3.15.24 Football Articles

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247sports.com

Young bucks already making an impact for Auburn defense

Jason Caldwell

4–5 minutes

AUBURN, Alabama—With the return of Jalen McLeod from last season, Auburn knew it had a pass rusher that could give them pressure off the edge against the best teams in the Southeastern Conference. But one of those guys isn’t enough. That’s why the Tigers went out and tried to beef up the position in the 2024 recruiting class by bringing in Amaris Williams, Jamonta Waller, Joe Phillips and even big T.J. Lindsey to compete at the position along with redshirt freshman Brenton Williams.

Just a few practices into the spring, McLeod has seen enough out of the group of young guys to believe they’re going to be able to help sooner rather than later.

“They're hungry,” McLeod said. “That's the main thing. That's the first sign you want to see out of young guys, if they want it or not, if they're hungry, they're coachable. Those types of things. And Jamonta, Amaris, TJ — all of them boys are coachable and they listen.”

A player that has been talked about plenty already has been Waller. Ranked as the No. 105 player in the country and a Top 10 edge defender coming out of Picayune, Mississippi, the 6-0, 247 Waller has a special skill set that coach Josh Aldridge said allows him to make plays and create havoc.

“Jamonta is an elite pass rusher,” Aldridge said. “He’s probably the most ready from of the young guys from a pass-rush standpoint. Maybe not necessarily the run just from the strength and things like that, but being able to line up and go rush, he can go do it.”

McLeod agreed with his position coach, saying Waller is a guy he expects big things from.

“He's a pass rusher,” McLeod said. “He's a natural pass rusher. Talent-wise, this is one of the best young kids I've seen pass rushing. He's got a knack for pass rushing. He might be a little raw right now, because he's just coming out of high school. But the stuff he does, with no training or stuff like that, it's just like, 'He just did a spin like Dwight Freeney.' It's those things. Like, he's so talented.”

A 5-star signee out of North Carolina, the 6-2, 253 Williams is another player that has a chance to step in and play right away because of his elite athletic ability. While he’s still got a long way to go in terms of the fundamentals of the position, Aldridge said there’s no denying what he can do on the field.

“Amaris could be as talented as anybody on our whole defense just from a freak standpoint,” Aldridge said. “You’re talking about a guy that ran, what, 11.3 or something like that? At 270 pounds in high school. He takes so many steps forward every single day because everything is so new to him. 

“He had a great day yesterday. Really excited for him. Really excited for Auburn fans to follow him. He’s going to be a very, very talented player for us moving forward. He just needs to come with his notebook every single day, willing to learn because it’s a lot of new things for him.”

A player that will likely spend much of his time on the edge in his first season with the Tigers, Williams could eventually move to more of a defensive end role down the road as he continues to grow and mature physically.

That’s already where Lindsey is at the moment. The biggest of the group at 6-3, 275, the Little Rock, Arkansas native brings a different dynamic to the position because of his physicality and ability to set the edge.

“TJ is a guy that’s probably going to be a guy that moves inside a lot, that probably fits him more,” Aldridge said. “We were really just kind of letting him play on the edge a little bit to start to get a feel for it, but he’s going to play more inside moving forward.”

Rounding out the group is Phillips. A linebacker and tight end as a junior before becoming more of an edge rusher as a senior, the Tuskegee standout has all the tools to be a dominant player before he leaves Auburn, said Aldridge.

“Joe is similar to Amaris in a different position - raw, but really a freak athlete,” he said. “High school played receiver, tight end, linebacker. Athleticism, he’s got all of it. It’s just a matter of figuring it out and things like that. He’s similar to Amaris: every day he takes big strides. He’s just got a ways to go in terms of learning what to do, obviously.”

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si.com

Auburn Assistant Football Coach Understands How To Recruit

Brian Smith

2–3 minutes

Not every college football coach truly understands how to maximize recruiting opportunities.

For the Auburn Tigers, newly hired defensive tackles coach Vontrell King-Williams does understand. The following quote from yesterday's interview is hard to place into finite terms for its significance.

"(Former Auburn assistant) Jeremy Garrett was probably one of the guys that used the relational piece," said King-Williams of the former Auburn coach. "And that's really, you know, how I describe my recruiting style."

