Malcolm Simmons – Page 2 – Syndication Server

Auburn becomes favorite to land 2026 wide receiver Cederian Morgan

Auburn is trending upward for the top in-state recruit from the 2026 class.

Auburn won the sweepstakes for four-star wide receiver and Alexander City native [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] during the 2024 recruiting cycle. Now, the Tigers are working towards landing one of Simmons’ former teammates and are in a great position to do so.

Cole Pinkston of Auburn Live has submitted a prediction for Auburn to land [autotag]Cederian Morgan[/autotag], a four-star wide receiver from Benjamin Russell High School in nearby Alexander City. Pinkston’s prediction is made with 60% confidence.

Morgan most recently visited Auburn during Big Cat Weekend last month, and is expected to pay a visit to the Plains for an upcoming game says Pinkston. During his time at Big Cat Weekend, Morgan told On3 that Auburn is high on his list due to his relationship with former high school teammate, Simmons.

“It’s very important (Simmons is at Auburn),” Morgan said in a recent interview with On3. “I want to go somewhere where I know the people. We’re cool and locked in, but with Malcolm we’ve always bonded. It would be like another home, basically.”

With Pinkston’s prediction, Auburn now has a 93.8% chance to sign Morgan to its 2026 recruiting class. Outside of Auburn… Alabama, Clemson, and Florida remain in the hunt. Morgan is the No. 2 wide receiver nationally and the No. 1 recruit from Alabama for the 2026 cycle according to 247Sports.

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Bryce Cain brings ‘grateful’ attitude to the Plains

Cain never dreamed he would be an Auburn Tiger, and he is enjoying every second of it.

Auburn football freshman wide receiver [autotag]Bryce Cain[/autotag] had an unorthodox journey to the Plains and is enjoying every second.

Cain, who signed with Auburn as part of its historical wide receiver class in 2024, began playing football as an 11th grader after spending most of his athletic career on the baseball diamond. He broke out in 2022 by hauling 31 catches for 390 yards for the Baker Hornets and blew past those numbers as a senior in 2023 with 948 yards on 43 catches with 16 touchdowns.

Due to those impressive numbers and visits to several camps, Cain became an attractive target on many college football recruiting boards, including Auburn’s. It was a path that Cain could have never predicted.

“I never thought this day would come,” Cain said during a recent media availability. “I just gave it in God’s hands, and he led me to the right path. I didn’t think I was going to be here, but I am. And I’m grateful.”

His stats were impressive, but his speed drew Auburn wide receivers coach [autotag]Marcus Davis[/autotag] to Cain. Davis is excited for the potential that Cain can bring to the Auburn offense.

“One thing you can’t coach is speed, and he’s definitely got that. You can see his development from the spring to now; you can tell he was here this spring, just with how he’s developed. Just knowing what to do,” Davis said. “It’s fun coaching Bryce; he’s another guy who comes in with the same attitude every day, man. One thing I can say about the room right now is the approach to things is a grateful, gratitude attitude. It’s been fun so far.”

Cain is a member of the infamous “Freeze Four” which includes [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag]. He says that the hype surrounding the group is real and expects the unit to make an immediate impact.

“Oh we can have a big impact,” Cain said. “If we get all the plays down and learn just like that *snaps* we’re going to be on the field. It’s going to be a big impact for this team.”

Cain joins Auburn as the No. 13 recruit from Alabama from the 2024 class according to 247Sports, and the No. 30 wide receiver nationally.

Cam Coleman included on USA TODAY Sports’ instant impact freshmen list

Coleman has caught the eye of many national writers this season including USA TODAY Sports’ Paul Myerberg.

Freshman wide receiver [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] has turned the heads of a few college football experts, including USA TODAY Sports’ Paul Myerberg.

Myerberg recently released his picks for the 10 college football freshmen ready to make an instant impact this season, including Auburn’s top 2024 signee. Myerberg says that Coleman’s impressive showing at A-Day should carry over into his freshman season.

Coleman is one of two five-star freshmen receivers joining this year’s Iron Bowl, along with Alabama’s Ryan Williams. But Williams is a wild card because of the fact he was not an early enrollee, making it harder to predict whether he’ll be ready to contribute for new coach Kalen DeBoer. Coleman could change the complexion of Auburn’s receiver room as a freshman and will definitely bring a big spark to a passing game that was putrid a year ago.

