Here is a look at the first practice under interim head coach Carnell Williams.
Just one day after the announcement of the dismissal of [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag], offensive coordinator [autotag]Eric Kiesau[/autotag], tight ends coach [autotag]Brad Bedell[/autotag], and several other staffers, a revamped coaching staff was constructed and revealed to the public.
The staff, led by interim head coach Carnell Williams, includes new roles for seven assistant coaches and staffers. Several coaches’ roles remain the same, including defensive coordinator [autotag]Jeff Schmedding[/autotag], defensive line coach [autotag]Jimmy Brumbaugh[/autotag], linebackers coach [autotag]Christian Robinson[/autotag], and special team coordinator [autotag]Roc Bellatoni[/autotag].
Tuesday, the new-look staff held its first practice, as they prepare to coach their first game this Saturday at Mississippi State. Here is a look at the best images from Tuesday’s practice, courtesy of Auburn Athletics photographer Todd Van Emst.
Auburn’s defensive line is full of talented players and should be fun to watch.
Despite a massive amount of turnover this offseason, the defensive line group is one of the deepest groups on the roster and has a chance to lead the entire defense.
New position coach [autotag]Jimmy Brumbaugh[/autotag] has a great problem on his hand with too many talented players to start them all.
The group is led by defensive end [autotag]Colby Wooden[/autotag] and defensive tackle [autotag]Marcus Harris[/autotag], both are returning starters and will be key contributors for the defense. They are backed up by a group that features several returning contributors and multiple newcomers who have a chance to make an impact right away.
One of those is [autotag]Jayson Jones[/autotag], who transferred from Oregon and looks like an ideal fit in the middle of the defense. Another noteworthy newcomer is [autotag]Jeffrey M’Ba[/autotag] the No. 1 overall JUCO player from last year’s signing class and could become a great player as he gets more experience.
Auburn Football hopes to receive good news in late July in the form of a commitment from three-star OL, Naquil Betrand.
Auburn is in the running to land a three-star offensive lineman for the 2023 recruiting cycle from Maryland.
[autotag]Naquil Betrand[/autotag] recently listed Auburn in his top-6 choices, joining Kentucky, Georgia, Texas A&M, Syracuse, and Penn State. Friday, Betrand revealed that he will be committing to a program on July 30.
Betrand re-opened his commitment after de-committing from Colorado on July 4. Auburn offered Betrand on July 1, two weeks later he took his official visit to the Plains. After his visit to Auburn, Betrand told Auburn Live that Auburn had a “really good chance to land him.”
Christian Clemente of Auburn Undercover recently wrote that the need to land a couple of linemen is imperative. If Auburn were to land Betrand, it would go a long way into filling that need.
Betrand is a three-star offensive lineman from St. Francis Academy in Baltimore, Maryland. He is listed as the No. 16 prospect from the state of Maryland for the class of 2023, and the No. 78 offensive tackle in the nation.
I will be Committing on July 30th would like to thank ever coach that recruited me but its almost that time !!! pic.twitter.com/WH9x2hpcxh
Contract details emerge for three position coaches on Bryan Harsin’s staff.
Auburn Football and head coach [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] added a handful of members to the staff for the 2022 season, which included three new position coaches.
Defensive Line coach [autotag]Jimmy Brumbaugh[/autotag], as well as receivers coach [autotag]Ike Hilliard[/autotag] and linebackers coach [autotag]Christian Robinson[/autotag], were hired in an effort to produce a boost to their respective positions in both on-field production and recruiting.
Now that they are settled with Auburn, details of their contracts have been released.
AL.com received the details for the contracts of Brumbaugh, Hilliard, and Robinson through an open records request. According to the report, those three coaches have signed two-year contracts that will run through January 31, 2024. However, the salaries of those contracts all vary.
Brumbaugh, who played defensive line for the Tigers from 1995-99, will earn $625,000, with a base salary of $250,000 and a bonus of $187,500 for personal appearances and endorsements.
Hilliard is set to earn $600,000 per year, $250,000 in annual base salary and $175,000 in endorsements and personal appearances.
Finally, Robinson will begin with a salary of $525,000, which will increase to $550,000 in year two of the contract. His endorsement and personal appearance pay will begin at $275,000 and will jump to $300,000 in his second season at Auburn.
Brunbaugh, Hilliard, and Robinson join coordinators Eric Kiesau and Jeff Schemedding as new additions to Bryan Harsin’s staff for the 2022 season.
