Tag: Joseph Phillips

Auburn reveals jersey numbers for 2024 early enrollees

2024 signees such as Cam Coleman, Walker White, and Joseph Phillips have secured their jersey numbers ahead of spring practice.

Auburn football will begin this week, and they will have several members of its No. 7 ranked 2024 recruiting class joining them.

Signees such as wide receivers [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag] and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] will enroll this summer, but the Tigers will still have the likes of [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Walker White[/autotag], [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag], and [autotag]Demarcus Riddick[/autotag] on campus to go through spring exercises and to get ahead start to their college careers.

Ahead of the start of spring practices, Auburn football revealed the numbers that each early enrollee will wear during their first season on the Plains. Here is a look at which 2024 signees will participate in spring practice, as well as the number they will be representing on their jerseys.

Four-star LB Demarcus Riddick signs with Auburn

Riddick flipped from Georgia to Auburn over the summer.

Hugh Freeze was able to snag four-star linebacker [autotag]Demarcus Riddick[/autotag] from Georgia over the summer. Now, he is an Auburn Tiger.

Riddick, a native of Clanton, signed with Auburn on Wednesday. As a senior at Chilton County High School, Riddick recorded 92 tackles with three sacks and an interception.

Riddick is one of 11 defensive players to sign with Auburn today, joining the likes of [autotag]TJ Lindsey[/autotag], [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag], and [autotag]Amon Lane-Ganus[/autotag]. Auburn has also added Florida flips [autotag]Jamonta Waller[/autotag] and [autotag]Amaris Williams[/autotag] as defensive signees.

The linebacker from Clanton is Auburn’s fourth-highest rated signee of the 2024 class. He is the No. 5 overall linebacker for the cycle, and is the No. 6 overall player from Alabama.

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Tracking the Tigers: Several Auburn commits shine in Week 3

Jalewis Solomon, Walker White and Joseph Phillips all had great games.

Auburn has one of the top recruiting classes in the country and their commits continue to perform like it.

Several of Auburn’s commits had massive performances in Week 3, including quarterback pledge [autotag]Walker White[/autotag] who bounced back from a disappointing Week 2 in dominant fashion. His team didn’t pick up the win, but [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag] continued his sensational senior season.

While they had big games, the top performer from last week’s action is [autotag]Jalewis Solomon[/autotag]. He scored touchdowns on both sides of the ball and continued to show why Auburn’s staff worked so hard to land him.

Stats have not yet been released for [autotag]J’Marion Burnette[/autotag], [autotag]Jayden Lewis[/autotag], [autotag]Martavious Collins[/autotag] and [autotag]D’Angelo Barber[/autotag] but here is a look at how the rest of Auburn’s commits performed last week.

The top 2024 linebacker class currently belongs to Auburn

Auburn’s 2024 recruiting class is even more impressive on a smaller scale.

Auburn is building a solid recruiting class for the 2024 cycle. So far, the Tigers own the No. 14 recruiting class according to 247Sports, and 75% of their commitments are considered “blue chips” according to On3.

On a smaller scale, Auburn’s 2024 haul is even more impressive.

Rivals recently broke down the top linebackers for the 2024 class as part of their Rivals Rankings Week series. Several top programs such as Michigan, Notre Dame, and Oregon are on the list, but who is at the top? The Auburn Tigers.

Auburn has reeled in three linebackers to this point in the cycle, including the No. 2 linebacker in the class, [autotag]Demarcus Riddick[/autotag]. Rivals says that Riddick’s flip from Georgia to Auburn in July is considered a monumental win for [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag].

The Clanton (Ala.) Chilton County high four-star linebacker made one of the biggest moves of the summer when he flipped his commitment from Georgia to Auburn in a huge recruiting victory for coach Hugh Freeze. Getting closer to the decision, Alabama was a main contender to flip Riddick but he chose the Tigers instead.

Four-star [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag] and three-star [autotag]DeAngelo Barber[/autotag] round out Auburn’s top linebacker class. Both players committed to Auburn over the summer.

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Jalyn Crawford becomes latest 2024 commit to shut down recruitment

The four-star cornerback is “locked in” with Auburn.

[autotag]Jayln Crawford[/autotag]’s commitment to Auburn in July was a turning point for the program.

Crawford became Auburn’s 11th commitment on July 15. At the time, Auburn had the nation’s No. 37 class for the 2024 cycle and was ranked near the bottom of the SEC. Since then, the Tigers have earned four commitments and have climbed to No. 14 in the 247Sports rankings.

