End of October Update

[Zeek 16,614]

Quarterback (Need 1)

Auburn doesn't look to be in a good position to sign a quarterback in this high school class. Which is incredibly frustrating to me. 4* Brock Glenn (Ohio State) and 3* Emory Williams (Miami) are both being recruited but seem unlikely. My expectation is that someone transfers out and we'll be looking for yet another QB in the portal.

 

Running Back (Need 2)

The plan has been to take two running backs with Tank Bigsby likely declaring early for the NFL. I don't know why some beat writers have acted like that isn't the case but we have made it quite clear through who we have pursued. 4* Jeremiah Cobb is already committed but will need to be won over if there is a staff change; he might be our most likely flip depending on how late we wait to make a change and who is retained. If we lose Cadillac, then I suspect we likely lost Cobb as well. 4* Isaiah Augustave (Arkansas) is another guy the staff has been in talks with but has had little luck getting him to flip. There is a new name to track as well in NR Jamarius Haynes. I expect us to look for a RB in the portal if we don't sign 2 from high school.

 

Wide Receiver (Need 3-4)

Both 4* Daquayvious Sorey and 4* Adam Hopkins are solid commits to the Tigers but there is a need for at least one more high school player and likely a transfer or junior college prospect as well. 4* Jalen Brown (LSU) will be hard to flip with their recent momentum. Non-ranked Chance Fitzgerald recently picked up an Auburn offer. Lastly, 4* Khai Prean (LSU) hasn't been heavily pursued by Auburn for quite some time; unless he gets processed at some point I'm not sure why his name continues to be brought up by those in the know.

 

Tight End (Need 1)

We have a lot of upperclassmen at this position and players I would put on the transfer watch list. Despite the need we seem to be struggling to find a tight end in this year's class. 4* Jelani Thurman (Ohio State), 3* Ka'Morreun Pimpton (Vandy), 3* Reid Mikeska (Miami), 3* Jackson Carver (Miami), 4* Brett Norfleet (Missouri), and 3* Jayvontay Conner (Ole Miss) are all committed elsewhere and will be tough to flip. I suspect the next staff might move Landen King back to TE if he doesn't transfer.

 

Offensive Tackle (Need 4+)

With both 3* Gernorris Wilson and 3* Clay Wedin on board the Tigers are in a better position than most would have guessed. The Tigers want to add at least one more high school OT and plans to take 2-3 junior college players at the position as well. 4* Stanton Ramil (Michigan State) is the top priority on the board for high school players while Keyshawn Blackstock is hands down the top JuCo player Auburn is pursuing; Harsin took the bye week to make sure to see him play in person. 4* Bo Hughley keeps visiting and Auburn continues to push. Elijah Philippe and Isaiah Jatta (South Carolina) are two more JuCo players that Auburn is heavily pursuing to replace the huge slew of OL running out of eligibility.

Offensive Guard (Need 2)

Seems like 4* DJ Chester has been recruited for 10 years with no clear favorite but he is still high on Auburn's board with the ability to play anywhere on the OL. A slew of other guys including 3* Sean Thompkins (Baylor), 3* Paul Mubenga (LSU), 3* Connor Lew (Miami), 4* RyQueze McElderry, and 4* Kelton Smith (Georgia) are committed elsewhere and don't seem likely. My assumption is this will be yet another position where Auburn will count on the JuCo ranks and the portal to fill needs. Auburn does have some experience returning at the interior positions but still needs to fix a glaring roster issue.

 

Center (1)

With 4* Bradyn Joiner committed, Auburn is likely comfortable with where it stands at this position. 

 

Defensive Line (Need 3)

We have 3* Jamarrion Harkless committed. 4* Darron Reed (LSU) is our most likely flip candidate. 5* James Smith is a pipe dream we're not giving up on anytime soon. The rest feel unlikely including 3* Joshua Horton (UNC), 3* TaDerius Collins, 4* Elijah Davis (JuCo), 4* Jordan Hall, 3* Ian Geffrard (Arky), 4* Naquil Betrand (TAMU), and 4* Derick Hunter (JuCo). We need a lot of help here and soon. Jayson Jones has been largely disappointing. 

 

Edge Rusher (Need 4)

Two down in 4* Ashley Williams and 4* Wilky Denaud. Two more to go out of 4* Rueben Bain, 5* Qua Russaw, 4* Gabriel Harris (UGA), and 4* Keldric Faulk (FSU). If there is a new staff they will need to fight hard to keep AW from going to LSU and then will likely need to look elsewhere for the other two edge spots. I don't think we land Russaw or Faulk; outside shot we could get Bain. Unfortunately, FSU hasn't collapsed making things harder with Faulk.