That quote brings up an important recruiting topic. Prospects usually pick a school for a reason many fans may not quite understand. Fans generally follow one school. They are generally unyielding in their love for that institution and even sometimes struggle to figure out why recruits pick a school other than the one he or she follow. Prospects evaluate the situation differently.

When recruits are picking a school to attend, it's about relationships first and foremost. This is what I tell people all the time, and it's the quickest way I know how to define to a fan which school will likely land a prospect:

"'It's not about the logo on the polo a college coach is wearing, it's about the person wearing the logo on the polo.'"

There is another way to think about that quote. It's one thing for recruits to really like Auburn, Georgia, or Florida. It takes another level of confidence to go there for three-to-five years. That's where relationships come into play.

When recruits make their final decisions, each prospect picks a coach or coaches at the school, not the school itself, far more often than not. For the Tigers, King-Williams already understands the value of building relationships during each recruitment as evidenced by the video below:

Just sitting down with King-Williams and getting to know him yesterday is prime evidence that he will do quite well with recruiting top talent to the Plains. King-Williams understands how to recruit.

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athlonsports.com

4-Star Offensive Tackle Tavaris Dice Announces Commitment To Auburn

Zach McKinnell

1–2 minutes

Four-star offensive lineman Tavaris Dice announced his commitment to Auburn on Thursday. 

The 6-foot-5, 300-pound offensive lineman from Fairburn, Georgia, committed to the Tigers over Florida and Missouri. He earned All-Region honors as a sophomore in 2022.

Dice is the No. 241 overall prospect and No. 22 offensive tackle in the class of 2025. He ranks as the No. 5 offensive tackle and No. 33 player in Georgia, according to the On3 industry rankings.

Following Dice's commitment, Auburn's 2025 recruiting class ranks No. 10 nationally and No. 5 in the SEC. He is the Tigers' second offensive tackle commit, joining three-star Spencer Dowland. 

The Tigers have eight commitments in the 2025 class, headlined by four-star EDGE Jakaleb Faulk and four-star defensive lineman Jourdin Crawford. 

 

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247sports.com

Key recruits visiting Auburn as Hugh Freeze and the Tigers push for another Top 10 class

Steve Wiltfong

4–5 minutes

Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze and his staff have instantly raised the level of recruiting since arriving on the The Plains in Nov. 2022, as the Tigers scored some big flips at the end of the 2023 cycle to finish No. 18 in the 247Sports standings, and then went on to sign 247Sports No. 10 ranked recruiting class in 2024.

Freeze and company are tracking for another Top 10 haul in 2025, currently sitting on eight early commitments with Top247 offensive lineman Tavaris Dice the latest and 247Sports’ No. 7 class in the land. This week the Tigers have started bringing in coveted targets to build on a class that already boasts three Top100 prospects on the defensive front in defensive tackle Malik Autry, edge Jakaleb Faulk and defensive lineman Jourdin Crawford.

One of the first blue-chippers Freeze and company hosted this week was Overland Park (Kan.) Blue Valley Northwest five-star Andrew Babalola. 247Sports No. 3 offensive tackle has Auburn in his lead group alongside the likes of Oklahoma, Missouri, Michigan, Tennessee, USC, Stanford and Texas A&M.

“I had a good visit,” Babalola said. “The main highlights were getting to be around the coaching staff and current players.”

Offensive line coach Jake Thornton has been leading the charge in Auburn’s push for Babalola who is the No. 15 overall prospect in the country.

“Just my relationship with the coaches, especially Coach Thornton, and getting to know the players, guys like Favour Edwin, I liked it a lot,” Babalola said.

“They compared well, just getting to see the campus, how life in the SEC is with the physicality of the game and the detail that goes into the practices, stuff like that.”

Early returns on Auburn’s 2024 quarterback Walker White are strong, and Freeze knows that he needs to have that room at championship level to meet the expectations of the program. This will be another important year at the position and the Tigers are in the thick of it for two of the nation’s best in five-star quarterback Julian Lewis out of Carrollton (Ga.) High and Top247 passer Husan Longstreet out of Corona (Calif.) Centennial. A USC commit, Lewis will be back on campus this weekend while Longstreet is set for the following weekend.

