Walter McFadden - Recruitment & Career

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Jason Caldwell is writing a series of articles on the recruitment and career of Walter McFadden.

The Rest of the Story: Chicken fingers helped Auburn sign a DB

by Jason Caldwell

2 hours ago

Editor's Note: This is the first in a series looking back at the recruiting and career of former Auburn and NFL defensive back Walter McFadden.

A player who finished his football days at Auburn on a high note with a strong senior season in 2009, speedy defensive back Walter McFadden had plenty of options in recruiting when he was a star at Ely High in Pompano Beach, Florida. With trips to several different schools around the country with many of his teammates, McFadden said for him there was one thing that stood out about his first visit to Auburn and it made a lasting impression on both he and many of his teammates to this day.

“I first came to Auburn in the summer for a football camp,” McFadden said about his first trip to the Plains. “I had been hearing a lot about Auburn, but didn’t know too much about it being a Florida guy. Having Florida State and Florida and Miami in my backyard, it was kind of a no-brainer, but we traveled around to camps and I ended up at Auburn.

“What really caught my attention at that time, to be honest, was Guthrie’s. We had never had any chicken fingers like that with that sauce in south Florida so we ate there almost 25 times. We have Facebook messages to this day with guys saying, ‘Y’all remember that trip, remember Guthrie’s at Auburn?’”

A senior in high school in 2004, McFadden had offers from different schools around the country, but following that visit to Auburn he said he really connected with the Tigers and especially with running backs coach Eddie Gran.

The man in charge of recruiting the Miami and surrounding areas for Auburn under Tommy Tuberville, it was Gran who sold McFadden on the idea of becoming a Tiger along with some help from several players already on the roster.

“Eddie Gran was the guy that was doing a lot of my recruiting,” McFadden said. “He did have a little help from a lot of the Dillard guys that were coming through there, especially Junior Rosegreen, Pat Sims and a few of the Miami guys like Patrick Lee. They were giving me a little insight on the school, but Gran was the one that sealed the deal. I also think the biggest thing for me was being a Florida kid who had never really seen anything outside of the state of Florida and seeing other guys go to Auburn.”

Something else that sold Auburn to McFadden was Gran’s knowledge of the recent history in the Miami-Ft. Lauderdale area, specifically Chris Gamble. He was a player the Tigers recruited heavily out of Dillard High before the cornerback ultimately chose Ohio State. Knowing Gamble, the player he was and his skill set, Gran sold McFadden on the idea of being that guy for the Tigers.

“I was a big fan of Chris Gamble,” McFadden said. “He kind of used that against me and I still joke with him (Gran) to this day. He used to tell me, ‘You can be the Chris Gamble in the state of Alabama.’ That’s how he got me out of Florida by using those guys that went to different schools and were very successful. That was the view and just having a different mindset.”

Originally committed to the Florida Gators, McFadden chose Auburn and enrolled in the fall of 2005 ready to show the college football world what he was all about, but it wouldn’t be that easy for the South Florida defensive back to make his mark on an already talented roster for the Tigers.