 

Linebacker (Need 2)

It looks like Auburn is going to flip 3* Alex Sanford from Arkansas. After that the Tigers aren't in a great position with any of their targets including 4* Stanquan Clark (Louisville), 4* Jaiden Ausberry (ND), 4* Kaevion Keys (UNC), 3* Arion Carter (Memphis), 4* Grayson Howard (SCar), 4* Lewis Carter (Oklahoma), and 3* Marcellius Pulliam. With Owen Pappoe likely gone, Wesley Steiner looking terrible, Cam Riley showing he is still too thin, and Eugene Asante not looking impressive this is a position of dire need.

 

Corner Back (Need 3)

Auburn would like to add two more to pair with 3* Jacorious Hart. 3* Tyler Scott and 3* Colton Hood (Michigan State) are both very real possibilities. Another one to watch is 3* Edwin Joseph. The last four that we're pursuing seem highly unlikely including Ricky Gibson (Tenn), Jakeem Jackson (UF), Jahlil Hurley (AL), and Avieon Terrell (Clemson).

 

Safety (Need 1-2)

One of my favorite players in this class is 4* Terrance Love who I think will quickly make a push for playing time as a true freshman. He has remained solid to his Auburn commitment for quite some time. Still, Auburn needs one more safety to continue to bolster the numbers. 4* Dakaari Nelson (Penn State), 5* Tony Mitchell (Alabama), 4* Cedrick Hawkins (Ohio State), and 4* Conrad Hussey (Penn State) are all highly unlikely but they're the only names we have right now. We are young and somewhat deep here so a JuCo or portal player wouldn't be a bad way to round out the class.

 

Projected Finish as of 10/24:

1. Transfer QB
2. 4* RB Jeremiah Cobb
3. RB Jamarius Haynes
4. 4* WR Daquayviois Sorey
5. 4* WR Adam Hopkins
6. Some TE? Not sure whether it will be from high school or elsewhere.
7. 3* OT Gernorris Wilson
8. 3* OT Clay Wedin
9. 4* OT Stanton Ramil
10. JuCo OT
11. JuCo OT
12. Transfer OT
13. 4* OG DJ Chester
14. JuCo or Transfer OG
15. 4* C Bradyn Joiner
16. 3* DL Jamarrion Harkless
17. 4* DL Darron Reed
18. JuCo DL
19. 4* ER Ashley Williams
20. 4* ER Wilky Denaud
21. 4* ER Rueben Bain
22. JuCo or Transfer ER
23. JuCo or Transfer ER
24. 3* LB Alex Sanford
25. 4* LB Stanquan Clark
26. 3* CB Jacorius Hart
27. 3* CB Tyler Scott
28. 4* S Terrance Love
29. JuCo or Transfer Safety\

Remember, due to undersigning in the last class and new transfer rules we can add much more than 29 guys to the team. 

 

[CR 2,427]

This breakdown shows in no uncertain terms the ability to acquire talent has got to be the overwhelming factor in hiring a new coach. This roster is a flaming disaster and is getting worse with each minute Harsin remains. 

[Zeek 16,614]

13 minutes ago, CR said:

This breakdown shows in no uncertain terms the ability to acquire talent has got to be the overwhelming factor in hiring a new coach. This roster is a flaming disaster and is getting worse with each minute Harsin remains. 

Yeah he inherited a terribly balanced roster and made it worse with subpar recruiting. He and his staff have repeatedly not taken commitments from guys and been okay with undersigning as a consequence. You can't sign less than 25... you just can't. Unless you know for sure there is a lot more talent you can land the next year.

[CoffeeTiger 5,082]

Good analysis and update as always Zeek. 

[abw0004 10,104]

It is so hard for me to come to the recruiting section at the moment because I know there is nothing positive at all and who we do have might decommit with Harsin fired anyways.  I really hope we get our new AD soon so we feel like there is some progress.

[Zeek 16,614]

28 minutes ago, abw0004 said:

It is so hard for me to come to the recruiting section at the moment because I know there is nothing positive at all and who we do have might decommit with Harsin fired anyways.  I really hope we get our new AD soon so we feel like there is some progress.