Crawford appears to be all-in with his commitment. In a recent interview with Christian Clemente of Auburn Undercover, he says he is “100 percent locked in with Auburn”, thus shutting down his recruitment.

Crawford joins a growing list of 2024 commits in shutting down their recruitment. He follows [autotag]Walker White[/autotag], [autotag]A’Mon Lane[/autotag], [autotag]J’Marion Burnette[/autotag], and [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag] in publically announcing their shut down.

Crawford is the No. 15 cornerback for the 2024 class and is the No. 20 overall prospect from the state of Georgia. He is one of eight commitments from the 2024 cycle that is rated four-stars or higher by 247Sports.

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Two of On3’s top 2024 linebackers are committed to Auburn

On3 has taken notice of Auburn’s stellar recruiting efforts of the 2024 class.

Auburn football has been relentlessly recruiting this year, especially over the summer months.

As it stands, Auburn has 15 commits for their 2024 class, with nine of those commits ranking at either a five-star or four-star by 247Sports. According to On3’s rankings, 10 of those commits fit that mold.

Regarding positional rankings, Auburn has claimed two of the nation’s top linebackers for the class of 2024. In a recent recruiting update from On3, five-star [autotag]Demarcus Riddick[/autotag] checks in as the No. 3 linebacker while four-star [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag] ranks No. 8.

Riddick is the No. 31 overall prospect for the 2024 class and has a NIL Valuation of $226k according to On3. He has been deemed a “smooth-moving linebacker”

Has continued to fill out his frame over the past year of high school. Has adequate length for the position with 32-inch arms. Strong in all phases as a linebacker. Stands out due to his natural fluidity and strong instincts for the position. Outstanding in coverage. A natural in space. Diagnoses routes easily. A sticky defender on Friday nights and in the camp setting. Can run and stay in-phase with tight ends and running backs. Effective as a blitzer and run defender. Plays with a high effort level and flies around as a pursuit defender.

Phillips is the No. 119 overall recruit for the cycle and uses his big frame to disrupt the pass.

Primarily played as a standup pass rusher as a junior, but looks to be primed for more of an off-ball inside linebacker role as a senior. Uses his quickness and length to create disruption off the edge. Heavy-handed and powerful. Plays with leverage and gets off of blocks. Shows dogged effort and pursuit speed in tracking down plays from the back side. As an off-ball linebacker, projects as a thumper against the run.

Outside of Auburn, other programs that have snagged one or more of the nation’s best linebackers are Georgia, Clemson, Florida, and Notre Dame. Florida has four of the top 10 linebackers in the class.

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Who are Alabama’s top 2024 uncommitted players heading into August?

Where does Auburn stand with these talented uncommitted recruits?

The month of July was a great one for Auburn on the recruiting trail.

The Tigers landed six 2024 commits during the month, with five of those hailing from the state of Alabama. As the calendar turns to August, Auburn has claimed nine of the state’s top 25 prospects and 10 of the top 30.

Among their July haul was No. 4 [autotag]Demarcus Riddick[/autotag], a five-star linebacker from Chilton County, and No. 3 [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], a five-star wide receiver from Foley. Before last week’s “flips”, Auburn’s highest-rated commit from the state of Alabama was No. 8 [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag], a four-star linebacker from Tuskegee.

As the calendar turns to August, Auburn is in the hunt for several other of the state’s top talent. There are five players in the top 25 that remain uncommitted, and Auburn has a chance to land three of them. Of those three are linebacker Bradley Shaw from Hoover and four-star wide receiver Mario Craver from Clay-Chalkville.

Here is a look at the state of Alabama’s top uncommitted players from the 2024 recruiting cycle according to rankings 247Sports, and data from On3‘s Recruiting Prediction Machine.

Auburn has a chance to sign its best linebacker class in a decade

Josh Aldridge has assmebled an impressive linebacker class and itsn’t done yet.

On Wednesday Auburn landed its highest-rated commit since 2019 when they successfully flipped five-star linebacker [autotag]Demarcus Riddick[/autotag] from the Georgia Bulldogs.

Riddick is the headliner of Auburn’s 2024 recruiting class and is further proof that [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and Co. can now win recruiting battles with Alabama and Georgia, something you have to do if you want to compete in the SEC.

A ton of credit also goes to linebackers coach [autotag]Josh Aldridge[/autotag], who has landed several top targets but his pursuit of Riddick is the most impressive. He had a ton of ground to make up as the previous staff had not yet offered Riddick when he committed to the Bulldogs.

Aldridge quickly extended an offer and after a full-court press, the Tigers pulled off the flip.

