Thorough Recruiting Update from AUC (12/18/17)

[ellitor 33,077]

Keith just did a Recruiting Insider covering all the commits & nearly every known target left on the board & decided to be nice & make it free.

 

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Keith Niebuhr

From left, Dylan Wonnum and Jalil Irvin. (Photo: Keith Niebuhr , 247Sports)

 

Here are some key dates and other intel you need to know moving forward .... This should help you keep track of things in one place. Just know, though, commitment dates always are subject to change.

First, let's start with the Auburn commits ....

***EARLY ENROLLEES***

-Joey Gatewood, QB, St. Johns (Fla.) Bartram Trail: Arrives in January.

-Asa Martin, RB, Decatur (Ala.) Austin: Moved in over the weekend.

-Josh Marsh, ATH, Decatur (Ala.): Moved in over the weekend.

-Quindarious Monday, S, Atlanta (Ga.) Carver: Moved in over the weekend.

-Daquan Newkirk, DT, Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College: Moved in over the weekend.

-Shedrick Jackson, WR, Hoover (Ala.): Arrives this week.

-Jamien Sherwood, S, Jensen Beach (Fla.): Arrives in January.

-Christian Tutt, DB, Thomson (Ga.): Moved in over the weekend.

 

***AU COMMITS EXPECTED TO SIGN WEDNESDAY***

-Kolbi Fuqua, S, Cordova (Ala.)

-Joey Gatewood, QB, St. Johns (Fla.) Bartram Trail:

-Mike Harris, LB, Tucker (Ga.)

-Shedrick Jackson, WR, Hoover (Ala.)

-Richard Jibunor, LB, Athens Christian (Ga.)

-Josh Marsh, ATH, Decatur (Ala.)

-Asa Martin, RB, Decatur (Ala.) Austin

-Zakoby McClain, LB, Valosta (Ga.)

-Daquan Newkirk, DT, Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College

-Kayode Oladele, DE, Hialeah (Fla) Champagnat

-Shaun Shivers, RB, Hollywood (Fla.) Chaminade-Madonna

-Kameron Stutts, OL, Killen (Ala.) Brooks

-Christian Tutt, DB, Thomson (Ga.)

-Seth Williams, WR, Cottondale (Ala.) Bryant

 

***AU COMMITS  EXPECTED TO SIGN THURSDAY***

-Jalil Irvin, OL, Stone Mountain (Ga.) Stephenson

-Quindarious Monday, S: Moved in over the weekend.

-Jamien Sherwood, S, Jensen Beach (Fla.): Arrives in January.

 

***AU COMMITS WHO PLAN TO SIGN IN FEBRUARY***

-Matthew Hill, WR, Snellville (Ga.) Brookwood

-Coynis Miller, DT, Birmingham (Ala.) Jackson-Olin

-Arryn Siposs, P, ProKick Australia

 

***

Now, here are some dates and time frames for key Auburn targets ... 

-Jerome Carvin, OT, Cordova (Tenn.): Four-star recruit is an early enrolee. Plans to sign Wednesday. Auburn, Mississippi State and Tennessee are the top contenders. Some think the Bulldogs and Vols have edged ahead.

-Luke Ford, TE, Carterville (Ill.): Four-star recruit officially visited Auburn during Iron Bowl weekend. Georgia is the favorite but Auburn has made a signifcant move to become a threat. Also watch for Texas A&M. He planned to announce a commitment Jan. 6 at U.S. Army All-American Bowl but probably wait until later to take more visits.

-Andres Fox, DE, Mobile Christian (Ala.): He's on record as saying he plans to announce on National Signing Day in February. The 4-star end hopes to take official visits to Auburn, Alabama, LSU and Stanford. The Cardinal is a serious threat and if he is admitted to Stanford, it probably will sign him.

-Benjie Franklin, CB, Navarro College: The No. 3 junior college corner will officially visit in January.