Yeah I have had a hard time too and I love this stuff. Just in a holding pattern until we have more clarity about the direction of the program. Unfortunately it seems like Harsin is going to finish out this season. 

[Mikey 16,550]

I do believe this is the most dismal recruiting report that I've ever seen Auburn football have to suffer with. It's getting to be too late to make up much ground with high school & JUCO prospects. I guess we should be glad for the portal, it's our only hope to repair the damage.

[tinman1 485]

Honestly in over 60 years of following Auburn football, there has never, ever been a recruiting period like this, even before recruiting became such a hot topic to follow.  I swear it looks like it's intentional.  We've always been able to get talented players because we're Auburn and the brand is one of the best out there, but now I'm at a total loss as to what is happening.

[Pedaler 1,000]

[HAPvsOA 283]

I haven't been fully in the "Harsin has to be out" camp until today, seeing all of the kids from his 1st recruiting class transferring out. If it's true that he is telling players that they cannot redshirt as reported on some sites, then that feels like sabotage. You should want decent and good players to stay at this point, since it's not like we have tons of talent waiting on the bench or jumping into this recruiting class. 

It's almost like he wants to be fired. As soon as reports say that it's not a big priority to get him out ASAP (until an AD is in place or whatever), he does something to get tons of transfers back in the news cycle. 

Edited October 26, 2022 by HAPvsOA

[Tigerpro2a 5,650]

On 10/25/2022 at 9:50 AM, tinman1 said:

Honestly in over 60 years of following Auburn football, there has never, ever been a recruiting period like this, even before recruiting became such a hot topic to follow.  I swear it looks like it's intentional.  We've always been able to get talented players because we're Auburn and the brand is one of the best out there, but now I'm at a total loss as to what is happening.

Definitely nothing like this is my years. I fear what this could do to us and the length and measures it will take to recover our brand awareness. 

[Mikey 16,550]

IF (And that's a big if) we can get a solid coach in here before signing day some small things might be salvaged from the high school/ JUCO ranks.

Then there's the portal, which could help turn this into a not quite so tragic year.

The third thing is that for this year alone, the NCAA has removed the annual limit of 25 signees, so between normal recruiting and the portal we could fill the roster up to the maximum of 85 because there's no annual limit. The roster could be rebuilt much faster than normal.

Of course, all of this depends on us hiring a coach who can pull this off.

[JerryAU 1,650]

19 hours ago, HAPvsOA said:

I haven't been fully in the "Harsin has to be out" camp until today, seeing all of the kids from his 1st recruiting class transferring out. If it's true that he is telling players that they cannot redshirt as reported on some sites, then that feels like sabotage. You should want decent and good players to stay at this point, since it's not like we have tons of talent waiting on the bench or jumping into this recruiting class. 

It's almost like he wants to be fired. As soon as reports say that it's not a big priority to get him out ASAP (until an AD is in place or whatever), he does something to get tons of transfers back in the news cycle. 

It is a big priority to get him out ASAP.   The AU Establishment dragging their feet while they watch the roster crash 'n burn should require a large contingent of AU VIPs in meetings behind closed doors as I type this post. 

It's high time the Leadership establish themselves.  They've had a year to canvass an AD replacement, they knew last year Greene would not be retained.  They've had 8 months of working within a high probability that Harsin & his staff would be replaced this season.  This systematic due diligence, receipt of advice from Greg Sankey and minutely detailing the analytics of the processes like an engineer's mind is bound to do, should be at a conclusion by now. 

[autan 737]

Of course we could hire someone today. Easier said than done to hire the right guy who can succeed. Luring this person to Auburn with our current state may not be attractive or maybe too challenging for many of the qualified candidates. Auburn just can't afford another mistake.

[AUinMS9528 1,086]

Thanks @Zeek!   Appreciate all you do!

Man, that is a depressing report as expected.   I’m not sure why we’re still letting Harsin sabotage our football program.   Every minute that he is here is just causing more pain.  
PTB, just pay the man and send him back to Idaho!!!!!

[Hank2020 3,195]

On 10/31/2022 at 5:15 AM, AUinMS9528 said:

Thanks @Zeek!   Appreciate all you do!

Man, that is a depressing report as expected.   I’m not sure why we’re still letting Harsin sabotage our football program.   Every minute that he is here is just causing more pain.  
PTB, just pay the man and send him back to Idaho!!!!!

Glad they finally heard from you. Apparently it is what they have been waiting on.

[WDE_OxPx_2010 5,287]

@Zeek you can come back now 🤣