2025 Recruiting Thread

[Viper 3,491]

27 minutes ago, EastLakeTiger said:

Partially agree.

In State relationships are good.  It'll always be your easiest source of direct talent.  But it's much more important to Auburn than it is to Alabama.

Harsin was a garbage person and coach, we see how awful his classes were.  he couldn't recruit out of state, let alone in-state.  Alabama has always been able to recruit nationally as their brand is national.  While they've done well in state historically, under Saban they were able to do much more than "one offs"

2024 - 3 top 5 from OOS.  2 5 * and 5 in top top 100
2023 - 4/5 top 5 OOS.  Top player OO.  3 5* kids OOS.  8 top 100 OOS kids
2022 - 5/5 top 5 OOS.  3 5* kids from OOS.  11 top 100 OOS kids 
2021 - 4/5 top 5 OOS.  4 5* kids from OOS.  11 top 100 OOS kdis

This is much more than "One off" elite recruits nationally.  I don't think this is something auburn could ever do.

2025 - 5 5* kids from OOS.  8 top 100 OOS kids.  It's not wildly different tbqh when you start looking at the class composition.

Those OOS commits are primarily the work of dink and his staff. We’ll see if their new HC can continue to recruit OOS as well as dink. Obviously groundwork and blueprints are in place, so the transition is easier with 17 years of it vs. without it.

Still, look at the dramatic drop-off in-state in just 6 months.

As far as “always been able to recruit nationally,” I don’t recall Mike Shula hitting home runs OOS. In fact, I recall them heavily relying on in-state going all the way back to bahr brunt.

AU has never ever dominated in-state regardless of the bammer HC. 

[EastLakeTiger 57]

30 minutes ago, Viper said:

Those OOS commits are primarily the work of dink and his staff

If you're talking about 2025, that's just not true.   All of the 5* kids committed to Bama in June and July.  The vast majority of their top commits have committed in the last two months.  Deboer has done a lot in the last 60-90 days after a slow start.

32 minutes ago, Viper said:

Still, look at the dramatic drop-off in-state in just 6 months.

Yes, going from ~5 to 0 is a big drop off.  There are kids they wanted, but they are doing just fine with out them.

34 minutes ago, Viper said:

As far as “always been able to recruit nationally,” I don’t recall Mike Shula hitting home runs OOS. In fact, I recall them heavily relying on in-state going all the way back to bahr brunt.

AU has never ever dominated in-state regardless of the bammer HC. 

Yes, a lot has changed in 20 years.  This isn't 2004 with a small focus on college football as a local regional model.  Bama grew with CFB and recruits nationally as do the other major powers.

[Viper 3,491]

16 minutes ago, EastLakeTiger said:

If you're talking about 2025, that's just not true.   All of the 5* kids committed to Bama in June and July.  The vast majority of their top commits have committed in the last two months.  Deboer has done a lot in the last 60-90 days after a slow start.

So you’re insinuating dink and/or his staff never communicated with any of their 2025 commits? Zero relationships with any of them built prior to Deboer arriving?

18 minutes ago, EastLakeTiger said:

Yes, going from ~5 to 0 is a big drop off.  There are kids they wanted, but they are doing just fine with out them.

Great for them. We’ll see if that OOS strategy holds strong in 26. They’re going to need it, considering AU now owns the state. 

21 minutes ago, EastLakeTiger said:

Yes, a lot has changed in 20 years.  This isn't 2004 with a small focus on college football as a local regional model.  Bama grew with CFB and recruits nationally as do the other major powers.

dink changed ALL of the national focus for them since 2007. Not only evident in recruiting, but also their enrollment numbers and revenue. They owe everything currently and moving forward to him and him alone. Prior to dink, they were just a local/regional program. Deboer cannot possibly improve it. He can only ride the coattails.

[EastLakeTiger 57]

30 minutes ago, Viper said:

So you’re insinuating dink and/or his staff never communicated with any of their 2025 commits? Zero relationships with any of them built prior to Deboer arriving?

