I had meant to follow recruiting this year and actually update the prospects Auburn was chasing, but I was having trouble reading all of the news, much less writing about it, so I’ll be focusing on who actually signs with Auburn rather than speculation. Without any ado at all, here is Auburn’s signing day class, followed by any potential signees who may be waiting (Bryce Brown, I’m looking at you).
Side note: All ratings are from Scout.com because I don’t have time to look up each of these guys twice. If anyone would like to supply the corresponding Rivals.com ratings, I’ll be happy to update them.
Eltoro Freeman ***** WLB
Freeman, a JuCo beast from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, will be an instant impact player on the D-Line. He was a James Willis recruit, but said he committed to the school, not to the coaching staff. Freeman sat out last year to save a year of eligibility, and enrolled for Auburn’s spring semester. Look for him to begin eating souls in the fall.
Demond Washington ***** CB
Me likey Mr. Washington. This JuCo CB from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, which has been a solid breeding ground for Auburn talent, is a Tallahassee native and looks like the real deal. Scott Kennedy of Scout.com said regarding Washington, “[It’s] difficult to find an “area for improvement”, but all corners can work on reading the play and jamming the receiver at the line. Should be an immediate contributor on the next level.” When that’s the worst criticism a CB gets, it’s a good sign.
Onterio McCalebb **** RB
McCalebb, of Fort Meade HS in FL, is a strong recruit who is freakishly fast. His senior season resulted in 1,995 yards rushing and 27 TDs, and 300 yards on 11 receptions. He also returned 2 kicks for TDs. There is some concern about his ability to qualify academically, as it has been reported that he pulled a 2.6 core GPA and an 860 on the SATs.
Tyrik Rollison **** QB
The No. 2 dual threat quarterback in the nation made quite a showing at the Army All-American game, is the nation’s most accurate passer, and led Sulphur Springs HS to the Texas 4A Division II State Title. If he can qualify academically, we may have found a cure for what ails us, at least in the QB position.
DeAngelo Benton **** WR
This WR out of the now famous (or is it infamous, El Guapo?) Bastrop HS in Louisiana was a bit of coup for the Tigers, as he had previously committed to LSU twice, but failed to academically qualify. He spent a semester at Hargrave Military academy and reports are saying that he should be able to qualify with Auburn.
Dee Ford **** DE
Ford, of St. Clair County HS in AL, is described as an undersized DE or a jumbo OLB, who gives fantastic effort and has a lot of natural athletic ability. He needs to pack on some weight and work on his technique a bit, but he’ll be a solid DE in the SEC in no time.
Philip Lutzenkirchen **** TE
Lutzenkirchen, (who will heretofore be referred to as “The Lutz” until I come up with a better nickname) of Lassiter HS in GA, is one of the nation’s top TEs and comes from the exact same style of offense that we’ll be running at Auburn, so look for him to make a solid impact early on in Malzahn’s offense.
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Terrence Coleman **** DT
Coleman, one of a trio of Auburn signees from Lillie B Williamson HS in AL, comes in as a highly touted addition to Auburn’s defense. He is solid against the pass and the run, and his only (minor) flaw is that he needs to pack on a bit more weight. Hello top 5 national defense.
Emory Blake *** WR
More WR? Yes please! Blake comes from Austin HS, which I’m led to believe is somewhere in Texas. According to my scientific research (watching Varsity Blues and two episodes of Friday Night Lights), Texas high school football may be kind of a big deal. Commentary on Scout.com is as follows, “There is a lot to like in Blake, a very polished football player. He doesn’t run very well, but he has qualities that aren’t seen in many faster players.”
Dontae Aycock *** RB
Aycock, of Chamberlain Senior HS in FL, was a silent GA Tech commit up until last week, when a visit to Auburn resulted in the revocation of his scholarship offer from Tech, who was recruiting him to be a QB under Johnson’s triple option system (can we say “no NFL career”? I thought so). Their loss is our gain, as Aycock comes in as another solid addition to a running back corps that looks more dangerous with each commit.
LaVoyd James *** WR
James, part of the Lillie B Williamson HS trifecta, is a quick WR who excels at coming down with the ball in traffic. James supplements a growing WR corps, and had 740 yards and 15 TDs on 52 receptions in his senior year.
