Tag: Dante Core

Auburn flips 2025 CB Shamar Arnoux from USC

The Carrollton, Georgia native had been committed to join the Trojans in Los Angeles since early summer.

Four-star cornerback [autotag]Shamar Arnoux[/autotag] flipped his commitment from USC to Auburn on Thursday. The Carrollton, Georgia native had been committed to joining the Trojans in Los Angeles since early summer.

A consensus top 40 cornerback in the 2025 class, the 6-2, 175-pound defensive back is the ideal replacement for the recently flipped [autotag]Dante Core[/autotag], who [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] lost to Ole Miss earlier this week. Although Arnoux had been committed to USC since June, Hugh Freeze and his staff continued trying to flip him throughout the late summer and fall.

He was recently on campus for Auburn’s home loss to Vanderbilt, and although the Tigers lost, he may have seen some of the optimistic signs on the defensive side of the ball that fellow four-star recruit Jared Smith saw. Arnoux’s commitment to the Tigers brings Auburn’s number of cornerbacks set to join the team next season up to four.

Auburn’s 2025 recruiting class now sits at 28 players heading into National Signing Day next month. With the possibility of more commitments and flips, Hugh Freeze has the chance to further improve on a class currently ranked in the top-five according to 247Sports. It would not be surprising if the majority of the 2025 class sees ample playing time as soon as next season on the Plains.

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Auburn lands commitment from four-star CB Donovan Starr

Four-star CB Donovan Starr commits to Auburn just hours after leaving his official visit.

The Auburn football program is continually trying to make its mark on the recruiting trail and make itself known across the nation. It has been successful thus far, and continues to be on a good track with many big official visits in the past few days.

In fact, the official visits have gone so well that the Tigers landed a commitment from cornerback [autotag]Donovan Starr[/autotag] out of Brentwood, Tennessee just mere hours after he left from his official visit to the Plains on Thursday.

Starr made his visit to Auburn from Tuesday to Thursday and came up with his decision to commit on the car ride home. He picked the Tigers over Missouri, Clemson, Tennessee and Illinois.

The 5-11, 175-pound is ranked as the No. 385 player in the nation and the No. 36 cornerback in the 2025 class according to the On3 industry ranking. He is also the No. 12 player in the state of Tennessee.

Starr is the third cornerback commit for the Tigers’ 2025 cycle. He joins four-star [autotag]Devin Williams[/autotag] and three-star [autotag]Dante Core[/autotag] in that portion of the secondary.

He was recruited heavily by cornerbacks coach [autotag]Wesley McGriff[/autotag] and defensive coordinator [autotag]DJ Durkin[/autotag] throughout his recruiting process, which was a big reason why he chose Auburn.

The Tigers’ 2025 group currently stands at No. 10 nationally and No. 5 in the SEC, now at 12 commits for the class and looking to land more within the coming weeks.

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Auburn provides an ‘eye-opening’ experience for Miami commit Elijah Melendez

Hugh Freeze and DJ Durkin gained trust with Melendez during his recent visit to Auburn.

The race continues on for many of the nation’s top football recruits as numerous official visits were taken over the weekend. Auburn hosted multiple notable players, trying to make statements that will help head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] turn his program around.

One of the players that visited is current Miami commit and four-star linebacker [autotag]Elijah Melendez[/autotag], who has been committed since December, but is still making visits to other schools.

The Osceola High School (Florida) product made the trip to the Plains joined by his older brother, who felt the same positive sentiment on about the visit.

Melendez has a special feeling about the relationship that he is building with both Freeze and defensive coordinator [autotag]DJ Durkin[/autotag]. The trust is there, and that is important for what he wants as a player.

“Just being around the staff, Coach (DJ) Durkin and Coach Hugh Freeze,” Melendez said in an interview with Auburn Live. “Just building better bonds with them and seeing their plans for me here and being able to trust them. They gained a lot of trust with me this weekend and that really helps a lot.”

The Miami commit is ranked No. 169 in the class of 2025 and the No. 20 linebacker according to the On3 industry ranking. He is also ranked the No. 24 player in the state of Florida.

A flip from Melendez would be a big turn of events for the Auburn. Should he commit, he would join a stout defensive class that already includes four-star linebacker [autotag]Tyler Lockhart[/autotag], along with fellow Florida native in cornerback [autotag]Dante Core[/autotag].

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Auburn lands commitment from 2025 3-star cornerback

Dante Core announced his pledge to Auburn during a weekend visit to campus.

Auburn football hosted a successful weekend visit with three-star cornerback [autotag]Dante Core[/autotag].

Core visited the Plains on Saturday alongside his family and departed as a member of Auburn’s 2025 recruiting class.

Core becomes the 11th member of Auburn’s 2025 recruiting class which ranks No. 11 in the nation, and joins four-star CB [autotag]Devin Williams[/autotag] as a defensive back to commit to this year’s class. Following his commitment, Core told On3 that Auburn’s culture placed them at the top of his list.

“You can most definitely feel it from the moment you step out of your car,” Core said in a recent interview with On3. “It’s really different, I don’t really know how to explain or describe it. But people who come to Auburn and visit Auburn — they see it. It’s just a great culture. Everyone’s positive, they all want to be heading in the right direction. There are great resources, just everything about it is great.”

Core is a three-star cornerback from Fort Walton Beach High School in Florida. According to 247Sports rankings, he is the No. 64 cornerback for the 2025 class, and is the No. 79 recruit from Florida. He chose Auburn over Ole Miss and Rutgers.

Four-star RB Alvin Henderson chooses Penn State over Auburn

A late push by Penn State erased Auburn’s chances of landing the talented in-state running back on Thursday.

Penn State made a late push in [autotag]Alvin Henderson[/autotag]’s recruitment in an effort to steal him away from the state of Alabama, and it worked.

Henderson, a four-star running back from Elba High School in Elba, Alabama, chose Penn State on Thursday over Auburn, Florida State, Oregon, and Miami. Auburn head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and the newly hired offensive coordinator [autotag]Derrick Nix[/autotag] worked to maintain their relationship with Henderson following the departure of former running backs coach [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag]. The effort worked for a while but was not enough to close the deal.

Henderson was expected to commit on April 4, but the announcement date was altered by a week thanks to a late visit to State College. In a recent interview with Tom Loy of 247Sports, Henderson cited that Penn State has recruited him the hardest despite him not mentioning their involvement in his recruitment until the final stages. In their recruiting pitch, Penn State tells Henderson he can be the next great star.

The thing about Penn State is that they consider me as a dude that can come in and be the next Nick Singleton or Kaytron Allen. They are going to leave this year and they consider me the dude that can replace them. Their development at the running back position over the past few years, it’s real. They believe in what coach (James) Franklin has done. They want me to jump on the train and carry the torch that the running backs have started over the years.

Auburn’s 2025 recruiting class is still strong despite Henderson’s decision to commit to Penn State. The Tigers rank No. 8 in 247Sports’ rankings thanks to the commitments of [autotag]Malik Autry[/autotag], [autotag]Jakaleb Faulk[/autotag], and [autotag]Devin Williams[/autotag]. Auburn’s class added a talented offensive lineman earlier this week in [autotag]Carde Smith[/autotag], and are in prime position to land four-star linebacker [autotag]Eric Winters[/autotag] and three-star cornerback [autotag]Dante Core[/autotag].

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