-Jalen Goss, OT, Valdosta (Ga.) Lowndes: Officially visited the Tigers over the weekend and Auburn may have emerged as the favorite for the 3-star recruit. Also very high on the boards at Michigan and Miami.

-Richard Gouraige, OT, Tampa (Fla.) Cambridge Christian: Gators 4-star commit visited Auburn during Iron Bowl weekend. Now, he plans to officially visit, but the date hasn't been set. Not an early enrollee. Auburn appears to have become a legitimate contender and visited him each of the past two weeks.

-Roger McCreary, CB, Mobile (Ala.) Williamson: Sleeper target was offered by Auburn last week and will officially visit in January.

-JJ Peterson, LB, Moultrie (Ga.) Colquitt County: Longtime Alabama lean might end up elsewhere after the departure of Tide defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt, who now is head coach at Tennessee. The Vols and Auburn are two schools to watch.

-Nicholas Petit-Frere OT, Berkeley Prep (Tampa, FL): Tigers have visited the 5-star recruit twice this month but seem like a longshot at this time.

-Justyn Ross, WR, Phenix City (Ala.) Central: The No. 1 recruit in the state of Alabama plans to announce National Signing Day in February. Has officially visited Clemson. Will also official to Auburn and Alabama in January with Auburn getting his final visit. High-priority guy. Clemson is trending big. 

-Anthony Schwartz, WR, Plantation (Fla.) American Heritage: Auburn lean. Florida is the other biggest threat as of now for the 4-star recruit. Will officially visit the Tigers in January.

-Caleb Tannor, DE, Lithonia (Ga.) Miller Grove: Georgia dropped the 4-star recruit over academic concerns, but it sounds like he will have a chance to qualify. If Auburn misses on Fox, then it could grab Tannor. He initially chose the Bulldogs over the Tigers.

 

-Channing Tindall, LB, Spring Valley (S.C.): Officially visited Auburn for the Iron Bowl. The Tigers remain a factor for the 4-star backer but Georgia is the heavy favorite.

-Quay Walker, LB, Crisp County: Four-star Alabama commit does not plan to sign during the early signing period. Told AuburnUndercover.com he will officially visit Auburn, likely in January. Auburn is optimistic a flip can happen but the Tide won't go down without a major fight.

-Dylan Wonnum, OT, Tucker (Ga.): South Carolina is the favorite for the 4-star recruit but Auburn continues to battle and he will officially visit in January.

 

 

[kd4au 1,145]

Glad to see we are still after several tackles. Hope we can get at least one and two would be better.

[ellitor 33,077]

1 hour ago, kd4au said:

two would be better.

Staff is wanting 1 OT & either an OG or combo OG/OT FWIW.

[TAYLORKEETON 788]

Just wanted to point out Kolbi Fuqua is from Cordova, Alabama. Not Tenn. 

[GTNupe11 2,033]

Didn't know we had an NFL recruit! (Mike Harris)

[ellitor 33,077]

27 minutes ago, TAYLORKEETON said:

Just wanted to point out Kolbi Fuqua is from Cordova, Alabama. Not Tenn. 

Fixed.

[kd4au 1,145]

32 minutes ago, ellitor said:

Staff is wanting 1 OT & either an OG or combo OG/OT FWIW.

Thought we had several guards on the team, maybe I misunderstood. Who do we have that projects as a tackle besides Ashley and Tega? And who do we have committed that projects as a tackle?

[ellitor 33,077]

8 minutes ago, kd4au said:

Who do we have that projects as a tackle besides Ashley and Tega?

The 2 you mentioned, Sharp, Troxell, Prince Sammons, & maybe Bro-Hamm. That's 5-6 on roster barring attrition & all but Tega & Sharp will be underclassmen.

8 minutes ago, kd4au said:

And who do we have committed that projects as a tackle?

0 at the moment.

[AlaskanFAN 1,665]

So looking at his list - OT, CB, WR, DE, TE and we have 5 spots left. (Assuming Hill, Miller & Siposs).