“Auburn is recruiting at a high level and may finish with the best receiver class in history in 2024,” Lewis told 247Sports in January. “Coach (Hugh) Freeze has shown he can play with the best.”

“Especially what Coach Freeze has done in the past, I really want to get down there and see what it’s like for sure,” Longstreet said.

Running back is a big point of emphasis in 2025 with Auburn working to get 247Sports’ No. 1 running back Akylin Dear to campus this weekend. He has called the Tigers program his dream school in the past. Elba (Ala.) High Top247 running back Alvin Henderson could commit sooner rather than later and while Miami and Florida State are obviously well positioned, he’s saying the right things to the Tigers staff as well. Leesburg (Ga.) Lee County Top247 running back Ousmane Kromah has had Auburn on his radar his entire process. Any one of these players would be pivotal for where Freeze and company are trying to go.

Other key targets expected in the near future include Top247 offensive tackle Juan Gaston (Georgia is the 247Sports Crystal Ball favorite), Top247 edge Zion Grady (Georgia and Miami have the momentum there), Top247 linebacker Eric Winters, Alabama defensive line commit Antonio Coleman and Georgia linebacker commit Jadon Perlotte.

The Tigers class is coming together well and if they take the next step on the field this fall, no telling how positive things could become on the trail.

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al.com

How Auburn’s defensive line is coming along under new coach Vontrell King-Williams

Published: Mar. 14, 2024, 9:18 a.m.

6–8 minutes

Everyone was sad to see former Auburn defensive line coach Jeremy Garrett leave The Plains for the same role with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“Hated to lose J.G., truthfully,” Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said off Garrett’s move to the big league.

But few took the loss as hard as Vontrell King-Williams, who served as a defensive analyst under Garrett last season and called the Jaguars’ new defensive line coach his best friend.

“When he left, I know a lot of people were upset and sad, but I actually shed a couple of tears when I dapped him up when he left the building for the final time,” King-Williams said. “That was my guy. He was a pivotal part of me coming here. I thought the world of him.”

Fortunately for King-Williams, the loss of Garrett came with an upside as he was granted the opportunity to interview for the vacant position.

On Feb. 7, just five days after reports of Garrett’s move surfaced, it was reported that King-Williams would be the one to fill his shoes. By Feb. 9, Auburn made the promotion official, naming King-Williams the program’s defensive tackles coach, giving the former analyst his first on-field coaching position.

“To be honest, it don’t feel much different,” King-Williams said, adding that he’s either coached or recruited most of the guys on Auburn’s defensive front. “Of course, the biggest difference is now it’s all on you.”

King-Williams says he’s got a right-hand man in analyst Brett Kulka, who helps him with the defensive line.

But otherwise, he’s right — the interior defensive line is on him. And it’s an area Freeze admitted to having a few concerns.

“I think the biggest question mark we have right now is the interior,” Freeze said of the defensive line on Feb. 29. “We lost some guys that played significant snaps for us, and two of our most productive ones.”

Heading into spring camp, the Tigers will be looking to replace the production of Marcus Harris and Justin Rogers, both who opted for the 2024 NFL Draft, as well as Lawrence Johnson, who ran out of eligibility at the conclusion of the 2023 season.

And it’ll be up to a first-year assistant coach in King-Williams to sort it out — all while installing a new defensive scheme under Auburn’s new defensive coordinator in DJ Durkin.

Fortunately, one of the most common words that’s been used to describe Durkin’s scheme is “simple” — which is sure to come in handy when dealing with a room of interior defensive linemen that’s made up of two guys who were reserves last year, two transfers and a healthy serving of young guys.

“They’re able to make plays right now because it’s so simple and it allows them to play with freedom,” King-Williams said. “That’s a pivotal piece – especially with guys who come in early and getting young guys to play now... It’s hard for young guys to come in and play Year 1 when it’s a tough system. I think that’s probably one of the best things we have.”

Auburn’s pair of senior transfers in Texas transfer Trill Carter and Kansas transfer Gage Keys have both taken to it all quickly, King-Williams said.

