Tag: zion grady

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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Five-star Ohio State pledge Na’eem Offord to visit Auburn on Saturday

Auburn is working hard to flip Alabama’s top 2025 recruit from Ohio State.

Auburn football’s star-studded visitors list for the season opener against Alabama A&M just got brighter.

[autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag], an Ohio State pledge and Alabama’s top recruit from the 2025 cycle, is scheduled to visit the Plains this weekend. Joining him are four-star quarterback [autotag]Deuce Knight[/autotag] (Notre Dame commit), four-star linebacker [autotag]Elijah Melendez[/autotag] (Miami commit), and four-star running back [autotag]Ousmane Kromah[/autotag].

Saturday will be Offord’s first visit to Auburn since Big Cat Weekend last month. Offord says that he enjoyed the weekend visit and that Auburn coaches are working to keep him in the state.

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

Offord is the No. 1 recruit from Alabama for the 2025 cycle according to 247Sports. Getting Offord on campus is important for Auburn as they look to complete the top-10 sweep of Alabama’s top recruits. Currently, eight of Alabama’s top 10 recruits are committed to Auburn with Offord and four-star EDGE [autotag]Zion Grady[/autotag], a fellow Ohio State pledge, not following suit.

Could Auburn wrap up the weekend by gaining an advantage with both Knight and Offord?

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Auburn named a ‘summer recruiting winner’ by ESPN

Hugh Freeze’s recruiting efforts were top notch over the summer as several notable recruits announced their pledge to Auburn.

As school returns to session, many are reflecting on summer memories. For Auburn football, their summer was one for the history books.

Auburn football landed several notable recruits for their 2025 class such as running back [autotag]Alvin Henderson[/autotag], safety [autotag]Eric Winters[/autotag], defensive end [autotag]Jared Smith[/autotag], and safety [autotag]Anquon Fegans[/autotag]. The Tigers also got a head start on its 2026 recruiting efforts by landing four players, which caused Auburn to surge to No. 1 in 247Sports rankings.

The biggest takeaway of all from Auburn’s recent recruiting efforts is their knack for landing in-state talent. To this point in the cycle, Auburn holds commitments from eight of Alabama’s top 10 recruits from the 2025 cycle and is working towards a clean sweep by continuing to recruit [autotag]Na’eem Offord[/autotag] (No. 1) and [autotag]Zion Grady[/autotag] (No. 6) with full force.

Auburn’s recent success in recruiting has earned them a spot at the “winners” table according to ESPN’s Eli Lederman.

Lederman recapped the busy summer of recruiting by placing programs in a winners and losers category when it comes to summer recruiting. One Big Ten recruiting staffer says that the likelihood of Auburn keeping its strong class hangs in its 2024 record.

“I could see them continuing to charge on and sign a top-five class,” a Big Ten recruiting staffer said. “I could also see them going 7-5 and that class crumbling pretty fast.”

Lederman also posed a question regarding Auburn’s 2025 class.. will it rise? Lederman breaks down several ways that Auburn could make the most of the current cycle.

The Tigers are the favorites for Deuce Knight if the Notre Dame pledge pulls his commitment. Ditto for Ohio State cornerback pledge Na’eem Offord, the top cornerback in the 2025 class out of Birmingham, Alabama. The Tigers remain a long shot for four-star offensive tackle Andrew Babalola (No. 51 in the ESPN 300), and should be well positioned for four-star linebacker Tyler Lockhart, No. 132 in the ESPN 300.

Auburn football’s 2025 class ranks No. 5 in 247Sports as the calendar turns toward the final portion of August.

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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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Another Ohio State football commit shuts down notion of flipping

Great news for the Buckeyes

This weekend was the last recruiting time before a dead period, and Ohio State football didn’t host a gathering like many other schools did.

That opened up the time for some Buckeye 2025 commits to visit other schools, and defensive end commit, [autotag]Zion Grady[/autotag], was one of them. The nation’s No. 80 overall player according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings took a trip to Auburn on Saturday.

Rivals reporter Bryan Matthews wrote a story claiming that he felt like the Tigers “have a good chance” to flip the 6-foot, 4-inch, 235-pound star.

As Lee Corso famously says, “not so fast my friends,” as Grady quoted the story and claimed that he’s “1000% lock-in.”

If I had to guess the reason for the trip was an accompany one his best friends, 2025 Auburn commit [autotag]Malik Autry[/autotag]. Ohio State is actively trying to flip the defensive tackle, and Grady is just trying to help those efforts.

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Four-star edge rusher Zion Grady dispels Auburn rumors after Big Cat Weekend

The Enterprise, AL native’s presence on the Plains created some speculation on a possible flip in his commitment,

2025 four-star edge rusher[autotag]Zion Grady[/autotag] spent some time in Auburn recently for ‘Big Cat Weekend’ despite his hard commitment to Ohio State.

The Enterprise, Alabama native’s presence on the Plains created some speculation on a possible flip in his commitment, but Grady took to X (formerly Twitter) to put an end to it, writing he is “1000% lock-in” to Ryan Day’s Buckeyes.

While the consensus top 80 prospect in the class may have just decided to take the 2-hour drive up I-85 to enjoy some time in the “Loveliest Village”, the fact he was there could have at least given[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and his staff some room to make a final plea for his talents. The in-state recruit has been committed to Ohio State since June 24 after he took an official visit three days earlier.