1 hour ago, ellitor said:

Staff is wanting 1 OT & either an OG or combo OG/OT FWIW.

That leaves 3 spots open for 4 positions CB, WR, DE and TE. Does it become first come first serve on the ”Key Auburn Targets”.  I’ll hang up now and listen to your response. War ? 

[ellitor 33,077]

2 hours ago, AlaskanFAN said:

So looking at his list - OT, CB, WR, DE, TE and we have 5 spots left. (Assuming Hill, Miller & Siposs).

That leaves 3 spots open for 4 positions CB, WR, DE and TE. Does it become first come first serve on the ”Key Auburn Targets”.  I’ll hang up now and listen to your response. War ? 

It's not a given AU will get 2 more OL in the class. May get 1 later as a Grad Transfer than can count to the next class.

Also I don't think there are 4 positions per say. I think it's 3-4 in CB (up to 2), TE, & DT not necessarily DE. WR & DE would fall under best available.

As for your actual question I'm not sure the staff knows yet so I'm not even going to venture a guess.

[auol72 188]

Tega and Sharp are also underclassmen, redshirt Juniors. Would not think there is anyway they would leave and not take their fifth year.

[ellitor 33,077]

11 minutes ago, auol72 said:

Tega and Sharp are also underclassmen, redshirt Juniors.

Juniors & Seniors are upperclassmen by definition.

[TAYLORKEETON 788]

2 hours ago, ellitor said:

Fixed.

I'm from the same county so it was just an OCD thing for me..lol

[NorthGATiger 1,801]

Why is Matthew Hill not signing early. To me that means he is not committed.  If you are truly committed then you are signing early with the rest of the guys that are.

[ellitor 33,077]

7 minutes ago, NorthGATiger said:

Why is Matthew Hill not signing early.

Because he said from day 1 he wasn't signing early. TBH if I was a recruit I wouldn't sign early either no matter who I was committed to. Still a lot more coaching carosel to be played out.

10 minutes ago, NorthGATiger said:

To me that means he is not committed. 

Yes he is. He's just being smart about things.

11 minutes ago, NorthGATiger said:

If you are truly committed then you are signing early with the rest of the guys that are.

Nice speech pretty much every coach in the nation, alot of whom will be moving around.

[aujeff11 6,243]

2 minutes ago, ellitor said:

TBH if I was a recruit I wouldn't sign early either no matter who I was committed to. Still a lot more coaching carosel to be played out.

He is committed to us though. Our coaching carousel is supposedly done. He is either committed or he’s not. 

[fredst 9,064]

1 hour ago, aujeff11 said:

He is committed to us though. Our coaching carousel is supposedly done. He is either committed or he’s not. 

That WR class that committed to DCraig probably thought the carousel had stopped spinning too. Glad they’re at AU but if they’d known DC was leaving??‍♂️...

[aujeff11 6,243]

28 minutes ago, fredst said:

That WR class that committed to DCraig probably thought the carousel had stopped spinning too. Glad they’re at AU but if they’d known DC was leaving??‍♂️...

DC left after the natural signing day lol. I mean you’re right but I doubt Matthew Hill wants to wait until March to make sure Kodi Burns isn’t going to run off. At some point, if a recruit is committed, he is going to have to show that he is committed or else the coaches will just call his bluff. 

[NorthGATiger 1,801]

1 hour ago, ellitor said:

Because he said from day 1 he wasn't signing early. TBH if I was a recruit I wouldn't sign early either no matter who I was committed to. Still a lot more coaching carosel to be played out.

Yes he is. He's just being smart about things.

Nice speech pretty much every coach in the nation, alot of whom will be moving around.

As Jeff said, what coaches are moving around at Auburn?  We just bled out a $50 million dollar deal to Gus.  I don't see Chip or Kodi going anywhere.  I could see where you are coming from a month ago but not now.

[LKEEL75 2,566]

17 minutes ago, NorthGATiger said:

As Jeff said, what coaches are moving around at Auburn?  We just bled out a $50 million dollar deal to Gus.  I don't see Chip or Kodi going anywhere.  I could see where you are coming from a month ago but not now.

