Tag: Bradyn Joiner

Cadillac Williams resigns from position as Auburn’s associate head coach

The former Auburn running back resigns after spending five seasons as an assistant coach under three different head coaches.

The latest move regarding Auburn’s coaching staff involves a program legend.

[autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag], who played for Auburn from 2001-04 and served as an assistant coach for his alma mater over the last five seasons, resigned from his position as associate head coach and running backs coach late Thursday evening.

Williams shared his reasoning for the move in a press release. He says that he is looking to pursue other opportunities.

“After taking time to pray and reflect, I have made the decision to resign from my position with Auburn football to pursue other opportunities. I love Auburn, the players and AU family with all my heart, but this decision is what is best for me, my wife and sons. I am extremely grateful for the coaching opportunity given to me first by Coach Malzahn and most recently by Coach Freeze. These past five years on the Plains have been nothing short of incredible. Auburn is and always will be a special part of my life.”

War Eagle!

Williams first joined Auburn’s football staff during the 2019 season under head coach [autotag]Gus Malzahn[/autotag], and would go on to serve on the staffs of [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] and [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag]. Following the firing of Harsin during the 2022 season, Williams was named interim head coach. During his time as interim, Williams led the Tigers to a 2-2 record which included an emotional home win over Texas A&M.

Williams is also known as an effective recruiter, as he played a role in landing running backs [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag], [autotag]Damari Alston[/autotag], and [autotag]Jeremiah Cobb[/autotag]. He was also the primary recruiter for offensive linemen [autotag]Clay Wedin[/autotag] and [autotag]Bradyn Joiner[/autotag].

Williams’ resignation marks the fourth assistant coach to leave the staff since the offseason began. Defensive coordinator [autotag]Ron Roberts[/autotag] is now a member of the staff at Florida while defensive backs coach [autotag]Wesley McGriff[/autotag] has joined Mike Elko’s staff at Texas A&M. Auburn has also parted ways with offensive coordinator [autotag]Philip Montgomery[/autotag].

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on  X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Taylor on Twitter @TaylorJones__

Experienced OL from Eastern Michigan earns offer from Auburn

Hugh Freeze and staff are continuing to work towards building the best OL in the SEC by offering talented options from the transfer portal.

[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and staff are continuing to address its need for experienced offensive linemen by extending an offer to a three-year starter.

[autotag]Marcellus Johnson[/autotag], who has spent the last three seasons as Eastern Michigan’s starting left tackle, received an offer from Auburn over the weekend.

Signing day was kind to Auburn in the form of offensive linemen, as the Tigers were able to secure [autotag]Bradyn Joiner[/autotag], [autotag]Clay Wedin[/autotag], [autotag]Connor Lew[/autotag], [autotag]Tyler Johnson[/autotag], and [autotag]Izavion Miller[/autotag] during the early signing period as well as [autotag]Dillon Wade[/autotag] from the transfer portal. However, improving the offensive line is a dire need, and Freeze wishes to lay the foundation for his younger linemen by adding experience, which can be found in Johnson.

Johnson was the fourth-highest-graded blocker for Eastern Michigan last season with a grade of 71.6 according to Pro Football Focus, with his strong suit being pass blocking, which goes together with Freeze’s offensive philosophy.

Johnson tells Jeremy Werner of Illini Inquirer, a division of 247Sports, that he will take visits to programs that he is interested in between the dates of Jan. 4 and Jan. 8, although he has not stated publically his intent to visit Auburn during those dates.

“I plan on taking all of my visits from the 4th through the 8th, and I will make my decision while I am either on a visit or soon after,” Johnson said. “I will try to hit East Coast to West Coast first. But the biggest deciding factor for me is the O-line coach. I want to make sure I have a great connection with him.”

Since entering the portal, Johnson has received 18 offers, which include Colorado, Wisconsin, Kentucky, South Carolina, and Troy in addition to Auburn.

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Jeremiah Cobb did not sign with Auburn on Wednesday. Why is that?

Auburn inked 18 players on the first day of the early signing period, but one important name was missing.

