 In last week’s Recruiting Trail we took a look at defensive prospects Auburn is looking at signing in 2011. This week it’s the offense’s turn. We will take a look at the offensive commitments the Tigers have so far, as well as some of the offensive prospects Auburn would like to sign in 2011. The 2011 recruiting class is shaping up to be more of a defensive class so far, but there are some offensive stars in Auburn’s class that will be difference makers as well.
Commitments QB - Kiehl Frazier - 6'3" - 215 - 4.5 forty - Springdale, Ark (Shiloh Christian) - During Big Cat weekend Kiehl Frazier, Auburn's top QB target, went public with his decision to play his college ball at Auburn University. Frazier is considered one of the top dual threat quarter-backs in the country according to most recruiting experts and can literally do it all. He can run, he can scramble, he can make any throw he needs to make, and he can lead. Frazier is as smart as he is talented. He is expected to be a full qualifier. Before cutting his list to Auburn and Arkansas, Frazier had offers from almost every team in the country, including AU, ARK, FL, LSU, N.D., Clemson, Michigan, Miami, Nebraska and many, many others. OL/G - Thomas O'Reilly - 6'3" - 315 - Marietta, GA (Pope) - Chose AU over offers from FSU, Ga Tech, Maryland, Miss St., NC State and several others. O’Reilly is considered to be one of the country's top guard prospects. Grew up an UGA fan but they didn't offer. That left the door open for other teams to get in on him and AU came out the winner. ESPN 150 Watch List. Under-Armour All-American. O'Reilly will graduate in December, enroll at AU in January and go through spring practice. Holding onto him on signing day will be HUGE. My opinion on O'Reilly from what I've seen, is that he is still underrated despite being pretty heavily recruited and highly thought of. He could be the most versatile OL in the country. There's just not much he doesn't do well. OL/C - Reese Dismukes - 6'4" - 290 - Spanish Fort, AL – The Auburn coaching staff had one center prospect in mind when they started this 2011 recruiting class, and Reese Dismukes was it. Dismukes is without a doubt one of the best center prospects in the country; maybe THE best. He originally planned on committing to Alabama, but the family atmosphere at AU made him feel more at home. Dismukes chose AU over offers from AL, FSU, GA Tech, Ole Miss and several others. Dismukes says he's firm to AU, will graduate in December and enroll at Auburn in January in time to go through spring practice. Dismukes is smart and physical and is a HUGE addition to the recruiting class. Top Offensive Prospects To Watch RB – Mike Blakely – 5’9” – 195 – 4.4 forty – Bradenton, FL (Manatee) – Blakely is one of the top running backs in the country. Blakely is shifty and fast, with great balance and elusiveness. He can also catch the ball well out of the backfield and will fit in any of the offensive systems of his finalists. His finalists include Auburn, Florida, South Carolina and Clemson. Blakely will make his decision sometime in the fall, as he is scheduled to be an early graduate so he can enroll at his college of choice early. Most have thought for a while that his decision would ultimately come down to AU or UF, but rumors of late have the Gators slipping in this battle and it appears to be more of an AU and S. Carolina battle. RB – Dee Hart – 5’8” – 190 – 4.4 forty – 275 Bench – Orlando, FL (Dr. Phillips) – Another one of the top running backs in the 2011 class is Dee Hart. Hart is as fast as advertised and has great moves and outstanding hands. It appears to be a three team battle for Hart's signature. They are Auburn, Alabama and Michigan. It could come down to how the seasons each of his finalists turn out and how well he thinks he’ll fit into those systems at the end of the year. Rumors of late say the battle for Hart may come down to Auburn or Michigan. Whoever gets Hart will get a great player who is very smart. Hart lists a 3.6 GPA. RB/ATH – Rodney Coe – 6’3” – 235 – 4.5 forty – 300 Bench – Edwardsville, IL – Auburn made up a lot of ground with Coe at Big Cat weekend and the Tiger coaching staff is doing a great job recruiting him. Coe plays running back and linebacker in high school but is being recruited by Auburn at RB. As a 6’3”, 235 pound runner Coe is a big bruiser of a running back. He does have good moves for a bruiser and can catch the ball out of the backfield as well. Coe has around 35 offers from colleges across the nation and will probably not make his final decision until closer to signing day. Auburn should be one of his finalists. RB – Javorius “Buck” Allen – 6’1” – 210 – 4.4 forty – Tallahassee, FL (Lincoln) – Buck Allen is one of the top overall running backs in the 2011 class. He has everything he needs to be a big time running back at the college level, including top level size and speed. He has a plethora