Jay Crawford – Syndication Server

Five-star CB Na’eem Offord recaps Auburn visit

The No. 1 recruit from Alabama was on the Plains weekend. How much ground did the Tigers make up in his recruitment?

The future of Auburn football is bright, as eight of Alabama’s top 10 recruits from the 2025 recruiting cycle have pledged to [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag]’s program. Two Ohio State commits, CB [autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag] and EDGE [autotag]Zion Grady[/autotag], are preventing Auburn from completing the top-10 sweep for this season.

Auburn hosted Offord for the Vanderbilt game last Saturday in hopes of flipping him from Ohio State. During his visit, Offord spoke with Cole Pinkston of On3, where he discussed his interest in Auburn. He tells Pinkston that Auburn’s 3-6 record does not deter him from considering Auburn and that he was pleased with the Tigers’ defensive efforts on Saturday despite the loss.

What intrigues Offord the most about Auburn is the opportunity to play early. He cites freshman [autotag]Jay Crawford[/autotag] and his chance to play meaningful snaps early in his career.

“For him to come in and be a big time impact player, it showed me a lot,” Offord said in an interview with On3. “It showed that Coach Crime (Wesley McGriff) is a good coach and knows how to coach his players and develop you. Jay Crawford is a coachable player and that just shows you the development right there.”

Offord says that he has not planned a future visit to Auburn ahead of the early signing period in December, but Auburn remains in the mix. Offord is the No. 1 player from Alabama according to 247Sports. The Parker High School product ranks No. 12 nationally and is the No. 2 overall cornerback from the 2025 cycle.

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Cornerback Antonio Kite dismissed from team

The Alabama transfer native recorded six tackles and one interception for the Tigers in five games this season.

Auburn’s defensive back unit became thinner this week as a first-year transfer was dismissed from the team.

According to Jason Caldwell of Auburn Undercover, cornerback [autotag]Antonio Kite[/autotag] was dismissed from the roster this week for violating team rules. Kite, a native of Anniston, was in his first year with the program after spending the first two seasons of his career at Alabama after signing with the Crimson Tide as part of the 2022 recruiting class.

Kite was a key contributor to Auburn’s defensive backfield, participating in at least 31 snaps through the Tigers’ first four games. He played in a season-high 66 snaps in Auburn’s loss to Arkansas on Sept. 21. However, he did not record any play time in Auburn’s games with Oklahoma and Georgia. Kite played only five snaps during Auburn’s game at Missouri on Oct. 19.

Freshmen [autotag]Jay Crawford[/autotag] and [autotag]Kensley Louidor-Faustin[/autotag] have picked up the slack in Kite’s limited action. Crawford has participated in 238 snaps over the last four games and was recently named the True Freshman of the Week by 247Sports for his stellar coverage in the Tigers’ win over Kentucky last Saturday. Louidor-Faustin was involved in 55 plays for Auburn during their games at Georgia and Missouri.

Kite ends his Auburn career with six tackles and one interception in five games as a Tiger.

What did we learn from Auburn’s victory over Kentucky?

Auburn ended October on a high note by taking down Kentucky on the road.

Auburn football is finally finished with its month-long stretch of road games, but comes out of it with the sweet taste of victory that it has not felt since September.

The Tigers escaped Kroger Field with a 24-10 victory on Saturday, fulfilling a 10-point comeback and finishing the game in full, something they have not done in quite some time. The win puts Auburn at 3-5 on the year and 1-4 in the SEC.

This game started like recent ones, where the offense showed a very slow start while the defense gave the team somewhat of a chance. This time though, the offense turned things around throughout the action.

Here is what we learned about the Tigers after the win.

Starting quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] finally made necessary changes after yet another slow start, and his smart decisions helped drive a lot of momentum into the entire offense.

Thorne threw an interception in the first quarter, but overall, went 20 for 26 with 172 yards and one touchdown. His vision got better as the game went on, but things still have a lot of room to improve in that facet if the team wants a better start.

Senior running back [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] needs to be handed the ball in order for Auburn to have success down the stretch. The star in the backfield rushed 23 times for 278 yards and two touchdowns, becoming a workhorse throughout the night and pushing the team towards the win down the stretch.

Hunter showed all night that he has the skills to break off big runs, which were evident in a 50-yard run and a 45-yard touchdown run that he had in the fourth quarter to put the dagger on the Wildcats.

As for the offensive line, things need to be reviewed with its blocking scheme, as Thorne took five sacks on the night. As tough opponents near at the end of this season, Thorne needs to have more time in the pocket than he does in order to make plays and stay healthy.