The Tigers were listed in the top three for 2023 defensive line target Jamaal Jarrett.
2023 defensive tackle Jamaal Jarrett released his top three schools on Sunday, one of which was the Auburn Tigers. The two other schools listed were Georgia and North Carolina.
Jarrett has been a priority target for the Tigers coaching staff in the 2023 recruiting class. He is regarded as a four-star according to 247Sports’ recruiting rankings. Jarrett is listed at 6-foot-6 and 350 pounds. The North Carolina native recently took an official visit to Auburn on June 3rd. He also took official visits to North Carolina (May 20th) and Georgia (June 10th).
At Grimsley High School, he also does shot put and discus. The monstrous recruit is high on the Tigers. Here is what Sports Illustrated’s John Garcia had to say on a Locked On Auburn podcast regarding Jarrett’s interest in the Tigers:
“Auburn’s been a school that he’s been mentioning pretty early when you talk to him back in January and February and that consistency helps with the Tigers,” Garcia said. “He took an official visit and got a more intimate look at the program and really, it’s becoming an SEC race at the top with Auburn and Georgia vs staying at home and playing for North Carolina.”
With his size, the Tigers could use him in a variety of different roles. Defensive line coach [autotag]Jimmy Brumbaugh[/autotag] is really high on Jarrett. He would be a massive addition to the Tigers’ 2023 recruiting class. He is set to announce his commitment on July 19th.
BREAKING: Four-Star DL Jamaal Jarrett is down to 3️⃣ Schools, he tells @On3Recruits
The 6’6 350 DL from Greensboro, NC will announce his college decision July 19th.
Auburn offers defensive lineman transferring from Nebraska.
On Thursday afternoon, Nebraska defensive lineman Casey Rogers posted to his Twitter account that Auburn had extended him an offer. The offer came just eight hours after the New York native entered his name into the transfer portal. Along with Auburn, he posted other offers from TCU, Arkansas, USC, Washington, and Oregon State.
Out of high school, he attended Old Farms Prep in Avon, Connecticut. He was regarded as a three-star defensive lineman by 247Sports recruiting rankings. Multiple schools that offered him out of high school were Alabama, Ohio State, Indiana, Ole Miss, Oregon State, and Vanderbilt. Ultimately, it was his relationship with defensive line coach Mike Dawson that swayed him to Lincoln.
Over the past several years at Nebraska, he has seen his share of time on the field. In 2018 as a freshman, he elected to take a redshirt year. In 2019, he played in just four games. No stats were recorded for Rogers in his first two seasons.
However, he saw his opportunity increase in 2020 which was shortened by Covid-19. He would go on to record 25 tackles, three tackles for loss, and one sack. In 2021, he tallied 17 tackles, three tackles for loss, and half a sack in the final seven games of the Cornhuskers’ season.
(AP Photo/Rebecca S. Gratz)
In his post on Twitter, he elaborated on the fact that he was considering all of his options by inputting the word “ALL.” The door will likely be open if Rogers is open to returning to Scott Frost’s team in 2022. He is likely going to weigh his options as far as other offers are concerned.
The Tigers could definitely use a player like Rogers. He is a large specimen at 6-foot-6 and 300 pounds. That size is rare to find nowadays, especially on the interior.
Defensive line coach [autotag]Jimmy Brumbaugh[/autotag] would welcome an interior defensive line that consists of Zykevious Walker, Marcus Harris, Jeremiah Wright, and Casey Rogers.
With Auburn expressing interest early, they will be better suited for making a run at Rogers. He has no ties to Auburn but a surplus of playing time and playing in the SEC could sway him to the Plains.
He is ranked as the No. 385 player and No. 51 defensive lineman in the 247Sports Composite ranking for the 2023 recruiting class.
While he has not yet visited Auburn, he spoke with Brian Dohn of 247Sports and plans to schedule more visits. He also discussed what stands out about each of his finalists. When discussing Auburn, he mentioned two people, defensive line coach [autotag]Jimmy Brumbaugh[/autotag] and freshman defensive tackle Enyce Sledge.
“Auburn made the list because of the love shown from the coaches over the phone. (Defensive line) coach (Jimmy) Brumbaugh and my bro, Enyce Sledge, a defensive tackle commit in 2022, have really impacted my interest in their program. With Enyce Sledge being my mentor as my recruiting process started back in the beginning of 2021, me and him have been really tight. He’s like a big brother to me. So him going to Auburn and the cool coaches over there helped me pick them as a secure fit in my top list.”