of major offers from all of the big time football colleges including AU, AL, FSU, UGA, Miami, USC, TN and several others. He hasn’t publicly began to narrow his list much yet, but he did visit Auburn for Big Cat weekend and came away impressed. He’ll be back for a visit this fall to see Auburn in action. RB/ATH – Shon Carson – 5’9” – 195 – 4.4 forty – 315 Bench – Lake City, SC – Carson is a new name to the recruiting list. He received an offer to play at Auburn in June in both football and baseball. The two sport athlete has outstanding athletic ability and could play the hybrid running back position in football at AU. He’s in no hurry to make his decision and will probably take all of his visits first. Carson is also an excellent student and claims a 3.6 GPA. AU, AL, TN, FSU, Clem, S. Carolina and N. Carolina are all in the mix. RB/ATH – Quan Bray – 5’11” – 180 – 4.4 forty – Hogansville, GA (Callaway) – Bray is being recruited to play the hybrid running back position at Auburn. Auburn coaches think he is a good runner, but also like his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield and would love to have Bray take the hybrid role at AU. Bray has visited Auburn a couple of times already, most recently in June. He said he will return in the fall for at least one more visit. He doesn’t plan on making his decision until sometime around signing day and he’ll likely chose between AU, AL, Clemson, UGA and FL. RB/ATH – Andrew Buie – 5’10” – 190 – 4.5 forty – Jacksonville, FL (Trinity Christian) – Another player being recruited to play the hybrid running back/wide receiver position by AU is Andrew Buie. Buie is a player who just does a lot of things good. He can run, catch, and block. Buie visited Auburn in June and the Tigers made a strong impression on him. He said he’ll more than likely be back for another visit sometime this fall and Auburn should make his top 5. Buie will not likely be making his decision until closer to signing day however, and will probably choose from AU, AL, FL, TN, S. Carolina and Ole Miss. RB/ATH – Ameer Abdullah – 5’9” – 175 – 4.4 forty – 37 Inch vertical – Homewood, AL – Abdullah’s stock has sky-rocketed lately. The reason for that is because he has been the offensive MVP at three camps lately including two major camps in Baton Rouge and Tuscaloosa. As good as he’s looked at the running back position in camps this summer, Auburn sees him as a good cornerback prospect as well and that could be where he ends up if he signs with AU. As of now, Texas A&M, Vandy and Southern Miss are his listed favorites, but there’s a big loop hole in that list. Auburn hasn’t offered yet. Abdullah admits that Auburn is his childhood favorite, he’s attended AU games all his life and if the Tigers extend an offer, it would be an offer from his "dream school". WR – Jermaine Whitehead – 6’0” – 185 – 4.4 forty – Greenwood, MS (Amanda Elzy) – Whitehead is being recruited as a cornerback by most schools and he is currently committed to the Mississippi State to play corner. Wide receivers coach Trooper Taylor likes Whitehead’s abilities on the offensive side of the ball and is trying to get the Mississippi speedster to change his colors to orange and blue. Whitehead has great speed, agility and has a knack for making people miss. Whitehead has been to Auburn a couple of times, one of those visits being Big Cat II and he plans to return for an official this fall. His recruitment could likely come down to Miss St. or Auburn and a choice between defense or offense. WR – Tacoi Sumler – 5’9” – 165 – 4.3 forty – 33 inch vertical – Miami, FL (Columbus) – What Tacoi Sumler lacks in size, he more than makes up for with blinding speed and terrific moves. In fact, Sumler is one of the fastest prospects in the 2011 class and colleges have taken notice. He has a wide variety of offers that range from coast to coast, but says he hasn’t really begun to narrow down his choices yet. Auburn is trying to put itself in position to be one of his finalists and they’ll get their shot. Sumler plans to make an official visit to the Plains sometime this fall to check out the Auburn football facilities, as well as the Lowder business building. Sumler is a strong student and wants to attend a college with a strong business school. WR – Joseph Morrow – 6’5” – 200 – 4.5 forty – 245 Bench – 34 inch vertical – Ocean Springs, MS – Morrow has plenty of offers, but has been able to dwindle it down to a final four list. He likes AU, Miss St, Ark and LSU and says he will visit all four officially this fall before making his decision. He is a very physical receiver who has good hands, great jumping ability and toughness. Morrow also has good speed and should be fast enough to be a threat in the SEC going deep or catching the ball across the middle. WR/ATH – Kris Frost – 6’3” – 210 – 4.5 forty – 305 Bench – Matthews, SC (Butler) – Most are recruiting Kris Frost as a linebacker