As for the defense, it was an all-around complete performance. Two interceptions and three sacks were a big reason why Kentucky’s offense was shut out after the first quarter, making big plays all night.

Freshman cornerback [autotag]Jay Crawford[/autotag] is going to continue to be a force for this defense… and he is only in his first season. Crawford made the first interception of the night for Tigers, arguably seen as the turning point of the game. He also only allowed a 33% completion rate on six targets for the night.

As for the special teams, [autotag]Alex McPherson[/autotag] made his way back into action for the first time in the 2024 season. While he missed and made one kick each, there is some optimism that he will make a steady return over the course of November.

Auburn returns home to Jordan-Hare Stadium on Nov. 2 to welcome Vanderbilt and former New Mexico State quarterback Diego Pavia to town. Kickoff is set for 11:45 a.m. CST and the game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.

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Auburn CB earns 247Sports honors for performance against Kentucky

True freshman Jay Crawford made a giant impact in Auburn’s win over Kentucky, and is being recognized nationally for his efforts.

The Auburn Tigers got back in the win column on Saturday after defeating the Kentucky Wildcats 24-10 on the road in Lexington. The victory snapped a four-game losing streak and earned the team their first SEC win of the year.

There were many factors that contributed to the Tigers winning ways, many of which were as a result of what the defense did after being down 10 points early on. Even with that deficit, the defense only allowed 224 total yards on the night.

Some might ask how the defense turned it around. The answer: the play of freshman cornerback [autotag]Jay Crawford[/autotag].

After Auburn cut the lead to three points with a touchdown in the early stages of the second quarter, the Wildcats were seen driving down the field. That was until on a third down, Crawford made an interception on an underthrown ball near the Tigers sideline, which ultimately led to the game-tying field on the ensuing possession.

Over the course of the game, Crawford only allowed a 33% completion rate on six targets towards his assignments, making big plays in the defensive stand and earning him the 247Sports True Freshman of the Week.

Head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] discussed how Crawford has really impressed him over the course of a struggling year, making a statement in his quick development.

“He’s got talent for sure, we knew that. But it’s a maturing process of learning how to practice, how to focus on techniques that you need with every given call. We’re still not perfect at that by any means, playing so many young kids, and even our older kids. But he’s getting better and better each week with ‘All right, I’ve got to play outside tip right here, or I’ve got to play inside tip here, or I need to play off here, or I need to play press bail here.’ All of that stuff is moving really, really fast for a freshman with the hundreds of different calls you make. And not to mention the number of calls, but the call is based on what do they come out in? We’ve got to change that, they’re in a tight formation, that totally changes the call. There’s a lot of moving parts for those young kids. He’s getting more used to the game, more used to the system. You combine that with his talent, and he’s getting better.”

Crawford has become a consistent starter as of lately for Auburn, having started in four consecutive weeks for [autotag]DJ Durkin[/autotag] and his defense. He currently has 12 total tackles to go along with the one interception and four pass breakups in his first season on the Plains.

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Two Tigers named Mid-season Freshmen All-Americans by On3

Auburn has used plenty of freshmen on the field this season, and these two have caught the eye of a national publication

Auburn football has relied heavily on freshmen through six games. Two of those newcomers were recently recognized by On3.

Charles Power, On3’s Director of Scouting and Rankings, recently dropped his picks for the Midseason Freshmen All-American Team and included two Tiger defenders, defensive lineman [autotag]Malik Blocton[/autotag] and safety [autotag]Kaleb Harris[/autotag].

Blocton, a freshman from Pike Road, has registered seven tackles through six games with one sack. Outside of true tackles, Blocton has become a threat to opposing quarterbacks in his short time on the Plains. According to Pro Football Focus data, Blocton has created five pressures, four being registered as quarterback hurries. In Auburn’s most recent game at Georgia, Blocton graded out at 78.8 overall and 80.6 in rush defense.

Harris is the team’s best tackler according to PFF. The freshman from Alabaster grades at 90.1 in the category and is No. 2 in coverage with 77.8 as opposing receivers have caught just three of nine passes when guarded by Harris. He has accumulated 15 tackles to this point of the season and has swatted four passes.

Blocton and Harris have earned their place on Power’s midseason team, but several others missed an opportunity to also earn the honor.

Freshmen receivers [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] and [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] are No. 2 and No. 3 in receiving for the Tigers with a combined statline of 27 catches for 472 yards and three scores. Cornerback [autotag]Jay Crawford[/autotag] has also had a great start to his collegiate career by making six tackles and holding opposing receivers to a 33.3% catch rate.

Watch out for Blocton, Harris, and the rest of the Auburn freshmen as they look to play an instrumental role in the team’s second-half success in 2024.