This is the second “impact freshmen” list that Coleman has joined recently. Earlier this week, ESPN mentioned the Phenix City native among the SEC’s top newcomers. Mark Schlabach and Chris Low join Myerberg in predicting Coleman to impact Auburn’s offense this season.

Coleman enters his freshman season at Auburn as the nation’s No. 4 overall recruit from the 2024 class, and the No. 2 wide receiver. He, along with fellow freshman receiver [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], [autotag]Bryce Cain[/autotag], and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] will make their debuts on Saturday, Aug. 31 when the Tigers host Alabama A&M for the season-opener at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

What does Payton Thorne think about Cam Coleman’s skills?

Thorne comments on the highly-ranked freshmen’s skills ahead of the 2024 season.

Auburn football kicks off its 2024 campaign in just a matter of weeks and the hype around the season is building as the days go by. Many fans have high expectations for some of the newcomers they will season, and for good reason.

The main topic of conversation in that regard will be on wide receiver [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag], who is being seen as a player that will be a force on the Plains.

As if he does not have enough good things being said about him, quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] added on to it when talking to his former Michigan State teammate, Jayden Reed.

Coleman’s ability to catch the ball in unique ways is one thing that stands out to many, and a lot of that comes from his phenomenal leaping ability. It is so phenomenal, that Thorne believes Coleman can jump higher than his former Michigan State teammate, Keon Coleman.

“I’ve never seen somebody who can jump as high as (Cam) can. It’s honestly majestic,” Thorne said.

Coleman makes his way to the Plains after finishing his high school career with a Class 7A state championship at Central-Phenix City in Alabama and looks to turn some heads in the early going.

He will be seen along with other new wide receivers like [autotag]Bryce Cain[/autotag], [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag], and [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag] when the Tigers take the field for their week one game against the Alabama A&M Bulldogs on Aug. 31 at 6:30 p.m. CST.

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Auburn receives predictions to land 2026 wide receiver Cederian Morgan

Could Auburn’s 2026 class be the best in program history?

Auburn football’s 2026 class is shaping into one of its best classes in program history.

After landing three four-star prospects during Big Cat Weekend, Auburn wants to keep the momentum by landing a four-star wide receiver from Alexander City to its collection.

Following the busy weekend, Auburn Undercover’s Christian Clemente and Jason Caldwell have submitted “crystal ball predictions” in favor of Auburn landing [autotag]Cederian Morgan[/autotag], a four-star wide receiver from Benjamin Russell High School (Ala.). The predictions from Clemente and Caldwell outweigh a previous prediction from 247Sports National Recruiting analyst Tom Loy’s prediction from June in favor of Alabama.

Morgan was one of many 2026 prospects to visit Auburn for Big Cat Weekend, where he spent his time getting to know Auburn coaches and spending time with current players, including his former high school teammate [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag].

“I got a chance to get closer with all of the players and coaches,” Morgan said in an interview with Auburn Undercover. “They just made me feel like home. It would be a good place for me to be.”

Morgan is a four-star wide receiver according to 247Sports. He is the No. 4 overall wide receiver from the class and is the No. 2 recruit from Alabama, trailing Auburn target [autotag]Anthony Jones[/autotag] for the top spot. Auburn possesses three of the state’s top 10 recruits from the 2026 cycle on their recruiting board: EDGE [autotag]Hezekiah Harris[/autotag] (No. 3), LB [autotag]Shadarius Toodle[/autotag] (No. 6), and LB [autotag]JaMichael Garrett[/autotag] (No. 8).

Where does Auburn land in CBS Sports’ post-spring SEC power rankings?

Will Backus of CBS Sports says that there is one giant question facing Auburn heading into the summer session.

A-Day provided a disappointing ending to Auburn’s spring practice session as the offense failed to score more than one touchdown in the game.

The touchdown, however, was exciting. Quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] connected with freshman wide receiver [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] for a 34-yard score in the 4th quarter, which could be seen as foreshadowing for what could be the 1-2 punch on Auburn’s offense this season.

