Damari Alston 'all about Auburn'

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Every class has one: the recruiter. The player who, immediately after pledging his commitment, becomes a spokesperson and talent agent for that program.

For Auburn’s 2022 cycle, Atlanta-area running back Damari Alston instantly became that recruiter after he chose Auburn last July.

Just hours after committing to Bryan Harsin and the Tigers over LSU and Northwestern, Alston already was getting involved in stoking the Auburn fanbase, tweeting, “We got another one on the way soon, stay tuned.” He’s constantly sharing and encouraging Auburn fans to “show some love” to the team’s recruiting targets on social media.

And his recruiting efforts didn’t go unnoticed by the coaching staff.

“I hope I don't get in trouble, but we need to put him on payroll,” Auburn running backs coach Cadillac Williams said with a laugh Monday, speaking on his lone signee of the class. “But nah, he's all about Auburn, man. Guy's got a great personality.”

A three-star and the No. 32 running back prospect in the class, Alston, out Woodward Academy, is the charismatic leader of the Tigers’ 2022 haul, though he won’t arrive on campus until this summer.

Williams, who was an All-American running back at Auburn in the early 2000s, remembers how important players like Alston are to the fabric of a recruiting class — and nowadays, social media allows them to have an even larger impact on prospects from across the country.

“Like I always tell my guys, the game of football is a team sport,” Williams said. “You need other good guys to play. You know, it's the coach's job to bring guys in here, but I have been through this thing — players, y'all are our best recruiters. You guys can get involved and help us if you want other good players to play. You all know everybody, and with social media, you can touch anybody now. It's like, I think he's doing an incredible job with that aspect. I'm just excited for the young man to get down here.”

Alston officially visited Michigan State the weekend before the December signing period, but shut down his recruitment for Auburn shortly after.

"Home for me is Auburn" Alston told Auburn Undercover. "It's in my heart. I know 100% where I want to be."

The true freshman would have likely had a significant role within the offense had he arrived this spring, seeing as backup running back Jarquez Hunter is out following a knee procedure, and the current No. 2 tailback behind Tank Bigsby is Sean Jackson, who was just elevated from walk-on to scholarship player last year.

Williams is excited about more than just Alston’s personality and attitude. His senior year at Woodward, Alston averaged 8.2 yards per carry and scored 27 rushing touchdowns.

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Hunter will be healthy and ready to reprise his role by the time preseason camp rolls around, but the No. 3 spot in the rotation should feature strong competition between Alston, Jackson and former Central Michigan transfer Jordon Ingram.

“I truly think he's a young man that can come in and contribute,” Williams said. “I think he's wise beyond his years. I think just mentally, he's a mentally tough person. Not only physically, but, like I said, wise beyond his years. A guy who runs behind his pads, one-cut runner, excellent vision. Just have that demeanor with him when you watch film, man, he's just a natural runner between the tackles. Just gets yards and break tackles.”

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As a side note, it's interesting Damari's other short list teams were Northwestern (essentially Ivy League academics) & LSU (which vies w/ Mich St for perennial lowest athlete graduation rate).

Glad he picked the Stanford of the south.