Jarrett played in nine games for Grimsley High School as a junior and finished with 30 tackles, 9.0 TFL, and one forced fumble. He has experience playing on the offensive line but transitioned to primarily a defensive lineman as a junior.
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A 2023 defensive lineman from Georgia puts Auburn in his final ten.
On Thursday, 2023 defensive lineman Joshua Horton has listed his top ten schools, among them the Auburn Tigers. Other SEC schools that were listed include Georgia, Tennessee, and Mississippi State.
Interestingly enough, he is teammates with recent Auburn commit Terrance Love. The two play at Langston Hughes High School. Horton is a strong force in the interior and certainly possesses great size. Last season, he recorded 81 tackles, eight quarterback hurries, and three sacks.
If he were to commit to Auburn, defensive line coach [autotag]Jimmy Brumbaugh[/autotag] would certainly welcome him in. So far in the 2023 class, the coaching staff has offered 35 defensive tackles. The position is clearly a point of emphasis for the Auburn Tigers during this recruiting cycle.
Big-time West Virginia transfer has received an offer from Auburn
On Friday, the Auburn coaching staff extended an offer to West Virginia transfer Akheem Mesidor. After entering the transfer portal on Thursday, the Canadian native has quickly garnered interest from several schools and picked up some offers thus far. USC and Tennessee were among the schools to offer Mesidor since he entered the transfer portal.
Throughout his high school career, he played at Clearwater Academy International High School in Clearwater, Florida. Two seasons ago as a freshman, he was named an All-American. Throughout his career with the Mountaineers, he recorded 70 tackles and 9.5 sacks.
The talented edge rusher is now on the market. Although just three teams have offered Mesidor, several other programs will likely follow suit. According to AuburnLive, he will likely receive an offer from Penn State as he plans on visiting there. With that being said, many powerhouse programs will likely come into the fold sooner rather than later.
Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
The Tigers are somewhat thin at the edge rusher position. As of now, the only true edge rushers are [autotag]Eku Leota[/autotag], [autotag]Derrick Hall[/autotag], and [autotag]Dylan Brooks[/autotag]. Defensive line coach [autotag]Jimmy Brumbaugh [/autotag]would certainly love to add someone as talented as the product from Ontario, Canada. In his tweet announcing his intent to transfer, he said that he wants to “pursue a better environment”. With that being said, the Plains certainly feels like the place to be.
Head coach [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] is establishing a culture and would definitely welcome Mesidor to Auburn if he so chooses.
In-state edge rusher and his brother visited the Plains on Monday for spring practice
On Monday, 2023 four-star edge Keldric Faulk took a visit to the Plains. This was the third unofficial visit that Faulk has taken since receiving a(n) offer from Auburn in April of 2021. This particular visit involved Keldric and his younger brother Jakaleb to meet new defensive line coach [autotag]Jimmy Brumbaugh [/autotag]. Along with Brumbaugh, he was also able to meet with the new edge coach [autotag]Roc Bellantoni [/autotag].
The 2023 prospect is ranked as the No. 94 player in the nation and the No. 14 defensive lineman in his respective class. Prior to the beginning of his junior season, Faulk released a top five. The five schools he listed were Alabama, Florida State, Tennessee, Clemson, and Auburn. However, he is now looking at visiting other schools as well. According to an article by Christian Clemente, Faulk currently has other visits planned for Ole Miss and Georgia later on in the spring. Afterward, he will likely narrow down his choices in hopes of finding the best fit for him.
A key factor to weigh into his recruitment is also the recruitment of his little brother Jakaleb Faulk. The two are multi-sport athletes at Highland Home high school. While Jakaleb is not yet ranked because he is in the class of 2025, he has already fielded some elite offers. The only schools to offer both are Florida State, Kentucky, Tennessee, UCF, and Auburn. Although the two are separated by two years, they still may look to be on the same team at the next level.
According to 247Sports, Alabama and Auburn are the favorites to land Faulk. I certainly feel like one of the two will land the tremendous athlete. Whoever Faulk chooses, he will certainly be a great addition to the class. The Tigers and head coach Bryan Harsin are doing everything they can to assemble a great class in 2023. As we all know, it starts in the trenches. If the Tigers could land Faulk, it would speak volumes to other in-state recruits that they are trying to pursue. It would also give the Tigers one of the more premier edge rushers in the entire country. His recruitment is definitely one to keep an eye on as things heat up in the spring.