When [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] took over the head coaching job at Auburn on Nov. 28, he entered a tough situation on the recruiting front.

After spending time near the bottom of the SEC rankings, the Tigers ended the day with a top-20 class. The bump was a testament to the hard work of Hugh Freeze and staff to make up for what Freeze felt was unacceptable.

“It’s been a wild two weeks for us,” Hugh Freeze said Wednesday. “We came into this considerably behind what I think Auburn should be in recruiting.”

Loyal commits such as [autotag]Bradyn Joiner[/autotag], [autotag]J.C. Hart[/autotag], and [autotag]Terrance Love[/autotag] all signed with Auburn on the first day of the early signing period, while [autotag]Keldric Faulk[/autotag], [autotag]Connor Lew[/autotag], and [autotag]Stephen Jackson[/autotag] signed with Auburn after previously committing elsewhere.

Despite the excitement surrounding Wednesday’s signees, there was one important name that was not announced as an early signee.

[autotag]Jeremiah Cobb[/autotag], a four-star running back from Montgomery, did not sign on Wednesday, making him the only 2023 pledge that did not make his commitment to Auburn official.

Should this be a concern for Auburn fans? Christian Clemente of 247Sports says that fans should not worry, as Cobb is still a strong Auburn commit.

Clemente says that Cobb has elected to wait until February to sign his letter of intent so that he can enjoy the special occasion with his teammates at Montgomery Catholic. Although he is waiting an extra six weeks to sign with the Tigers, Clemente is confident that Cobb is locked in with Auburn and does not see another program in the hunt.

Cobb is the No. 12 running back from the 2023 class, and the No. 16 overall prospect from the state of Alabama. Cobb has been committed to Auburn since July 1 and visited the campus three times during the 2022 season.

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Auburn Football reels in top 20 class during early signing period

A program scraping the bottom of the SEC barrel just one month ago now sports a top-20 class.

One of the biggest surprises of the early signing period’s first day was the Auburn Tigers.

A program scraping the bottom of the SEC barrel just one month ago now sports a top-20 class thanks to the efforts of [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag], [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag], [autotag]Zac Etheridge[/autotag], and the new-look staff that has been constructed over the last three weeks.

Auburn nailed down several of their most loyal commits on Wednesday, including OL [autotag]Bradyn Joiner[/autotag] and CB [autotag]J.C. Hart[/autotag]. The Tigers also received a couple of surprises in the form of CB [autotag]Kayin Lee[/autotag] and EDGE [autotag]Keldric Faulk[/autotag], who flipped from Ohio State and Florida State on signing day respectively.

After the dust settled, Freeze said that he felt recruiting was “considerably behind” Auburn’s standard, and called the last two weeks of recruiting “wild.”

“It’s been a remarkable job by our on-the-field coaches who were actively out getting after it, but also the people who serve this program here in the building and made the families that came on the visits feel like there’s something special occurring here.I thought we really did well with the DB room and made some dents in our needs in the offensive line room. Edge guys I thought we did really well with on defense; we still have some work to do on the interior and on O-line. We’re really not through anywhere. We still have some big targets out there that hopefully we can close on now or in January.”

Out of the 18 signees that Auburn secured on Wednesday, seven of those are rated as four stars according to 247Sports, ranking them 20th overall according to the outlet’s recruiting rankings. Auburn’s signing class impressed the experts at On3, as they have the Tigers ranked No. 16 overall.

The early signing period continues through Friday, with national signing day taking place on Feb. 1, 2023.

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Auburn commits announce early signing period plans

Five Auburn commits have announced their plans for the early signing period.

The early signing period is among the most important dates in college football, and it is just days away. It opens Wednesday, Dec. 21 and numerous college football recruits will sign with their future team. Several Auburn commits plan to do just that.

Auburn’s 2023 recruiting class has 13 commits and ranks 42nd in the country according to the 247Sports team rankings. Since arriving, [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] has put an emphasis on recruiting the trenches and it has paid off, the Tigers have four commits along the offensive line and three along the defensive line.

