Tag: Na’Eem Offord

Three Auburn commits listed on MaxPreps All-American Preseason Team

Safety Anquon Fegans, running back Alvin Henderson and safety/wide receiver Derick Smith made the cut.

As back-to-school advertisements air on television, the high school football season, specifically at schools below the Mason-Dixon line, is ready to begin.

With the start of “Friday Night Lights”, MaxPreps released its All-American Preseason High School Football Team. Three high-profile Auburn Tiger commits, safety [autotag]Anquon Fegans[/autotag] (First Team), running back [autotag]Alvin Henderson[/autotag] (Second Team), and safety/wide receiver [autotag]Derick Smith[/autotag] (Second Team) made the cut.

Fegans, who committed to Auburn last month, received the nod on the first team after MaxPreps named his to the All-American team as a junior. The No. 5 safety in the 2025 class is looking to build on a fantastic junior season in which he picked off opposing quarterbacks 5 times while racking up 50 tackles. Health permitting, the Alabaster, AL native should make an impact on the Plains as soon as he lands on campus next summer.

Four-star running back [autotag]Alvin Henderson[/autotag] is the only “full time” offensive Auburn commit to receive Preseason All-American honors. A consensus top 20 back in the 2025 class, Henderson originally chose Penn State before flipping his commitment to Auburn in June. Like Fegans, Henderson has an equal chance to make an immediate impact as a Tiger next season with current Auburn running back [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] entering his senior season in 2024.

Four-star athlete Derick Smith joins Henderson on the All-American Second Team just two weeks after flipping his commitment from rival Alabama to the Tigers. The talented two-way star will likely line up as a wide receiver once he makes his way to the Plains next summer but will continue to receive reps on both sides of the ball during his senior season at Southside High School in Selma, Alabama.

Besides the trio of highly-ranked Auburn commits, a few other Tiger targets received spots on MaxPreps Preseason Teams. 2025 recruits [autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag], [autotag]Andrew Babalola[/autotag], [autotag]Zion Grady[/autotag], as well as 2026 linebacker [autotag]Tyler Atkinson[/autotag] were also featured on the All-American teams.

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Na’eem Offord makes return to the Plains for Big Cat

The state’s top 2025 recruit enjoyed a “fun” time on the Plains for Big Cat Weekend.

Auburn football is attempting to stay competitive in the race for many of the nation’s top players in the 2025 recruiting cycle. After a successful Big Cat Weekend, have the Tigers made any gains in tight races?

They certainly think so, especially on five-star cornerback [autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag], who committed to the Ohio State Buckeyes on Feb. 4.

Offord has been a star throughout his high school career at Parker (Ala.), doing whatever he can to make plays on the ball and cause havoc for opponents.

During the weekend’s festivities, Offord did not do a lot game-related activities. Instead, his visit was more focused on meeting others and seeing the culture that has been developed on the Plains.

“It was just a fun day,” Offord said. “It was more having fun and just hanging around. We did that little scavenger hunt and were running around. That was fun.”

Offord is currently ranked as the No. 9 overall player and No. 3 cornerback in the nation according to the On3 industry ranking, but is seen by all major outlets as the No. 1 player in the state of Alabama.

Former Buckeyes’ commit Blake Woodby already committed to Auburn on Saturday. Now, the Tigers are in heavy pursuit to get another top prospect on their side.

“I’m currently committed to Ohio State, but still enjoying the process,” Offord said. “With Auburn, I’m an in-state guy, so they want to recruit me as hard as they can.”

Auburn currently holds the No. 12 recruiting class in the country for the 2025 cycle, looking to continually improve as the fall season nears.

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2025 EDGE Zion Grady commits to Ohio State over Auburn, others

The Buckeyes now claim two of Alabama’s top 10 recruits from the 2025 cycle.

Auburn football has recruited its home state well this cycle by landing commitments from six of Alabama’s top 25 recruits. The bad news, unfortunately, is that Auburn can’t sign them all.

[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and his staff worked hard to bring four-star EDGE [autotag]Zion Grady[/autotag] aboard its 2025 haul after his de-commitment from Alabama in January. After a six-month battle, the Tigers ultimately lost out on Grady, as he announced his pledge to Ohio State on Monday.

Grady, the No. 6 recruit from Alabama in the 2025 recruiting cycle and the No. 10 EDGE in the national rankings kicked off his string of official visits in May by visiting Miami. He also visited Auburn, Florida State, and Tennessee before making the trek to Columbus last weekend. He ended his official visit to Ohio State by giving Ryan Day his commitment.

He tells 247Sports’ Bill Kurelic that Ohio State’s track record for development is unmatched, and that he is happy to shut down his recruitment.

“The coaching staff is A-1, the facility is great and people in Ohio are great,” Grady said in an interview with 247Sports. “I was very impressed with how detailed coach (Larry) Johnson is with his recruitment approach.  Why not be a Buckeye.  Hard to find a better program for development.  Man, it feels great.. glad to get this over with.”

With Grady’s commitment, Ohio State now claims two of Alabama’s top 10 recruits from the 2025 cycle, joining five-star CB [autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag], the state’s No. 1 overall recruit out of Parker High School in Birmingham.

