed to Auburn on Feb. 3, four-star QB [autotag]Walker White[/autotag] has been recruiting the top prospects from the 2024 recruiting cycle heavily.

On Friday, one of his top targets made their pledge to Auburn.

J’Marion Burnette, a four-star running back from Andalusia, announced Friday that he will be committing to Auburn and head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] over Alabama, Georgia, and Florida State.

Burnette’s commitment will add to an already talented running back room for Auburn. [autotag]Jeremiah Cobb[/autotag] will join the roster this fall, and there is the possibility that [autotag]Damari Alston[/autotag] and [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] could still be in the rotation in 2024. According to Auburn Undercover, Auburn is also heavily pursuing Tuscaloosa County running back [autotag]Kevin Riley[/autotag] as well.

His relationship with running backs coach [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag] is what seems to have pushed Burnette in Auburn’s direction. He told Christian Clemente of AuburnUndercover during Junior Day on Jan. 28 that he has built a strong relationship with Williams, and that he “could see him coaching me in the future.”

Burnette is a four-star running back from Andalusia High School. He is the No. 10 prospect from the state of Alabama for the 2024 cycle and is the nation’s No. 10 running back. He joins a strong list of players that are committed to Auburn for the 2024 class which includes four-star QB [autotag]Walker  White[/autotag], four-star CB’s [autotag]A’Mon Lane[/autotag] and [autotag]Jayden Lewis[/autotag].

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Four-star in-state running back for 2024 projected to Tigers

On3 gives him a 91.8% chance of coming to Auburn.

Auburn could see its backfield bolstered sooner than later.

A new projection from On3 has 2024 recruit J’Marion Burnette coming to the Plains. The site currently projects him with a 91.8% chance to come to Auburn. His next-highest school is Alabama, with a small 5.1%.

Burnette recently attended Junior Day at the university, which was likely a big influence in the projection. That visit is his most recent on the recruiting trail and he currently doesn’t seem to have any more scheduled, so the lack of action on that front could be another good omen for coach Hugh Freeze and his staff.

So far, Auburn has offered 11 running backs in the 2024 class. All of them are at least four-star talents, with IMG Academy’s Jerrick Gibson standing out as the lone five-star. At the moment. Burnette is the only prospect who feels “warm” toward Auburn in the eyes of 247Sports, so On3 doesn’t appear to be the only source convinced of his intentions.

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Auburn gets first recruit of 2025 class

Defensive lineman Malik Autry is Auburn’s first 2025 prospect.

The Tigers have officially entered the 2025 recruiting class.

In-state defensive end [autotag]Malik Autry[/autotag], who hails from Opelika, Alabama, announced on his Twitter Wednesday that he is committed to the Auburn Tigers. Autry is officially the first recruit in Auburn’s 2025 class.

With Autry’s recruitment, the Tigers currently stand at No. 13 in 247Sports’ class rankings for 2025 — that doesn’t mean a whole lot, though, as very few schools even have a recruit in a class that is so far out. Autry’s commitment will be good news for Auburn, though, as the defensive line has been a huge point of emphasis for multiple recruiting classes. Auburn has offered eight defensive linemen for 2025 so far, and Autry is the first one to commit to Hugh Freeze and the program.

Autry had quite a bit of interest from some big Power 5 programs, including the likes of the Georgia Bulldogs and the Michigan Wolverines. In the end, though, he chose the Tigers, and he’ll have a few years to dream of taking the field for Auburn when he gets to campus in 2025.

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UAB head coach Trent Dilfer aims to out recruit Auburn

Dilfer stated his goal of making UAB “the next best option” for in-state recruits outside of Alabama.

Newly named UAB head football coach Trent Dilfer has an accomplished career in the sport.

He played 13 NFL seasons where he threw for 113 touchdowns, and led the Baltimore Ravens to a championship in Super Bowl XXXV. He now takes on a new role, leading a college football program.

He, like Hugh Freeze, had three weeks to maintain UAB’s 2023 class following the departure of Bryant Vincent, who served as interim head coach for the Blazers following the sudden retirement of Bill Clark in June.

The Blazers reeled in the No. 98 recruiting class of the 2023 cycle after the early signing period ended, signing five players from the state of Alabama. The Blazers’ class was the third-best from Alabama, trailing Alabama and Auburn, and beating Troy, South Alabama and Jacksonville State.

Following the end of the early signing period, Dilfer stated he wants UAB to be a strong candidate for in-state talent. He even stated his goal of out-recruiting in-state programs, such as Auburn.

“We’re looking for the best players in Alabama,” Dilfer said following the early signing period. “If they go to the University of Alabama, that’s awesome. But we’re going to be the next best option.”

If [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] were still the head coach at Auburn, I could definitely see this goal being realistic. After all, Harsin missed on the opportunity to land Quinshon Judkins, the Pike Road running back who rushed for 1,567 yards and 16 touchdowns as a freshman at Ole Miss in 2022.