Nick Fairley *** OG
Fairley, the third member of the Lillie B Williamson HS trifecta, impressed the Scout.com writers at their combine in Tuscaloosa, and was named MVP of the combine. He played both sides of the ball, and recorded 90 tackles at defensive end.
Taikwan Paige *** CB
Paige, a JuCo transfer from the Georgia Military College, was recruited by DC Ted Roof when he was at Minnnesota, and has two years of eligibility remaining. The No. 25 JuCo prospect in the country brings some serious speed to the Auburn secondary.
Jamar Travis *** DT
Travis, of W S Neal HS in AL, is known for giving exceptional effort every play, and it isn’t uncommon to find him 20 yards downfield in pursuit of a ball carrier (heh). He needs to get a bit stronger, but look for him to be an impact player in the future.
Jonathan Evans *** WLB
Jonathan, of Mattie T. Blount HS, keeps the Auburn family tradition alive. His brother, Chris Evans, played for Auburn for several seasons and left last year. Last season Jonathan had 93 tackles, which included 12 for a loss, 3 forced fumbles, 2 sacks, and 1 pass breakup.
Travante Stallworth *** WR
Stallworth, of Leesville HS in AL, was the QB for his HS, but is being recruited as a WR. He should make a solid addition to a receiving corps in desperate need of help.
Brandon Jacobs *** RB
Jacobs, of Parkview HS in Lilburn, GA, is described as “a tailback in a fullback’s body” and is said to have some solid strength. He still needs some improvement on the breakaway, but will make a solid addition to Auburn’s running back corps.
Izauea Lanier ** WR
Lanier, of Gordo HS (Pickens County, Represent!) played both O and D for Gordo, which reduced his production numbers a bit. Lanier has 871 rushing yards and 870 receiving yards, along with 68 tackles, 7 interceptions, and returning 1 kickoff for a TD and 1 punt for a TD. This guy looks to be the definition of a “diamond in the rough”. Also, I’m going to show favoritism to him because he’s from Pickens County and I love those folks.
Harris Gaston *** MLB
Gaston, of Bessemer Academy in AL, played both sides of the ball, coming up with 757 yards and 12 TDs on 41 catches, and 4 sacks on 93 tackles. He won lineman of the year AISA First Team All-State AISA LB (whatever that gibberish means).
John Sullen ** OT
Sullen, a hometown hero from Auburn HS, had 55 pancake blocks in his senior season and will provide some much needed new blood on the offensive line, as didn’t recruit a single offensive lineman last year. Sullen comes in with a 3.4 GPA and a 28 ACT and plans to major in Mechanical or Wireless Engineering, which makes him stand out a bit from the average recruiting crowd.
Anthony Gulley ** WR
Gulley comes from Brantley HS and put up some serious numbers, with 1,162 yards and 18 TDs on 58 carries (damn…) and 543 yards and 9 TDs on 17 receptions. Word is that he will be a slot receiver/back combo in Malzahn’s new offense.
Andre Harris *** OG
Harris, of Lovejoy HS in GA, was a 5A All-State player, and will also provide some fresh blood into the Auburn O-Line.
Josh Jackson ** DE
Jackson, of Gainesville HS in GA, had 85 tackles and 5 sacks on the season.
Clint Moseley ** QB
Moseley, of Leroy HS in AL, was Alabama’s Mr. Football for 2008 (which can be a really good thing, or a really bad thing… see Brandon Cox). He completed 209 of 313 for 3,758 yards and 35 TDs with only 5 Interceptions. Interesting side note: Moseley was also the kicker, and went 23 of 29 on extra points and 1 for 1 on FGs, and punted 18 times for 610 yards with a 33.9 yard average and a 54 yard long.
Daren Bates ** S
Bates, of Olive Branch HS in MS, had 90 tackles and 4 interceptions last year.
Reggie Taylor ** S
Taylor, of Peach County HS in GA, is listed as an undersized safety who has great north-south speed, but has difficulty with directional changes. Here’s hoping that Mr. Taylor can be developed into another solid player in the tradition of staunch Auburn defenses.
Nosa Eguae ** DT
Eguae, of Mansfield Summit HS in TX, must have shown something that the defensive coaching staff liked. He’s unranked for his position and I couldn’t find much information on him other than he’s 6’3”, 234 lbs, and had 76 tackles as a junior. The jury is still out on this guy until I can find more information on him.
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