Tag: Ben Aigamaua

Maryland TE transfer Rico Walker to officially visit Auburn

Auburn is set to host transfer tight end Rico Walker on an official visit.

Auburn is looking to add a young tight end out of the transfer portal and a new target has emerged in [autotag] Rico Walker[/autotag]. He played in eight games as a freshman for Maryland before deciding to enter the portal and picking up an offer from Auburn.

With three more seasons of eligibility, he has the youth that [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag] is trying to add to a room full of veterans. That interest is mutual as Walker will officially visit Auburn on Jan. 3, according to On3’s Jeffrey Lee.

Auburn recruited Walker out of high school and was a finalist for the Hickory, North Carolina product before he committed to North Carolina but ultimately signed with the Terrapins. His father, Ricardo, played defensive tackle for Auburn in the 1990s.

The 6-foot-4, 248-pounder was a four-star prospect coming out of high school and was recruited as both a tight end and edge rusher before ultimately settling on the offensive side of the ball for the Terrapins. He caught four passes for 27 yards.

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Auburn offers three-star tight end committed to Arizona State

Auburn is shaking up its tight end board agead of the early signing period.

After missing out on Roger Saleapaga last week, Auburn is shaking up its tight end board.

On Monday, [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag] extended an offer to [autotag]Jayden Fortier[/autotag], who has been committed to Arizona State since June 30.

A three-star prospect, he is from Tualatin, Oregon and is one of Auburn’s last remaining tight ends in the 2024 cycle. It will be important for Auburn to get him to the Plains for a visit as they try to pry him away from Kenny Dillingham and the Sun Devils.

He is the No. 731 overall player and No. 37 tight end in the 247Sports composite ranking. He is also the No. 4 player from Oregon.

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Auburn TE target Roger Saleapaga commits to Oregon

Auburn is still looking for a tight end to add to its 2024 recruiting class.

Auburn will have to keep looking for a pass-catching tight end after [autotag]Roger Saleapaga[/autotag] committed to the Oregon Ducks Friday night.

The Orem, Utah, product has been one of [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag]’s top targets in the 2024 recruiting cycle after the Tigers’ offered him a scholarship back in May. Saleapaga made the cross-country trek to the Plains twice, once for the Samford game and again for the Iron Bowl on an official visit.

He is the No. 440 overall player and No. 25 tight end in the 247Sports composite ranking. He is also the No. 4 player from Utah

Auburn currently has one tight end committed in three-star [autotag]Martavious Collins[/autotag] but he is not expected to end up in Auburn’s class.

The Tigers have been linked to Amir Jackson (Florida), Kylan Fox (UCF) and Micahel Smith (South Carolina) in the past but they all appear to be solidly committed to their schools and tough to flip.

Auburn did get good news at the tight end position this week when [autotag]Luke Deal[/autotag] announced he would return for a sixth season next year.

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4-star TE Roger Saleapaga ‘really looking’ at Auburn with commitment date approaching

He is set to announce his commitment on Friday.

Four-star tight end [autotag]Roger Saleapaga[/autotag] made his second trip to Auburn this season to watch the Iron Bowl and it’s safe to say it made an impact on the Orem, Utah product.

Despite having included Auburn among his top schools, Saleapaga admitted to On3’s Cole Pinkston that he “wasn’t too sure about Auburn,” but that is no longer the case.

“After this week, Auburn is really high on my board,” Saleapaga said. “I’m not going to lie, going into the trip I wasn’t too sure about Auburn. Now it’s a school I’m really looking at right now. I’m grateful I had the opportunity to spend the time with the coaches and the fanbase. I’m really excited about Auburn.”

The visit comes at a great time for the Tigers, as Saleapaga is set to commit on Friday at 7 p.m. CT and will be deciding between Auburn, Alabama, Oregon, Utah and Tennessee.

He is the No. 430 overall player and No. 26 tight end in the On3 industry ranking. He is also the No. 2 player from Utah.

Auburn and [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag] are looking for a pass-catching tight end to add to the 2024 class and Saleapaga would be a great fit but it will be tough to beat out Oregon.

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2025 4-star TE Ryan Ghea commits to Auburn

Auburn has landed a recruit on three straight days.

For the third time this week, [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and Auburn football have landed a key recruit. This time it was 2025 four-star tight end [autotag]Ryan Ghea[/autotag], who announced his commitment Sunday afternoon on social media.

Originally planning to commit in February, Ghea has visited Auburn six times this season, including his most recent trip on Nov. 7 and decided to go ahead and announce his pledge earlier than planned.

He is Auburn’s third commit in the past three days. [autotag]Laquan Robinson[/autotag], the No. 1 JUCO safety, committed on Friday and four-star edge [autotag]Jamonta Waller[/autotag] flipped from Florida on Saturday after Auburn’s dominant win over Arkansas.

Ghea is from Alpharetta, Georgia and is Auburn’s sixth commit in the 2025 cycle, giving the Tigers the No. 5 class in the 247Sports team recruiting rankings.

He quickly became one of [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag]’s top targets in the cycle and the Tigers did not shy away from letting him know that.