I am with @ellitor.  There are still plenty of changes possible.  Coordinators are likely not going any where but position coaches and assistants are likely to change. Horton has been looking for a new job for a while.

[ellitor 33,077]

6 hours ago, aujeff11 said:

Our coaching carousel is supposedly done.

Not necessarily. Regardless I'd hold out in principle. The Early signing period is stupid. 1t should be 1 signing period & it should be moved back to no earlier than 2 weeks after the Super Bowl. By then 99% of coaching changes are made & recruits get to make a much more informed & stable decision. With coaches being able to move freely we have to give recruits something since they can't get their NLI voided when the HC or their coordinator leaves.

[ellitor 33,077]

4 hours ago, NorthGATiger said:

I don't see Chip or Kodi going anywhere. 

While it's not likely, there are opportunities that may open up Chip may consider after the bowls are over & more caroselling beginning.. If Chip were to leave at some point I'd expect Kodi to go with him.

[aujeff11 6,243]

4 hours ago, ellitor said:

The Early signing period is stupid. 1t should be 1 signing period & it should be moved back to no earlier than 2 weeks after the Super Bowl.

Okay. Speak for yourself on calling it stupid. We are bout to wrap up about 17 recruits and that’s a blessing. It’s about 95% likely that we keep Chip and Kodi. If Matthew doesn’t want to commit to signing early it’s because of other reasons not named staff turnover. 

[abw0004 10,109]

47 minutes ago, aujeff11 said:

Okay. Speak for yourself on calling it stupid. We are bout to wrap up about 17 recruits and that’s a blessing. It’s about 95% likely that we keep Chip and Kodi. If Matthew doesn’t want to commit to signing early it’s because of other reasons not named staff turnover. 

The early signing period is difficult, not just for the college coaches, but on the recruits and high school coaches as well.

Here are a few examples.  In years past, Auburn has been able to use December and January to host recruits for their officials.  With the timeline moved up, Malzahn had to host a lot more recruits during the Georgia and Alabama games.  Which means our coaches had to focus on the recruits when they really needed to be with the team.

It is hard on the recruits because coaches now have to pressure the kids by telling them "If you do not commit today we are moving on to the next kid and your opportunity is gone."  These recruits should be given the opportunity to take some time to make the right decision, in particular the kids whose stock skyrocketed after a strong senior season and now have big time programs offering scholarships that didn't before.

Lastly, it is hard on the high school coaches because most of these high school teams are still in the playoffs and their kids are distracted by these official visits.

An upside is our coaches get to spend the holidays with their family though which is a nice plus.  In theory I do like the early signing period so recruits can't jack us around anymore because they have to put their money where their mouth is, but when looking at it closer it creates a lot of extra stress.  For me, if we have an early signing period, we also need a deadline for a coach to switch jobs so we don't have coaches abandoning these kids after they sign.  That isn't fair to the recruit for a coach to bail on them.

[aujeff11 6,243]

11 minutes ago, abw0004 said:

With the timeline moved up, Malzahn had to host a lot more recruits during the Georgia and Alabama games.  Which means our coaches had to focus on the recruits when they really needed to be with the team.

Cannot get into the nuts and bolts of your argument but would like to point out that Gus hosting all them recruits during amen corner is a good thing for Auburn. 

Malzahn hosted those recruits intentionally so they could get a feel for the electric environment. He’s done it every year that the games are at home. Remember when Rahsaan Evans stormed the field? 

11 minutes ago, abw0004 said:

These recruits should be given the opportunity to take some time to make the right decision, in particular the kids whose stock skyrocketed after a strong senior season and now have big time programs offering scholarships that didn't before.

These kids are given the time. They are not required to sign tomorrow or on Feb 5th. Coaches are allowed to go ahead and fill spots if fellow recruits are being indecisive though. It’s up to the recruits, definitely the committs, to decide how much they want to be in the class.