or just simply an athlete, but Auburn is recruiting Frost to play receiver. AU, Michigan, LSU, Cal, Clemson, Ga. Tech are finalists for Frost. He says he’ll be back for a couple of Auburn games this fall and will take all of his official visits before making his decision. He’ll make that decision at the Under-Armour All-American game in January. Most think Auburn will be in Frost’s final two or three when he makes his decision as they have been one of his favorites throughout the entire process. WR – Jeremy Richardson – 6’4” – 225 – 4.5 forty – East Mississippi Community College – Richardson was one of the top 10 players in the state of Alabama in last year’s class and a player Auburn fans have been hoping to finally get to see in orange and blue. Richardson was one of the few players from last year’s class that didn’t make it into school, but he’s doing everything he can to make sure he’s part of the 2011 class. Richardson is currently on track to make it into the 2011 Auburn recruiting class, but he still has a long way to go. If he’s able to get in, there’s no telling what he can do in Auburn’s offense. He is an outstanding talent. TE – Brandon Fulse – 6’4” – 250 – 4.8 forty – Fort Meade, FL – Fulse is one of Auburn’s top tight end prospects this year and it’s easy to see why. Fulse can do a lot of things from the tight end position and is a mismatch in a lot of ways. First, he has a huge frame and makes for a big target for QB’s. Second, he’s got skills that set him apart from the other TE prospects. Fulse is on the faster end of his listed 4.8 forty and can move well for a guy his size. He also has soft hands for a big guy and is a very solid receiver. Fulse camped at Auburn this summer and likes Auburn a lot. He’s still in the evaluation process though and says everyone is pretty even. Fulse said he won’t make his decision until sometime in November. Auburn should be in his final list. OT – Greg Robinson – 6’5” – 300 – 375 Bench – 525 Squat – Thibodeaux, LA – Auburn or LSU for Robinson. Early in the process it was all LSU, as anyone would expect from a player so close to the LSU campus. The longer he waits to make his decision, the more one would think it would weigh in Auburn’s favor. Right now, he says he’s in no hurry to make his decision. He was at Big Cat weekend and Auburn made huge strides for him there. He plans to come back to Auburn in July for a visit. Auburn has turned what most thought as an easy decision into one that is much tougher. He has a very strong relationship with Trovon Reed and Kiehl Frazier, which helps. He’s going to take all five of his official visits before he makes his decision, but it would be a shocker if he didn’t pick AU or LSU. OT – Xzavier Ward – 6’7” – 265 – Moultrie, GA (Colquitt County) – Ward is a player who has seen his stock steadily rise this recruiting season. He’s now up to around 15 offers and says he’s not even close to narrowing down his choices. He’ll take his visits and decide late in the process between a “top 10” of schools. Ward was in Auburn for Big Cat weekend and had nothing but great things to say about Auburn and AU should be one of the final 10 Ward picks from. OT – Antonio Richardson – 6’6” – 310 – 415 Bench – 500 Squat – Nashville, TN (Ensworth) – Richardson could be the top prospect in Tennessee this year and has offers from major college football programs across the country to prove it. Richardson says he has no leader at this time and is just trying to start narrowing his choices down. He plans to start visiting several schools soon and Auburn is hoping to get one of those visits. AU, AL, LSU, UGA, TN and Notre Dame are just a few of his offers. OG – Davonta Rogers – 6’2 – 345 – Atlanta, GA (Washington) – Rogers is a relative newcomer to Auburn’s recruiting board and a player that is starting to see his stock rise. The mammoth guard from Atlanta recently picked up an offer from Auburn and it was a big one. The Auburn offer made his second SEC offer and the closest to his hometown. He now has offers from AU and TN, West Virginia, Duke and several others. Auburn likes Rogers ability to move the pile and run block. A strong senior season and Rogers will see his recruitment get hot and heavy as many other teams are watching him closely. OG – Jacob Fahrenkrug – 6’4” – 315 – North Dakota St. College of Sciences – Fahrenkrug is one of the top Juco offensive linemen in the 2011 class. Fahrenkrug has a massive frame and has developed his game nicely. Major football colleges have taken notice and he holds offers from Auburn, TN, USC, UCLA, FSU and many more. Fahrenkrug says location is not a factor in his decision and right now he’s just trying to evaluate all of the schools that are recruiting him. He’ll begin his official visits sometime soon and start narrowing his choices down. He wants to graduate in December and enroll in the college of his choice in time for spring practice. |