He is the second linebacker that Auburn has beaten Georgia for this cycle, just last month they landed four-star linebacker [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag], beating out the Bulldogs for the talented but raw linebacker.

The duo of Riddick and Phillips has made linebacker one of the strengths of Auburn’s 2024 recruiting class and the addition of three-star [autotag]D’Angelo Barber[/autotag] makes it one of Auburn’s best hauls at linebacker in years.

While there is still plenty of time left before any of them can sign, the Tigers haven’t signed three or more high-school linebackers in the same cycle since 2020 when they landed four-star prospects [autotag]Wesley Steiner[/autotag], [autotag]Cam Riley[/autotag] and [autotag]Desmond Tisdol[/autotag] and three-star [autotag]Romello Height[/autotag].

What separates the 2024 class from that group is that both Riddick (No. 26) and Phillips (No. 132) are top 150 prospects while only Steiner (No. 98) was from the 2020 haul.

The 2019 class, consisting of five-star Pappoe, four-star [autotag]Derick Hall[/autotag] and three-stars Octavious Brothers and Kameron Brown, also has a case as the best in recent history.

As it currently stands, these two classes are extremely similar. Both are headlined by a five-star with a second top prospect who projects more as a pass-rusher but is capable of playing linebacker. With the 2019 class having one more member, it has more depth and is slightly better.

With Auburn not signing any linebackers last year they are in need of a large class, making it likely they will add at least one or two more players and Aldrige has the Tigers in a great spot with two more targets, four-star [autotag]Bradley Shaw[/autotag] and three-star [autotag]Wyatt Simmons[/autotag].

If they add Shaw it will give them three blue-chip linebackers, something they have only twice in the past 10 cycles, the 2020 class and in 2015 when they landed Richard McBryde, Jeff Holland and Darrell Williams. While that class also included three-star Robert Muschamp, it lacked a five-star prospect to compare with Riddick. 

Due to the top-end talent of Riddick and Phillips and the depth of Barber, Auburn’s 2024 class is on the verge of being the best the Tigers have signed in the past 10 cycles, if they can add one or both of Shaw and Simmons then it will jump past the 2019 and 2015 classes and undoubtedly be the best linebacker class in the past decade.

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Big Cat preview: Here are this year’s top 10 attendees

This weekend’s event will be the biggest in several years.

The biggest recruiting weekend is here.

A wealth of talent from across the country will be on The Plains this weekend to attend Big Cat Weekend, which will be a crucial time for [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and staff as they build their roster for the future.

Many members of Auburn’s 2024 commitments will be there , including [autotag]Walker White[/autotag], [autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag], [autotag]A’Mon Lane[/autotag] and [autotag]J’Marion Burnette[/autotag].

Those players have publicly announced they have shut down their recruitment in an effort to help the coaching staff recruit players to join them at Auburn. This weekend will be a great measuring stick to see just how good their recruiting efforts are.

There will be plenty of talented players on campus this weekend, some are even committed to other programs.

Here’s a look at the top recruits who are scheduled to visit Big Cat Weekend.

Joseph Phillips shuts down his recruitment

Phillips, like so many others in the 2024 class, is honoring his commitment to Auburn by focusing solely on the Tigers going forward.

[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] has been determined to boost Auburn’s recruiting since taking over the program.

[autotag]Joseph Phillips[/autotag] is the latest Auburn commitment to shut down his recruitment. In an Auburn Undercover article written by Christian Clemente, Phillips explained what went into his decision.

“It’s going good,” Phillips said on Auburn’s recruiting. “I feel like with me committing and then you’ve got other big-time people committed, everybody now is like ‘Auburn is the move.’ It’s not like they ain’t have no 4- or 5-stars committed. Now they’ve got the dogs committed, everybody else is trying to come.”

Big Cat Weekend, one of Auburn’s biggest recruiting events is coming up and Phillips is thinking it will go well.

“I feel like Big Cat Weekend they going to really put their best foot forward,” Phillips said. “Like you said, there’s going to be a lot of big-time people in so I feel like it’s going to be one of the best experiences I had just going up there. You’ve got a chance to chill, talk with the players and coaches and get other people that ain’t committed a chance to see what that’s like behind the scenes.”

Phillips is a four-star recruit with a 0.9421 composite rating according to 247Sports. He is the No. 132 player nationally, the No. 9 edge rusher, and the No. 8 player in the state of Alabama. He joins fellow commits such as [autotag]Walker White[/autotag], [autotag]A’Mon Lane[/autotag], and [autotag]J’Marion Burnette[/autotag] in shutting down his recruitment.

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