Still, Auburn’s offense has work to do in order to find success in 2024. Following the spring session, CBS Sports’ Will Backus revealed his post-spring SEC rankings, where he placed Auburn at No. 12. Backus says that Auburn has the potential to rise, but Thorne holds the key to overall success.

Hugh Freeze has spent a lot of time and effort upgrading his team around the quarterback. Now it’s up to Payton Thorne to take that next step. The former Michigan State transfer failed to impress in his first season on The Plains. Whether that was due to a lack of talent to spread the ball to — no longer an issue now that former five stars like WR Cam Coleman are on the team — or Thorne’s own limitations, he has to be a whole lot better if the Tigers want to avoid embarrassments like losing to New Mexico State.

In addition to Coleman, Auburn has added three other highly touted freshman wide receivers [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], [autotag]Bryce Cain[/autotag], and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] to its roster. [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] and [autotag]Robert Lewis[/autotag] also provide the room with experience from the transfer portal. Expect Thorne to take a step forward this season and to play a major role in Auburn moving up CBS Sports’ rankings once the season gets underway.

Hugh Freeze: ‘I believe in our quarterback room’

Auburn’s head coach believes that he has the offensive pieces to make Payton Thorne and all Auburn quarterbacks successful.

Auburn football handled several needs this offseason, especially at wide receiver.

Following the additions of [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], [autotag]Bryce Cain[/autotag], and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] from high school and [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] and [autotag]Robert Lewis[/autotag] from the transfer portal, Auburn fans and media members alike began to wonder if Auburn’s quarterback room would allow the new receivers to reach their full potential.

Hugh Freeze pondered that question also. When weighing the options, he decided to subscribe to the “bloom where you are planted” method and develop the stable of quarterbacks that are already on the roster. In a recent interview with Jox 94.5’s McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning, Freeze broke down his thought process when deciding to develop or go to the transfer portal this offseason.

“The options that you’re presented with: develop Payton (Thorne), develop Holden (Geriner), develop Hank (Brown), develop Walker (White), or go spend a million dollars on this guy, I just couldn’t bring myself to doing that, because I wanted to put all the pieces together,” Freeze said.

Following A-Day, Freeze made it apparent that Thorne will get the first nod at the position this season. Following a disappointing season in which he passed for 1,755 yards and 16 touchdowns with 10 interceptions, Freeze believes that the recent receiver additions will boost his production, citing his Michigan State targets Keon Coleman and Jalen Nailor as examples.

“I’ve watched (Thorne’s) Michigan State stuff 1,000 times, he had two NFL receivers and he was pretty danged good,” Freeze said. “There’s a lot of things that should be 50-50 balls and you’ve got to have a guy that can do that. I think Dre Lambert, he’s a 50-50 pass-catcher. And obviously, we’re excited about the ones we signed.”

Outside of receivers, Freeze says that newly-appointed quarterbacks coach [autotag]Kent Austin[/autotag] will get Thorne, and every Auburn quarterback, to the right level.

“I believe in our quarterback room. I believe in Kent Austin,” Freeze said. “I believe if you have the right pieces around Payton that we can have success. I think you saw some glimpses of that, and I don’t think we had a total package around him really.”

In three seasons at Michigan State, Thorne passed for 6,501 yards and 49 touchdowns. In 2022, Thorne passed for 3,240 yards and 27 touchdowns with Buffalo Bills wide receiver Keon Coleman and Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jalen Nailor as his top targets. It will be interesting to see how much of a step forward Thorne takes with a revamped wide-receiving corps.

Auburn reaches out to Arizona State transfer WR Elijhah Badger

Badger hauled in 141 catches for 1,640 yards and 10 touchdowns in four seasons at Arizona State.

Auburn football has enhanced its wide receiver room more than any position group this offseason. However, following the departure of Koy Moore to the transfer portal, [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and his staff are looking to add one more to the rotation.

According to a report by On3, former Arizona State wide receiver [autotag]Elijhah Badger[/autotag] has heard from over 20 programs since entering the transfer portal on April 20 including Auburn. Auburn is one of six SEC programs that have expressed interest in Badger including Florida, Texas A&M, and Arkansas.

Badger was a highly-touted recruit from Folsom High School in Sacramento, California. He was a four-star athlete ranked No. 6 in the nation and was the No. 14 overall product from California from the 2020 recruiting cycle.

