Iowa State DB Craig McDonald commits

[Tony4AU]

 

[JBiGGiE]

Solid pickup and has three years of eligibility. Etheridge has truly been a bright spot on this staff.

[toddc]

Iowa State transfer safety Craig McDonald commits to Auburn

 

Craig McDonald, a transfer defensive back from Iowa State, has committed to Auburn.

He announced his decision Saturday evening on Twitter. He’s currently in Auburn on an official visit.

McDonald entered the transfer portal on April 30, the last day to transfer and be immediately eligible. He left Iowa State after recording 41 tackles and two interceptions in his first full year of eligibility.

He still has three years to play.

McDonald is originally from Minneapolis, Minn. He signed with Iowa State in 2020 out of Minnehaha Academy. McDonald was an On3 Consensus three-star recruit and was ranked the No. 59 safety in the country and No. 8 overall recruit in Minnesota.

McDonald is the second transfer to commit to Auburn this spring. He joins Miami wide receiver Dazalin Worsham, who committed to Auburn on May 4.

Auburn this weekend also is hosting transfer defensive lineman Morris Joseph. The former Memphis standout is on campus for an official visit and scheduled to leave Sunday morning.

 

[Zeek]

Played 11 games last year and recorded 41 tackles + 2 Interceptions. He's also 6'3" 210 lbs with a lot of eligibility left (3 minimum not sure about his COVID-year eligibility).

Adds much needed size and experience to our backfield. This should free us to move the smaller Kaufman in the slot/nickel role.

 

[SumterAubie]

Let the bitchin commence.

[AUStew87]

Use the spots if you got them. Still like see an outside lineman or two if for nothing else our line hasn’t been the healthiest. Need a potential impact rusher in case the young guys don’t produce (Brooks). With the new scheme involving TEs and RBs more, I never thought our WR room was as bad as some were proclaiming. Fromm and King are basically WRs. 

[AuburnNTexas]

Solid Pickup good size for a safety has experience and 3 years eligibility. Biggest needs outside of O-Line were WR, Safety, and Edge Rusher.  So far we have now hit the WR and the Safety both with multiple years of eligibility. WR has potential but is a gamble because of injury history Safety seems to fit real well.  War Eagle and welcome to Auburn.

We still have 5 scholarships left and have now used all that we have to use this year.  I am assuming that Edge Rusher is still a priority if we hit that we will have 4 more slots and I wonder if they will save some of them for next year.  We have Ausberry coming in to add Depth at DB and Mba should be healthy to add depth at DT.  A solid Edge rusher is the only thing I think we have to add on the D side.  I am not saying don't pull in more players from Portal if we land a solid Edge rusher. I am saying if the player can't help this year or have a lot of eligibility we might be better having a larger class next year with all the work the coaches have done towards the 2023 class. 

[W.E.D]

Solid pick up

[SumterAubie]

 

[abw0004]

Welcome to the Family, Craig!

[Tigger1985]

Too bad he didn’t have some of those big corn feed Oline to come with him 

[Sizzle]

Good we needed some safety depth. We were super thin back there 

[aubiefifty]

Iowa State DB Craig McDonald announces transfer to Auburn

By Nick Alvarez | nalvarez@al.com

2-3 minutes

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Auburn has added seven defensive backs this offseason with the arrival of Iowa State transfer Craig McDonald. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt)AP

Auburn isn’t done adding to the 2022 recruiting class, specifically in the secondary. Iowa State’s Craig McDonald became the seventh transfer to join the Tigers. He announced the move on Twitter while visiting the Plains.

A former 3-star recruit, McDonald is a redshirt freshman and will have three years of eligibility. He’s the sixth defensive back to join the Tigers either through the transfer portal or high school. Starting three games for the Cyclones last season, he was tied for the team lead with a pair of interceptions.

Coming out of Minnehaha (Minn.) Academy, McDonald was the country’s 66th-best safety prospect, per 247Sports composite rankings. He redshirted in 2020 after appearing in four games. In 2021, while earning a spot on the All-Big 12 Academic Team, he recorded 41 tackles.

“We watched some film and they want me to be even more physical,” McDonald told Auburn Undercover’s Jason Caldwell. “They are going to put me into even more positions to be successful. I’m really looking forward to that.”

Bryan Harsin saw an exodus of 16 players to the portal after his first season but has steadily gained talent back since. Last week, Hewitt-Trussville star Dazalin Worsham became the first spring-ball signee.

In January, Spanish Fort-alum and cornerback D.J. James transferred from Oregon. He and McDonald will join high school commits Keionte Scott, Austin Ausberry, JaDarian Rhym, Marquise Gilbert and Caleb Wooden in a re-tooled secondary.

[aubiefifty]

Iowa State DB transfer commits to Auburn: 'It was just a good fit'

ByJason Caldwell 14 hours ago

28

AUBURN, Alabama—Looking to shore up some positions on both sides of the ball heading into the 2022 season, the Auburn Tigers added a commitment from Iowa State safety transfer Craig McDonald on Saturday. On an official visit to check out Coach Bryan Harsin's program this weekend, the 6-2, 210 McDonald told Auburn247 that he saw everything he needed to see and he's ready to get on the Plains.