“We hit on those two transfers for sure,” King-Williams said. “Of course you’re early in spring and got a small sample size, but with the small sample size that I’ve seen, those two have been consistent every single day. They’ve made plays every single day.”

Carter and Keys both took a load of the first-team reps during Tuesday’s spring practice with returning seniors Jayson Jones and Zykeivous Walker both rotating in to get work with what appeared to be Auburn’s assembling starting defense.

And while Walker is a guy that King-Williams says will appear both at defensive tackle and defensive end, he’s looking for Jones to be a staple along the interior of Auburn’s defensive line.

“Here’s the key thing about Jayson: He’s the guy in my room that has the most SEC experience, the most SEC snaps,” King-Williams said of Jones. “He’s a guy that can change a game when he actually goes hard all time, when he plays with violence all the time. He can change a game. We’ve seen it. We’re still working on that. It’s still a work in progress. But I’m encouraged by Jayson.”

Rounding out the Tigers’ returners along interior defensive line are guys like junior Quientrail Jamison-Travis, who has been hindered by injuries, and redshirt freshman DJ Reed, who King-Williams said has turned his life around “completely 180″ and is doing better in the classroom after some “tough off-the-field issues.”

And then there’s the freshmen in Malik Blocton and TJ Lindsey — two 4-star signees who enrolled early.

In the case of Blocton, he’s got a lot to live up to as the younger brother of Marcus Harris, who turned in an all-SEC campaign last fall.

The good news is, so far, he’s been as advertised.

“Here’s the exciting piece about Malik: He’s a young Marcus,” King-Williams said of Blocton. “The great thing about Malik is that he’s a bit longer. He’s a little bit more athletic than what Marcus was. So, you get to see some of those things.”

Meanwhile, Lindsey has spent time with both King-Williams and defensive edge coach Josh Aldridge has he learns both the defensive tackle and defensive end spot.

“It’s gonna be a good deal. Because, like I told him, he’s got the NFL body type of a defensive tackle. With his quickness and his athleticism, he can change a game as well,” King-Williams said of Lindsey. “So it’s just getting him to understand, you know, learning both is great for him.”

If it’s not clear, King-Williams is juggling a ton of moving pieces between a new role, a new staff, a new system and new faces.

Fortunately for him, he had a pretty good mentor last season.

“Everything I learned from JG, I’m going to be doing the same things,” King-Williams said of his time working with Garrett. “The great thing about that was me and JG collaborated. So there were things that maybe I knew better or maybe he thought was a good idea for me, we’d use those ideas. We really built it all together last year.”

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al.com

Auburn wins commitment of 2025 4-star offensive lineman Tavaris Dice

Updated: Mar. 14, 2024, 2:11 p.m.|Published: Mar. 14, 2024, 1:36 p.m.

~2 minutes

AUBURN, AL - December 20, 2023 - Auburn Head Coach Hugh Freeze congratulates a signee on the phone during National Signing Day at the Woltosz Football Performance Center in Auburn, AL. Photo by Austin PerrymanAustin Perryman

Hugh Freeze and Auburn’s already-impressive 2025 recruiting class grew by a 6-foot-4 and 282-pound offensive lineman as 4-star Tavaris Dice announced his commitment to the Tigers via social media.

Dice held offers from the likes of Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Miami, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas A&M and others.

A native of Georgia, Dice has split his high school playing career at both Tri Cities High School in East Point, Ga., and Langston Hughes High School in Fairburn, Ga. In transferring to Langston Hughes ahead of last year, Dice spent the fall protecting Ohio State quarterback signee Air Noland.

Langston Hughes went 9-3 this past fall with Dice helping block for a rushing attack that tallied more than 2,100 yards during the 2023 season.

With his commitment, Auburn has landed its second offensive lineman of the 2025 cycle as Dice joins 3-star lineman Spencer Dowland.

Dice also became the eighth 2025 prospect to pledge to Freeze and the Tigers. Auburn’s 2025 class is now ranked No. 7 overall nationally by 247Sports. He is the fifth highest-rated player in Auburn’s class, according to his composite ranking.

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