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Four-star safety Eric Winters commits to Auburn

Alabama’s No. 5 overall recruit from the 2025 recruiting cycle commits to Auburn on his official visit.

Auburn target [autotag]Eric Winters[/autotag] is one of 12 recruits on campus for official visits this weekend. Speculation of a commitment to Auburn began to rise as soon as he stepped on campus, as recruiting analysts from multiple outlets projected Auburn to land Winters before the weekend ended.

Turns out, speculations were true as Winters announced his commitment to [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and the Tigers on Saturday afternoon.

Winters, a four-star safety from Enterprise, Alabama, says that his relationship with Freeze led to his pledge to Auburn.

“(Freeze) is a big part of why I committed to Auburn,” Winters said after announcing his commitment to Auburn. “He loves his players, he is a family guy and we built a great relationship. Coach Freeze is doing big things at Auburn and he made me feel like a priority and made me feel comfortable.”

Auburn has always been near the top of the list for Winters, but they needed to make a giant stride this weekend in order to create separation between themselves, Georgia, and Miami. Between Freeze and the “home” atmosphere of Auburn University, the chose became simple for Winters.

Now, he wants several of the state’s top recruits to join him on the Plains.

“I am already working guys. It starts with my teammate [autotag]Zion Grady[/autotag]. I am going after [autotag]Alvin Henderson[/autotag], [autotag]Julian Lewis[/autotag], [autotag]KJ Lacey[/autotag] and some others,” Winters said. “Coach Freeze has this group of defensive players in Alabama he wants called the Super 7. Guys like [autotag]Jared Smith[/autotag], [autotag]Anquon Fegans[/autotag], [autotag]Naeem Offord[/autotag], and Zion are guys that haven’t committed yet. I will be on all of those guys.”

Winters is the No. 5 recruit from Alabama for the 2025 cycle, and is the fourth top-10 player from Alabama to pledge to Auburn. The 6-2, 200-pound safety ranks No. 5 overall at his position, and is the No. 53 overall recruit for the cycle. By landing Winters, Auburn now ranks No. 6 in 247Sports’ class of 2025 recruiting rankings.

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Auburn impresses offensive tackle target Broderick Shull on official visit

In the midst of many recruiting battles, Auburn offensive tackle target Broderick Shull has a highly positive view after his official visit

Auburn football is attempting to make massive moves on the recruiting trail in the summer, with many prospective players making official visits to the Plains.

One of those recruits is offensive tackle [autotag]Broderick Shull[/autotag], who made his visit to the Tigers this weekend and was highly impressed.

“This was definitely the experience I needed to kind of make my decision much easier,” Shull said in an interview with Auburn Undercover. “I would say definitely getting more of the campus vibe was a good part of it. Also just seeing everyone again was a pretty good experience. The most important part was getting to see the players mainly because you can see what they’re really like off campus and seeing if it’s a fit for me. And which, these guys are pretty awesome, they fit me well. They’re responsible, mature guys.”

Shull made his second visit to Auburn after visiting earlier this spring. This time, he left with a very positive feel about what all Auburn had offer throughout its campus facilities.

The four-star offensive lineman is currently ranked as the No. 149 player in the country and the No. 13 offensive tackle recruit according to the On3 industry ranking. He is also ranked the No. 3 prospect in the state of Oklahoma.

A main reason why Auburn now sits in a good position to land Shull can be credited to the relationship that offensive line coach [autotag]Jake Thornton[/autotag] has built with him.

With a possible decision day nearing later in June, Shull is still set to visit the likes of Texas Tech and Texas A&M during the month, while he already visited Nebraska in May.

Auburn football hosted several notable targets for visits over the weekend including five-stars [autotag]Caleb Cunningham[/autotag] and [autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag], as well as former Ohio State pledge [autotag]Blake Woodby[/autotag]. Any commitments from these players would be monumental for the program, and coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] is making sure that he does whatever he can to land the talented players.

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Five-star Ohio State pledge recaps Auburn visit

Alabama’s top recruit for the 2025 cycle paid a surprise visit to the Plains over the weekend. Did Auburn impress?

Earlier last week, five-star Ohio State pledge [autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag] told On3’s Cole Pinkston that he planned to save his official visit to Auburn for the season. So it was a surprise to many that he stopped by the Plains for a visit over the weekend.

Offord showed up for a star-studded recruiting weekend featuring five-star wide receiver [autotag]Caleb Cunningham[/autotag] and four-star OL [autotag]Broderick Shull[/autotag] as visitors. He spoke with Jeffrey Lee of On3 following his visit on Sunday afternoon by explaining his sudden appearance on the Plains.

“It was better because the coaches don’t have to focus on the game if you do it right now,” Offord said of his weekend visit. “They’re not doing anything now. It made sense for me to do it this weekend.”

He made the most of his visit by arriving on Friday and departing Sunday. Offord spent time with every coach including cornerbacks coach [autotag]Wesley McGriff[/autotag] and defensive coordinator [autotag]DJ Durkin[/autotag]. Their pitch to Offord was the importantance of staying in-state and that he is their “No. 1 target.”