“It means a lot to me. It means once again that I am a priority to them and they think that I can be a part of their program and make an impact,” Ghea told Auburn Undercover’s Christian Clemente. “I think he’s (Freeze) a great coach, great guy, great family man and he’s turning this program back to where it should be.”

He is the No. 308 overall player and No. 15 tight end in the 247Sports composite ranking. He is also the No. 35 player from Georgia.

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Auburn offers 3-star OT committed to Oregon State

Rustin Young has been committed to Oregon Sate since July but Auburn is hoping to change his mind.

Auburn is casting a wide net as they look to land more offensive linemen in the 2024 recruiting class. The Tigers extended an offer to [autotag]Rustin Young[/autotag], a three-star offensive tackle from Honolulu, Hawaii, on Thursday.

Young committed to Oregon State on July 15 and Auburn is the first SEC program to extend him an offer. The 6-foot-5, 275-pounder is set to compete in the 2024 Under Armour All-America Game.

He is the No. 645 overall player and No. 52 offensive tackle in the 247Sports composite ranking. He is also the No. 3 player from Hawaii.

While offensive line coach [autotag]Jake Thorton[/autotag] is his primary recruiter and extended the offer, tight end coach [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag] is also helping recruit him. Aigamaua is from American Samoa and the duo has had success in landing offensive linemen from the West Coast.

[autotag]DeAndre Carter,[/autotag] Auburn’s only offensive line commit, is from Santa Anna, California.

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Auburn offers five-star cornerback Dijon Lee Jr.

Auburn has entered the mix for one of the top players in the country.

Auburn has expanded its recruiting footprint under [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] as they are willing to go anywhere in the country to land elite players. That was once again the case Thursday as they extended a scholarship offer to five-star cornerback and California native [autotag]Dijon Lee Jr.[/autotag]

Lee is from Mission Viejo, California and Auburn is the first SEC program to offer him. He is a member of the 2025 recruiting cycle and tight end coach [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag] is his area recruiter and is the one who is leading Auburn’s pursuit.

Checking in at 6-foot-4 and 180 pounds, Lee has the ability to play corner or safety at the next level and is one of the top recruits in the country. He is the No. 23 overall player and No. 3 cornerback in the 247Sports composite ranking. He is also the No. 2 player from California.

Lee has had a good start to his junior season for Mission Viejo, making 21 tackles and breaking up three passes in their first seven games.

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Four-star tight end Ethan Barbour puts Auburn in top group

He is one of the top tight ends in the 2025 recruiting class.

[autotag]Ethan Barbour[/autotag] is one of the top tight ends in the 2025 recruiting class and he has taken the next step in his recruitment. The four-star prospect released his top eight schools on Monday and Auburn made the cut.

The Tigers are battling Alabama, Georgia, Florida State, South Carolina, Ohio State, Texas and USC for the Alpharetta, Georgia product.

Auburn and tight end coach [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag] extended him an offer to Barbour on Jan. 3 and hosted him on an unofficial visit back on April 7.

He is the No. 157 overall player and No. 4 tight end in the 247Sports Composite ranking. He is also the No. 20 player from Georgia in the 2025 recruiting cycle.

Barbour has played just two seasons of high school football but has already become a go-to option for Alpharetta High School. He caught 51 passes for 714 touchdowns and 12 touchdowns last season.

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Auburn extends offer to 2026 prospect Nalin Scott

Auburn has entered the race for tight end Nalin Scott.

[autotag]Nalin Scott[/autotag] is quickly becoming a name to know in the 2026 recruiting cycle. He already has a dozen scholarship offers and on Monday he added an Auburn one to his collection.

Tight end coach [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag] extended the offer after Scott competed in Auburn’s Elite Camp, showing that the Tigers are planning to recruit the rising sophomore at tight end.

The Acworth, Georgia native is already 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds and some schools are recruiting him as a wide receiver. There are not yet rankings for the 2026 class but with early offers from Auburn, LSU, South Carolina and Georgia he seems destined to be a top prospect.

While his recruitment is just getting started, the Tigers may have an advantage over the rest of the competition, he was teammates with freshmen offensive lineman [autotag]Connor Lew[/autotag] last season at Kennesaw Mountain.

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Elite TE Caleb Odom to take official visit to Auburn

The Tigers are fighting to get back in the race for one of the best tight ends in the country.

Auburn’s recruitment of four-star tight end [autotag]Caleb Odom[/autotag] has been an up-and-down affair.

Odom visited in March and despite speaking positively of his trip, he didn’t include the Tigers in his top 12 schools. He then trimmed that list to seven schools on May 12 and the Tigers once again missed the cut.

However, things have taken a turn for the positive after he visited in May. The Carrollton, Georgia product told Christian Clemente of Auburn Undercover that Auburn is “re-emerging now.”

Odom has now scheduled an official visit to the Plains on June 12-14, according to Clemente.

Odom is the No. 85 overall player and No. 6 tight end in the 247Sports Composite ranking. He is also the No. 13 player from Georgia.

The 6-foot-5, 215-pounder is coming off a great season for Carrollton High School, where he caught 64 passes for 1,121 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Tight end coach [autotag]Ben Aigamaua[/autotag] has already landed tight end [autotag]Martavious Collins[/autotag] but the Tigers are expected to try and land two tight ends in the 2024 recruiting cycle.

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