50% of the 5* weren't offered by Saban and none of them visited Alabama until Deboer arrived 

[HAPvsOA 418]

Rivals has a new free article on who could commit next. https://n.rivals.com/news/who-could-commit-to-auburn-next--5

They diverge from 247 & On3 with us only having 4 of the top 10 in the state (5/10 if we get J Smith), and they list Deuce on their list and say the following:  

Edited July 31 by HAPvsOA

[Viper 3,491]

1 hour ago, EastLakeTiger said:

50% of the 5* weren't offered by Saban and none of them visited Alabama until Deboer arrived 

I don’t keep up with their recruiting. So is 50% of their five 5* = two or three?

[iguana 13]

1 hour ago, EastLakeTiger said:

50% of the 5* weren't offered by Saban and none of them visited Alabama until Deboer arrived 

Deboer has gotten 50% of bammer commitments from outside the South, basically kids he was most likely previously recruiting to Washington.  I would fully expect several of their current committed kids outside the South to flip at some point, wanting to play for a college closer to their home and their families able to watch them play in person. If bammer gets upset early (see Whisky on the road), their recruiting class could fall apart very quickly, like UF last year.

Bammers biggest need in the 2025 cycle is DL and they currently have ONLY one 3* committed. They currently have ZERO of the top 10 prospects from the state of Alabama, I have NEVER seen this in my lifetime. They could very well get shoutout again in the 2026 class or maybe land 1 or 2 at best.

[ScotsAU 1,387]

Y’all, can we keep the focus on Auburn please? I don’t care what is happening at UAT unless it has some relevance to Auburn. 
 

For Auburn, this is unprecedented. We’ve never recruited near this well in state. The focus has almost always been stealing just enough prospects from Bama and UGA within both of those states. Since Saban has been at Bama, we focused more attention on Georgia as a recruiting ground until Kirby started closing off the state. Us being able to pull that many top recruits in state is unheard of. And since Kirby is now dominating Georgia, it’s needed. This is a massive win.

Edited July 31 by ScotsAU

[AUght2win 7,010]

4 minutes ago, ScotsAU said:

Y’all, can we keep the focus on Auburn please? I don’t care what is happening at UAT unless it has some relevance to Auburn. 

Ironic because whatever happens at UAT is ALWAYS relevant to us, and vice versa. You know this.

[ScotsAU 1,387]

Just now, AUght2win said:

Ironic because whatever happens at UAT is ALWAYS relevant to us, and vice versa. You know this.

Talking about how UAT affects our recruiting is one thing. Talking about whether or not DeBoer is a failure belongs in the rivals forum.

[JuscAUse! 1,660]

10 minutes ago, AUght2win said:

Ironic because whatever happens at UAT is ALWAYS relevant to us, and vice versa. You know this.

No. AU was dinkys focus during that week. How many times, at two different SEC schools, did he lose to us and still win or get to the playoffs after beating us? 

It took me awhile to get to this place, but if we beat everyone else at this point, lose to them , and hold a trophy, that might be the biggest fu ever. 

[cbo 8,677]

5 hours ago, EastLakeTiger said:

Partially agree.

In State relationships are good.  It'll always be your easiest source of direct talent.  But it's much more important to Auburn than it is to Alabama.

Harsin was a garbage person and coach, we see how awful his classes were.  he couldn't recruit out of state, let alone in-state.  Alabama has always been able to recruit nationally as their brand is national.  While they've done well in state historically, under Saban they were able to do much more than "one offs"

2024 - 3 top 5 from OOS.  2 5 * and 5 in top top 100
2023 - 4/5 top 5 OOS.  Top player OO.  3 5* kids OOS.  8 top 100 OOS kids
2022 - 5/5 top 5 OOS.  3 5* kids from OOS.  11 top 100 OOS kids 
2021 - 4/5 top 5 OOS.  4 5* kids from OOS.  11 top 100 OOS kdis

This is much more than "One off" elite recruits nationally.  I don't think this is something auburn could ever do.

2025 - 5 5* kids from OOS.  8 top 100 OOS kids.  It's not wildly different tbqh when you start looking at the class composition.