As of today, five of Auburn’s commits have announced their plans for the early signing period. Here is a look at when they will sign with the Tigers on Wednesday.

Auburn commit to play for state championship on Wednesday night

Four-star OL Bradyn Joiner will get a head start by playing his final high school game at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

One member of Auburn’s 2023 recruiting class will play his final high school game at his college home, Jordan-Hare Stadium, on Wednesday night.

Four-star OL [autotag]Bradyn Joiner[/autotag] and the Auburn High School Tigers will face perennial power, Thompson, on Wednesday night for the Alabama High School Athletic Association Class 7A finals.

The “baby Tigers” as they were once known avenged an earlier loss to Central Phenix City last Friday by defeating the Red Devils, 14-13 at Garrett Harrison Stadium in Phenix City. With the win, Auburn High was able to knock former Auburn commit, [autotag]Karmello English[/autotag], and former Auburn quarterback [autotag]Patrick Nix[/autotag], who is the head coach of Central Phenix City’s program, out of the playoffs.

Joiner has been a commit since Jan. 1 of this year, becoming one of the first players to pledge their commitment to Auburn. Since committing to Auburn, Joiner has been a frequent visitor to the Plains. He has made six visits to campus this calendar year according to 247Sports, and was on site for Auburn’s games against Penn State, Missouri, and LSU at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Joiner is the No. 25 recruit in the state of Alabama for the 2023 cycle according to 247Sports and is the No. 54 interior offensive lineman in the country.

Click here to watch Joiner and the Tigers play Thompson for the Class 7A state championship on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. CT. (Subscription required)

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Bradyn Joiner: ‘Everybody that has committed, they love Auburn’

Auburn’s first commit of the 2023 class discusses the ongoing hot seat talk regarding head coach Bryan Harsin.

Every Auburn fan is concerned with the state of the program, and what its’ future holds under head coach [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag].

There is another class of people who are also concerned with the future of the program, those that have committed to play for the Tigers in the future.

As one of those commits, four-star offensive lineman [autotag]Bradyn Joiner[/autotag] hears more chatter regarding Harsin’s job status than anyone. He plays high school football for Auburn High School and plays alongside Harsin’s son, Davis, who serves as the Tigers’ quarterback in several packages as an 11th grader.

In a recent interview with Keith Niebuhr of Auburn Live, Joiner says that the criticism that Auburn’s head coach is experiencing is a tad extreme.

“I just feel like a lot of fans and people that are not even Auburn fans are pressing on Harsin more than he should be pressed,” Joiner tells Auburn Live. “This is his second season. The first year, everybody gave him crap. He’s trying too hard to please everybody.”

While Joiner wishes that the coach that he has committed to play for would not receive as much backlash, he understands that college football is a business and that he needs to consider his personal future.

“You’ve got to be selfish sometimes in the recruiting process,” Joiner says. “(The hot seat talk) kind of bothers me, but at the same time, it’s a business. People say stuff but you’ve got to keep moving forward.”

At the end of the day, Joiner says that he has committed to Auburn, and not to any one coach. The good news for Auburn fans is that the majority of the other ten commits in the class seem to echo Joiner’s sentiment.

“Everybody that has committed, they love Auburn,” Joiner said. “That’s the first thing they say, they love the atmosphere. They don’t really say much about the coaches. We don’t ever really talk about it.”

Auburn Football currently ranks No. 48 in 247Sports’ recruiting rankings for the 2023 recruiting cycle. The Tigers have 11 total commits, with eight currently rated as four stars.

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Three Auburn commits to compete in annual all-star game

Three top Auburn commits for the 2023 cycle will get the chance to showcase their skills while representing their home state.

The Alabama High School Athletic Association released the roster and coaches for the 36th annual Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic, and Auburn will have three representatives on team Alabama.

Four-star running back [autotag]Jeremiah Cobb[/autotag], four-star offensive lineman [autotag]Bradyn Joiner[/autotag], and three-star cornerback [autotag]JC Hart[/autotag] are among 40 high school seniors that were chosen to represent the state of Alabama in the annual game that will take place on Saturday, Dec. 10 at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile.