"Just the coaching staff," McDonald said of one of the reasons why he chose the Tigers. "They made it feel like a family environment. I really love the defense and where they are trying to go as a program. It was just a good fit."

The fit started with his relationship with Auburn DB coach Zac Etheridge, defensive coordinator Jeff Schmedding, Harsin and the entire staff.

"Coach Etheridge really gave me that family vibe. I like how he's a real straightforward guy. That was a real big part of it. He seems like a sincere person. The same for Coach Schmedding and Coach Harsin."

With Smoke Monday gone from last season's team and needing an enforcer at the safety position, Auburn targeted McDonald for that role. Still with three seasons of eligibility remaining, McDonald saw action in all 13 games, including three starts, finishing with 41 tackles. His best game came in a 28-21 loss to Oklahoma when he registered 10 tackles against the Sooners.

Now he's ready to bring his game to the Southeastern Conference.

"We watched some film and they want me to be even more physical," McDonald said. "They are going to put me into even more positions to be successful. I'm really looking forward to that.

 

 

 

"It made it an even better fit for me to go someplace where I would be used at a high rate."

28COMMENTS

Still trying to determine when he'll be on campus, but expecting that to be in the next week or two, McDonald said he's excited for what the future holds at Auburn. His message for the fans? It's simple and to the point.

"We're going to win the SEC."

Comments (28)

[Zeek]

Very excited about this addition. There are spots still to fill on the defense but the staff has done well so far. I love that we get guys in the portal with a good number of years left.

I think we still want a DL, another WR, and an Edge player.

[toddc]

1 hour ago, Zeek said:

Very excited about this addition. There are spots still to fill on the defense but the staff has done well so far. I love that we get guys in the portal with a good number of years left.

I think we still want a DL, another WR, and an Edge player.

Sounds like the dlinemen from Memphis had a great visit.

[Tigerbelle]

20 hours ago, JBiGGiE said:

Solid pickup and has three years of eligibility. Etheridge has truly been a bright spot on this staff.

Etheridge is such a great guy. If Auburn has a decent season....he's responsible for most of it because of his hard work recruiting players. He's the most valuable coach on Auburn's staff.  

[au302]

From a size and athleticism standpoint the safety room is the most intriguing it's been since the Chiz days imo. Rangy guys in Gibson and Bridges, and big enforcers in Zion and this guy. Plus little Wooden making a presence. Not sure if they'll be good since they're so young, but the potential is high 

[au302]

1 hour ago, Tigerbelle said:

Etheridge is such a great guy. If Auburn has a decent season....he's responsible for most of it because of his hard work recruiting players. He's the most valuable coach on Auburn's staff.  

Agree, he is an elite recruiter, probably best we've had in a while. Definitely anxious to see if scouting and player development in the secondary improves from last year with him in charge. We whiffed badly on Miller and Torrence and Kaufman and Knighten were meh. I'll just blame it on Derek Mason, lol. Don't sleep on CRob and Bedell either...

[aubiefifty]

2022 Transfer Profile: Craig McDonald

River Wells

2 minutes

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After safety Smoke Monday’s departure, Auburn is shoring up its safety corps.

The Tigers recently added Iowa State safety Craig McDonald to the team through the transfer portal on Saturday, and coach Bryan Harsin is likely pleased he can add another weapon to the defensive side of the ball. McDonald will probably look to compete for a safety spot with sophomore Cayden Bridges and JUCO transfer Marquise Gilbert.

McDonald didn’t play much in his freshman season with Cyclones, but he became a notable contributor in his sophomore year when the team went 7-6 and lost its bowl game to Clemson. With McDonald’s time playing safety at the college position, the Tigers could bring some much-needed experience to help its safety corps and help bolster a defense that many are questioning after its departures to the NFL draft in Monday and linebacker Zakoby McClain.

Here is what you need to know about Auburn’s latest addition and his path getting to the Plains:

Year	GP	SOLO	AST	TOT	INT	PD	FF	FR	BLK
2020	4	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
2021	13	24	17	41	2	3	0	0	0

Hometown	Minneapolis, Minnesota
Projected Position	Safety
Height	6’2
Weight	190
Class	2020

• Enrolled with Iowa State on Jan. 13, 2020
• Entered transfer portal on April 30, 2022
• Transferred to Auburn on May 14, 2022

[abw0004]

@bigbird, as a defensive mind, what do you think of Craig?

Edited May 16 by abw0004

[augolf1716]

1 minute ago, abw0004 said:

@bigbird, as a defensive mind, what do you think of Craig?

bird has flown the coop

[Didba]

21 hours ago, Tigerbelle said:

If Auburn has a decent season....he's responsible for most of it

🤡

[augolf1716]

Thread cleaned up keep politics out. We have a forum for that