His commitment came just two weeks after an official visit to Auburn, which could have given the Tigers’ staff an indication they were “right there” among his final choices. Still, it seems Grady’s decision is fairly final. We’ll see if Freeze and company can pull a rabbit out of “the shoe” as National Signing Day approaches.

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A look at four ‘flip’ candidates ahead of Big Cat Weekend

Will Auburn end the weekend by flipping these four talented recruits?

Guests are beginning to arrive on Auburn’s campus for the biggest recruiting event of the season, Big Cat Weekend.

[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and his coaching staff will welcome several uncommitted recruits and even more talented 2026 targets. However, its toughest recruiting effort will be spent on four players committed to playing college football elsewhere.

A total of 22 known recruits from the 2025 cycle will be present during Big Cat Weekend, with four committed to fellow Power Four programs. According to Auburn Undercover’s running list of Big Cat visitors, four-star athlete [autotag]Derick Smith[/autotag] (Alabama), four-star EDGE [autotag]Zion Grady[/autotag] (Ohio State), three-star RB [autotag]Daune Morris[/autotag] (USC), and three-star WR [autotag]Sam Turner[/autotag] (Georgia Tech) will all participate in this weekend’s activities.

Smith pledged to Alabama in March, and still appears to be leaning towards the Crimson Tide. However, Steve Wiltfong of On3 places Smith at the top of Auburn’s flip wish list. The Selma native is being recruited by Auburn to play wide receiver and in the secondary according to Wiltfong. The possibilities are endless with Smith, as he enters the weekend as the No. 2 athlete in the nation according to 247Sports.

Grady has flipped his commitment from Georgia to Ohio State this calendar year, but his recruitment is not quite finished. Auburn has already landed a commitment from one of Grady’s high school teammates from Enterprise High School, four-star safety [autotag]Eric Winters[/autotag]. Winters will also attend Big Cat Weekend and could work some magic in order to shift Grady’s pledge to the Tigers.

Morris is a three-star running back from Murfreesboro, Tennessee and is pledged to USC. However, a few programs including Auburn, Ole Miss, and Tennessee are also candidates to flip him. Can Auburn get the upper-hand and sway Morris to stay closer to home?

The final candidate is Dekalb County, Georgia native Sam Turner. Turner earned an Auburn offer in June and is quickly shooting up the recruiting board for Auburn. Turner, a Georgia Tech commit, says that he is building a relationship with Auburn wide receivers coach [autotag]Marcus Davis[/autotag] and that his recruitment is not over.

Auburn’s coaching staff will need to bring their best efforts in order to steal these talented prospects away from their respective commitments. The great news for Auburn is that 12 of their commitments will also be on campus this weekend working as extra recruiters.

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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 edge rusher Zion Grady announces commitment

Four-star edge rusher recruit Zion Grady has announced his college decision

Four-star pass rusher Zion Grady has committed to the Ohio State Buckeyes. Grady decommitted from the Alabama Crimson Tide after Nick Saban’s retirement. Grady had been projected to commit to the Georgia Bulldogs.

Grady’s commitment helps strengthen Ohio State’s No. 1 recruiting class. The Buckeyes have commitments from 19 prospects in the class of 2025. Not too far behind Ohio State are Alabama (nation’s No. 2 recruiting class) and Georgia (nation’s No. 5 recruiting class).

The 6-foot-4, 235-pound defender plays high school football for Enterprise High School in Enterprise, Alabama. Grady previously played football for Charles Henderson High School in Troy, Alabama.

Grady is ranked as the No. 66 player in the 2025 recruiting cycle. Grady is the sixth-ranked player in Alabama. He is the No. 6 edge rusher in the country, per 247Sports.

Grady helped Charles Henderson make a state championship game in two consecutive seasons. Last season, the four-star recorded 11 sacks and 87 tackles.

Grady also plays basketball. According to Grady’s social media page, he recorded 108 tackles and 22 sacks in 2022. Grady has already committed to playing in the 2025 All-American Bowl on NBC.

The talented pass rusher is an explosive athlete with excellent bend. Grady’s closing speed helps him accumulate sacks on opposing quarterbacks. He’s exactly the sort of pass rusher that should be productive at the next level.

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Following Grady’s commitment, Georgia football turns its focus to five-star edge rusher Isaiah Gibson and four-star edge rusher Julius Holly at the position.

Ohio State swoops into SEC country to land 4-star defensive lineman Zion Grady

Zion Grady commits to Ohio State.

Zion Grady gave his verbal to Ohio State on Monday, giving another blue-chip recruit to the nation’s top recruiting class.

A 6-foot-4 and 230-pound defensive end, Grady is the No. 45 recruit in the ESPN 300. Over the weekend, Grady took an official visit to Ohio State.

Grady plays for Enterprise High School (Troy, Alabama). Last year, he had 106 total tackles with 19 sacks.

He took prior official visits to Miami and Florida State this summer.

In the On3 Industry Rankings, Grady is the No. 79 overall recruit. He is the sixth-ranked recruit in Alabama in this recruiting cycle and No. 11 defensive end.

His commitment was made official via Hayes Fawcett of On3:

 

Ohio State has the top recruiting class in the nation according to On3. With the addition of Grady, the Buckeyes now have 19 committed players.

They have three recruits ranked as five-stars. Grady is the tenth player committed to Ohio State ranked among the top 100 in the nation by On3.