His play at Arizona State was indicative of his recruiting rankings as he hauled in 142 catches for 1,640 yards and 10 touchdowns in four seasons in Tempe. He was the Sun Devils leading receiver in both 2022 and 2023, where he combined to catch 135 passes for 1,579 yards and 10 scores. The 2022 season was his best to-date where he reached career-bests in receptions (70), yards (866), and touchdowns (7).

Auburn will have plenty of weapons in its receiving room this season. The Tigers’ leading receiver from last season, [autotag]Rivaldo Fairweather[/autotag], returns while former Penn State stand out [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] joins the roster from the transfer portal. Adding a receiver such as Badger would bring more experience to the roster, which will be a great development tool for freshmen receivers [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag], and [autotag]Bryce Cain[/autotag].

Former Arizona State WR Elijhah Badger has heard from these 2️⃣0️⃣ Schools since entering the Transfer Portal, he tells @on3sports

The 6’2 190 WR totaled 142 receptions for 1,640 Yards, & 10 TDs in his time at ASU

Is the Top Available WR in the Portal (per On3 Industry)… pic.twitter.com/Q5FEMBioxT

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) May 4, 2024

Jay Fair becomes second Tiger to enter transfer portal

Fair logged 34 catches for 358 yards and two touchdowns in two seasons at Auburn.

The spring transfer portal window has been relatively quiet for Auburn, as just two players have declared their intention to depart from the program.

Joining defensive lineman [autotag]Brenton Williams[/autotag], wide receiver [autotag]Jay Fair[/autotag] has also elected to dip into the transfer portal after spending two seasons on the Plains.

Fair was a notable player heading into the 2023 season following a successful training camp. The hype bled into the season as he made 14 catches for 174 yards and two touchdowns in Auburn’s first three games. However, his production dipped as he managed to record just 17 catches for 150 yards and zero scores over the final 10 games.

Despite his late struggles, Fair was second in receptions with 31, third in yards with 324, and tied for third with two touchdown catches. Auburn’s leading receiver, [autotag]Rivaldo Fairweather[/autotag], returns to the team for the 2024 season. At the same time, true freshmen [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Bryce Cain[/autotag], [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag], and [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag] are expected to enter the receiver rotation.

Auburn has received one commitment from the spring window, former Indiana defensive lineman Philip Blidi. Former Penn State receiver [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] and former USC [autotag]Isaiah Raikes[/autotag] are also high on Auburn’s board.

BREAKING: Auburn WR Jay Fair plans to enter the Transfer Portal, he tells @on3sports

The 5’11 186 WR was a 2 year starter for the Tigers

2nd on the team in yards & receptions, averaged 11 yards per catch

Will have 2 years of eligibility remaining https://t.co/QF4bT5n3rg pic.twitter.com/Q9wQOZMGlY

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) April 20, 2024

Former Penn State WR KeAndre Lambert-Smith schedules official visit to Auburn

Who says there is such a thing as too much talent in your wide receiver room?

Auburn is set to have one of its most talented wide receiver rooms in recent memory as Georgia State’s leading receiver from last season, [autotag]Robert Lewis[/autotag], joins the roster in addition to true freshmen [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], [autotag]Bryce Cain[/autotag], and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag].

However, [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] wants to give his quarterbacks every advantage possible. Because of this, he is pursuing one of the top wide receivers in the transfer portal.

Former Penn State wide receiver [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] entered the transfer portal this week, and is already filling his calendar with official visits. According to Pete Nakos of On3, Lambert-Smith will be in Auburn for his official visit beginning Thursday.

Lambert-Smith had a productive career at Penn State. In four seasons, he logged 1,721 yards on 126 catches with 11 touchdowns. He completed his best season in 2023 by hauling in 53 passes for 673 yards, both were career-highs. He also tied his career-best in touchdowns with four.

He was Penn State’s highest-graded receiver according to Pro Football Focus with a 74.0. He caught 53 of 85 targeted passes with 11 contested catches and five drops.

Lambert-Smith has scheduled for Texas A&M that will take place following his Auburn visit this weekend. Colorado and West Virginia are other known schools that are actively pursuing Lambert-Smith.