Harsin also did not give four-star safety [autotag]Sylvester Smith[/autotag] the time of day. He failed to close the deal on four-star defensive lineman [autotag]Keldric Faulk[/autotag]. Luckily, [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and staff worked hard over a three-week span to keep those top prospects from Alabama within the borders.

Dilfer will work hard to make that dream a reality. But if Freeze and company continue to recruit in-state talent at a high level, it will be quite a climb. It will be a battle to keep an eye on.

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Auburn not completely out of the running for Keldric Faulk

The four-star Florida State commit visited Auburn Sunday. Could this mean good news for Hugh Freeze and staff?

Sunday was a busy, yet exciting day for [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and Auburn football.

Ahead of the early signing period that begins Wednesday, the Tigers secured two flips: Tennessee pledge four-star safety Sylvester Smith and former Arkansas commit Stephen Johnson, a three-star defensive lineman. The addition of Smith and Johnson to the class runs the flip total to five since Freeze took over in late November, and he appears to have one more flip in mind.

[autotag]Keldric Faulk[/autotag], a four-star defensive lineman from Highland Home, reportedly paid a visit to campus on Sunday afternoon according to Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports. Faulk, a Florida State commit, visited Tallahassee on Saturday, but gave Auburn one last chance to sway him to stay in the state.

Faulk chose Florida State over Auburn on July 5 and said “something dramatic” will need to happen for him to abandon his commitment to Mike Norvell’s program. However, he has developed a relationship with defensive assistant [autotag]Zac Etheridge[/autotag] and has gotten to know defensive line coach [autotag]Jeremy Garrett[/autotag] during the last several weeks.

“He’s a really great dude,” Faulk said of Garrett. “We talk on the phone for more than hour. He just wants to get to know me better in this short amount of time.”

Faulk is the No. 8 player in Alabama and the No. 8 defensive lineman nationally in the 2023 cycle. He chose Florida State over Auburn and Clemson in July.

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Four-star safety decommits from Tennessee following visit to Auburn

It appears that “flip season” on the Plains is far from over.

[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] appears dissatisfied with the number of flips he has produced since taking the head coaching job at Auburn in late November.

After Freeze successfully flipped three-star cornerback [autotag]Colton Hood[/autotag] from Michigan State and three-star offensive lineman [autotag]Tyler Johnson[/autotag] from Texas Tech, another talented prospect could be on his way to The Plains after decommitting from an SEC rival.

[autotag]Sylvester Smith[/autotag], a four-star safety from Munford who has been a Tennessee pledge since April 26, surprisingly backed off his commitment to the Volunteers late Saturday after paying a visit to Auburn.

He announced his change of heart on Instagram. In his post, he thanked Tennessee for giving him an opportunity to continue his career as a student-athlete, but that Knoxville was not the place for him.

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One could infer that his decommitment from Tennessee while on a visit to Auburn means good things for the Tigers. But, to confirm the smoke, Auburn received crystal balls on Saturday from Ryan Callahan of GoVols247, Jason Caldwell and Christian Clemente of Auburn Undercover and 247Sports Director of Football Recruiting, Steve Wiltfong.

Smith is the No. 17 safety from the class of 2023, and the No. 16 overall prospect from the state of Alabama. According to 247Sports, Smith’s visit to Auburn was his first since taking an unofficial visit on Sept. 4, 2021.

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Three-star EDGE rusher decommits from Auburn

The 2023 prospect cites recent changes in the coaching staff as the reason for re-opening his recruitment.

Auburn has suffered another de-commitment this week from the 2023 recruiting class.

[autotag]Ashley Williams[/autotag], a three-star EDGE rusher from Zachary, Louisiana, announced Thursday that he is no longer committed to Auburn, and will re-open his recruitment. He cited that recent changes within the staff led to his decision.

“I would like to thank all the coaches and staff at Auburn that recruited me and believed in my talent,” Williams said in a tweet. “However, after recent staff changes and conversations with my family, I have decided to recommit from Auburn and reevaluate other opportunities.”

Williams flipped from Nebraska to Auburn in August after a heavy pursuit by Bryan Harsin.

“Auburn is one of the only schools that’s still talking to me after my commitment,” he said. “That means a lot. Auburn is still in my heart.”

Williams has not paid a visit to a college campus since taking his official visit to Auburn in September. This calendar year, Williams has visited Florida State, Nebraska, and Minnesota.

Both On3 and 247Sports feel that Auburn still has a great shot at landing Williams despite his recent change of heart. On3’s recruiting prediction machine gives Auburn a 79.8% chance to sign Williams, while four writers at 247Sports have forecasted Williams to sign with Auburn. At the time of this post, Auburn has three 2023 commits that play defensive line… [autotag]Darron Reed[/autotag], [autotag]Wilky Denaud[/autotag], and [autotag]Brenton Williams[/autotag].

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