Interesting stats. 

I don't know why we have to act like Deboer sucks when they are currently #2 in recruiting rankings. 

We could just state the truth: Auburn and Bama are both recruiting extremely well.

It's amazing to see Auburn recruit in-state this well. But Bama is doing just fine. For many years now, only half of that was true. 

[EastLakeTiger 57]

1 hour ago, iguana said:

I would fully expect several of their current committed kids outside the South to flip at some point, wanting to play for a college closer to their home and their families able to watch them play in person.

that's just cope

[Auburn93 770]

4 hours ago, cbo said:

Interesting stats. 

I don't know why we have to act like Deboer sucks when they are currently #2 in recruiting rankings. 

We could just state the truth: Auburn and Bama are both recruiting extremely well.

It's amazing to see Auburn recruit in-state this well. But Bama is doing just fine. For many years now, only half of that was true. 

The key to Alabama winning goes back to Bear make AUBURN WEAK AGAIN. UAT is in trouble when Auburn is strong. UAT can recruit all they want. If AU is top 5, then UAT is losing. 

Edited August 1 by Auburn93

[cbo 8,677]

21 minutes ago, Auburn93 said:

The key to Alabama winning goes back to Bear make AUBURN WEAK AGAIN. UAT is in trouble when Auburn is strong. UAT can recruit all they want. If AU is top 5, then UAT is losing. 

Times have changed since the Bear was in charge. I don't think it's anywhere close to that simple. Either way, we need more than 6 wins in a season before declaring supremacy. For now, I am enjoying the recruiting class. 

[Auburn93 770]

9 hours ago, cbo said:

Times have changed since the Bear was in charge. I don't think it's anywhere close to that simple. Either way, we need more than 6 wins in a season before declaring supremacy. For now, I am enjoying the recruiting class. 

I'm not being clear. Saban came in and took all the players in the state and put a lot on the bench. Why? Bryant loaded up on all the players in the state and put a lot on the bench. Why? What I'm talking about hasn't changed. When you are stronger than your opposition, you will win most of the time even when you are having an off game. The goal is to deplete the enemy as much as strengthen your own team. UAT is losing now. 

[Viper 3,491]

20 hours ago, iguana said:

They currently have ZERO of the top 10 prospects from the state of Alabama, I have NEVER seen this in my lifetime. They could very well get shoutout again in the 2026 class or maybe land 1 or 2 at best.

Me either. Because it’s never happened.

Deboer will not make it far without getting some of the top in-state recruits each season. OOS is not sustainable. Ask Nebraska.

[JerryAU 1,837]

21 hours ago, iguana said:

Deboer has gotten 50% of bammer commitments from outside the South, basically kids he was most likely previously recruiting to Washington.  I would fully expect several of their current committed kids outside the South to flip at some point, wanting to play for a college closer to their home and their families able to watch them play in person. If bammer gets upset early (see Whisky on the road), their recruiting class could fall apart very quickly, like UF last year.

Bammers biggest need in the 2025 cycle is DL and they currently have ONLY one 3* committed. They currently have ZERO of the top 10 prospects from the state of Alabama, I have NEVER seen this in my lifetime. They could very well get shoutout again in the 2026 class or maybe land 1 or 2 at best.

I suppose I'm an antagonist to some degree.  I see there are 2 sides to this coin, IF Auburn gets upset early (see New Mex State & Oklahoma at home followed by UGA on the road), our recruiting class could fall apart very quickly, like UF last year.  

Recruiting classes are held together by the thinnest threads and these kids, their agents and parents are slippery.  They will flip-flop around as long as other programs are willing to pay them for their services. 

[TeamZero77 1,928]

26 minutes ago, JerryAU said:

I suppose I'm an antagonist to some degree.  I see there are 2 sides to this coin, IF Auburn gets upset early (see New Mex State & Oklahoma at home followed by UGA on the road), our recruiting class could fall apart very quickly, like UF last year.  

Recruiting classes are held together by the thinnest threads and these kids, their agents and parents are slippery.  They will flip-flop around as long as other programs are willing to pay them for their services. 