“They are the only school telling me that,” Offord said.

Offord is a five-star cornerback from Parker High School in Birmingham, and ranks as high as No. 6 nationally by 247Sports and ESPN. He announced his pledge to Ohio State since February, and has worked on flipping Auburn commit Malik Autry to the Buckeyes. Maybe this weekend’s trip will allow Autry to flip the script and sway Offord to commit to Auburn.

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Alabama’s top 2025 recruit plans to visit Auburn this fall

Auburn football has earned several commitments from Alabama’s top 2025 recruits. Can it land the state’s top player this cycle?

Auburn football remains in the hunt to land the state’s top recruit for the 2025 cycle.

[autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag], a five-star cornerback from Parker High School in Birmingham, has been an Ohio State pledge since February. However, as has become customary, Auburn is refusing to yield until signing day.

In a recent interview with Cole Pinkston of On3, Offord says that he remains in contact with Auburn defensive backs coach [autotag]Wesley McGriff[/autotag], and that high school teammate and current 2025 Auburn pledge [autotag]Jourdin Crawford[/autotag] continues to recruit him on Auburn’s behalf.

With Auburn still making a push, does Offord plan to visit the Plains soon? He tells Pinkston that he will be on campus for a scheduled 7-on-7 with his high school team, and says that he plans to take official visits to Auburn and rival Alabama during the season.

“I don’t have an (official visit) date set yet, but I am saving those two schools (Auburn and Alabama) for last,” Offord tells Pinkston.

Auburn has recruited its home-base well this cycle, as three of the state’s top-10 recruits have committed to head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and the program. [autotag]Eric Winters[/autotag], the state’s No. 5 overall recruit, has a crystal ball prediction from 247Sports that favors Auburn.

Offord is the top overall recruit from Alabama for the 2025 cycle, and is the No. 2 cornerback according to 247Sports’ national rankings.

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Florida targets 5-star Ohio State DB commit for mid-June official visit

Florida is battling Oregon for a mid-June official visit date with one of the best overall prospects int he 2025 cycle.

College football’s official visit season kicks off on the final day of May and the Florida Gators are doing everything in their power to make the most of the summer schedule. The list of prep prospects so far is already impressive but there is still headroom for improvement.

One of the Gators’ targets to get on campus next month is five-star cornerback [autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag] out of Birmingham (Alabama) Parker in the 2025 cycle. The 6-foot-1-inch, 185-pound defensive back is one of the best prospects in his class — both overall and at his position — and is committed to the Ohio State Buckeyes as of Feb. 4.

However, the door is still open to potential suitors before he makes his final decision. The Cotton State product is still listening to suitors such as the Georgia Bulldogs, Oregon Ducks, Auburn Tigers and Alabama Crimson Tide, as well as Florida.

Florida’s potential official visit date

Billy Napier and Co. have yet to set a date but they are battling another top team for one of the June slots.

“Yeah I’m taking an official,” he told 247Sports in regard to the Gators. “I don’t know yet. June 14th it’s either going to be Oregon or Florida. Still trying to decide.”

Recruiting Summary

Offord is ranked No. 6 overall and No. 2 at his position nationally according to the 247Sports composite while the On3 industry ranking has him at Nos. 7 and 3, respectively.

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5 recruits Alabama would like to flip in the 2025 recruiting class

There is plenty of talent in the 2025 recruiting class. Here are five prospects Alabama should make a hard push for.

Alabama has recruited at an elite level year in and year out. With a new coaching staff, there lies some uncertainty on the recruiting trail.

Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer has worked effortlessly to assemble a coaching staff with prominent recruiters. There seems to be some promise with the new coaching staff.

The program’s general manager Courtney Morgan and multiple assistants have hit the ground running. In recent weeks, the coaching staff has visited multiple prospects and has gotten several of them to commit to unofficial visits.

Some of the prospects that will be visiting Tuscaloosa in recent weeks are committed elsewhere.

Roll Tide Wire takes a look at five recruits that Alabama would like to flip in the 2025 recruiting class.

Five-star CB Na’eem Offord to visit Auburn for Ole Miss game

Na’eem Offord is returning to the Plains for his second game this season.

[autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag] is one of the top players in the 2025 recruiting cycle and for the second time this season, he will be visiting the Plains. The Birmingham product announced he would be visiting Auburn for the Ole Miss game on social media.

He also attended Auburn’s game against Samford as Auburn continues to prioritize the 6-foot-1, 185-pounder. Secondary coach [autotag]Zac Etheridge[/autotag] extended him an offer back on Sept. 3, 2022, and his recruitment has taken off since then.

Offord is now the No. 8 overall player and No. 2 cornerback in the 247Sports composite ranking. He is also the No. 2 player from Alabama.

Offord is one of several major Auburn targets who plays for Parker High School. They have already landed a commitment from 2025 defensive lineman [autotag]Jourdin Crawford[/autotag] and are working to flip 2024 defensive lineman [autotag]Jeremiah Beaman[/autotag] from Alabama.

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