Cobb is having a wonderful season to this point, playing a major role in Montgomery Catholic’s 9-0 record. He has rushed for 1,180 yards and 19 touchdowns while reeling in nine catches for 174 yards and four additional scores. Montgomery Catholic has outscored their opponents, 523-57 through nine games, and will compete for a region title this Friday at Andalusia.

Joiner will be joined by his high school head coach, Keith Etheridge in Mobile, as he was named to the coaching staff for Team Alabama. Joiner is a part of an Auburn High School team that is currently 7-1 on the season after dropping their first game of the season last week to Central-Phenix City, which is coached by former Auburn quarterback [autotag]Patrick Nix[/autotag].

Auburn’s third representative, JC Hart, is a vital part of Lochapoka High School’s best start since 2013. The Indians are 7-1 and are expected to be playoff bound for the third season in a row.

Auburn is currently ranked No. 48 in the 247Sports overall rankings for the 2023 cycle with 11 current commitments. Out of those commitments, eight of them are rated as four-star prospects.

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Class of 2023 pledge JC Hart enjoys first Auburn game as a commit

Hart, a native of nearby Loachapoka, grew up attending Auburn home games. Saturday, he took in his first game as a commit.

Auburn’s recruiting efforts as far as quantity is slowly coming together. But, two things that head coach [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] and other coaches have done well this cycle: bring in quality recruits and make sure that local recruits stay local.

One of those local commits, three-star cornerback [autotag]JC Hart[/autotag], was in attendance for Auburn’s season-opening win over Mercer on Saturday. While there, he did a short interview with Auburn Undercover’s Christian Clemente.

Hart, a product of nearby Loachapoka High School, told Clemente that he has attended many Auburn home games growing up, and used to beg his mother to take him joyriding to campus just to see Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Hart took in his first Auburn game as a commit on Saturday and says that it was an enjoyable experience.

“It’s been great,” Hart said. “I love everything about it.”

Hart was joined by fellow 2023 commits [autotag]Daquayvious Sorey[/autotag], [autotag]Karmello English[/autotag], and [autotag]Bradyn Joiner[/autotag] in Jordan-Hare Saturday. Those four took advantage of the third-quarter lightning delay by using that time to talk more to Auburn’s coaches. By spending time with current players, coaches, as well as fellow recruits, Hart says that he already feels a part of the team.

Hart has played a key role in Lochapoka’s early-season success. The Indians are currently 3-0 and have allowed just 12 points over that span. In last Friday’s win over Verbena High School, Hart recorded a 92-yard pick-six.

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Auburn extends offer to top ranked JUCO offensive tackle

Auburn extended an offer to four-star offensive tackle Isaiah Jatta, who played with Keionte Scott last season.

Auburn signed an elite junior college class last season. The Tigers landed the No. 1 overall player (Jeffrey M’ba), the No. 1 cornerback (Keionte Scott), and the No. 1 safety (Marquise Gilbert).

The Tigers are once again going after the best talent in the junior college ranks, on Friday they extended an offer to four-star offensive tackle [autotag]Isaiah Jatta[/autotag].

The San Diego, California native is ranked as the No. 1 offensive tackle in junior college in the 247Sports composite ranking. He is also the No. 3 overall player.

While the 6-foot-6, 310-pound Jatta is committed to SEC rival South Carolina, he is a former teammate of Scott’s, both attended Snow College last season.

[autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] has acknowledged that the coaching staff is not afraid to keep recruiting players who are committed elsewhere. They already successfully flipped four-star edge [autotag]Ashley Williams[/autotag] from Nebraska, and doing so with Jetta would be massive for the class.

Another thing the Tigers may have going for them is that Jatta could come in and immediately compete for a starting spot. Four of the Tiger’s offensive tackles are seniors and could potentially move on after the 2022 season.

Auburn is looking to sign multiple offensive tackles in the 2023 signing class and is expected to pursue high school recruits, JUCO players, and transfers. The Tigers currently have a commitment from four-star interior offensive lineman [autotag]Bradyn Joiner[/autotag] but are still looking for their first tackle.

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