We play New Mexico this season instead of New Mexico State. The thing is, NMSU head coach Jerry Kill is now at Vanderbilt as an assistant. NMSU offensive coordinator Tim Beck also followed Kill to Vanderbilt. NMSU starting QB Diego Pavia and backup QB Berlowitz also transferred to Vanderbilt. Their starting tight end and others from NMSU all followed them to Vanderbilt. There's already media people predicting Vandy to upset us because Jerry Kill, Tim Beck and Diego Pavia simply have Hugh Freeze's number the past 2 years. We all seen how they beat us last year 31-10 but they also beat Liberty and Freeze in 2022. Liberty was a 3 touchdown favorite over NMSU and NMSU beat them 49-14 and Diego Pavia had 6 touchdowns. Jerry Kill and especially Diego Pavia give Freeze fits for some reason.

I still think we will win comfortably over Vanderbilt but last year, against some of these same guys when they were at NMSU, proved that we can't be looking past anybody on our schedule. 

[JerryAU 1,837]

36 minutes ago, TeamZero77 said:

We play New Mexico this season instead of New Mexico State. The thing is, NMSU head coach Jerry Kill is now at Vanderbilt as an assistant. NMSU offensive coordinator Tim Beck also followed Kill to Vanderbilt. NMSU starting QB Diego Pavia and backup QB Berlowitz also transferred to Vanderbilt. Their starting tight end and others from NMSU all followed them to Vanderbilt. There's already media people predicting Vandy to upset us because Jerry Kill, Tim Beck and Diego Pavia simply have Hugh Freeze's number the past 2 years. We all seen how they beat us last year 31-10 but they also beat Liberty and Freeze in 2022. Liberty was a 3 touchdown favorite over NMSU and NMSU beat them 49-14 and Diego Pavia had 6 touchdowns. Jerry Kill and especially Diego Pavia give Freeze fits for some reason.

I still think we will win comfortably over Vanderbilt but last year, against some of these same guys when they were at NMSU, proved that we can't be looking past anybody on our schedule. 

Thanks for correcting my huge error. 

We get @ Mizzou - @ Kentucky - then Vandy at home to start off November.  I hope that gives Freeze & his staff plenty of time to prepare for anything those Vandy coaches have planned. 

[Viper 3,491]

On 7/31/2024 at 6:24 PM, ScotsAU said:

Talking about how UAT affects our recruiting is one thing. Talking about whether or not DeBoer is a failure belongs in the rivals forum.

The more Deboer focuses on OOS recruits (which isn’t sustainable), the more AU wins in-state. What Deboer does in recruiting absolutely 100% affects what AU does. The more Deboer fails to sustain what dink built, the more momentum in recruiting for AU. 

[Bro Johnny Mac 1,466]

7 hours ago, Viper said:

The more Deboer focuses on OOS recruits (which isn’t sustainable), the more AU wins in-state. What Deboer does in recruiting absolutely 100% affects what AU does. The more Deboer fails to sustain what dink built, the more momentum in recruiting for AU. 

Yep...

History shows that if we can keep close to them in recruiting while doing well in state they can’t beat us..

when we have a real good team like 10+ wins, we’re in good shape against bammer..

Now if Freeze can make better inroads into Georgia, we’ll have something going on 👍

[Viper 3,491]

4 hours ago, Bro Johnny Mac said:

Yep...

History shows that if we can keep close to them in recruiting while doing well in state they can’t beat us..

when we have a real good team like 10+ wins, we’re in good shape against bammer..

Now if Freeze can make better inroads into Georgia, we’ll have something going on 👍

It's telling that dink never beat a 9+ win AU team, either at LSU or bammer.

We are dominating in-state recruiting and taking back this state. This year's class is only the beginning.

[Auburn93 770]

I bet 247 has seen more of Jared Smith than the other sites. I like him as a five star. 

[Auburn93 770]

About Alabama recruiting-watch and see who they fire and hire. If you think they are doing great, then they will keep the same guys. I think they are going to change some staff in order to correct the state recruiting because they are getting beat by us!