Auburn 'helped themselves a lot' during 5-star OT's visit
As the No. 4 player in the entire Class of 2022 and the No. 1 OT, Julian Armella has been on plenty of visits.
But Auburn — even without a football game — stood out to Armella.
"They (Auburn) helped themselves a lot because I wasn't really expecting a lot of this, I was just expecting a normal visit," Armella said. "But out of all my visits I've taken, this was probably one of the best ones."
Auburn got into Armella's recruitment a little late, but when he found out the Tigers were interested, he decided to come up for a visit.
Armella and his St. Thomas Aquinas teammate Camden Brown arrived on Saturday, visiting the basketball game and touring campus and the athletic facilities.
"Honestly, it was a great experience for me and my family to come up here and see a whole different scenario and stuff like that," Armella said. "All these coaches showed me a really good time and it was really good to experience the whole type of culture and tradition that they have going on in here."
Because of the visit, Auburn is a factor in his recruitment.
"Yes sir," Armella said when asked if Auburn is a factor. "Because with me I never really closed down my recruitment even though I've had a Top Four and stuff like that, I've never really shut down any schools or burned any bridges, I've always kept it open."
Another big factor for Armella was the option for immediate playing time at Auburn. Armella got to look at the depth chart and saw an opportunity to make an "early impact."
Armella spent a lot of time with offensive line coach Will Friend and liked what he heard.
"He told me all the guys that he's coached. That stands out and speaks volume to his track record," Armella said. "I just feel like his coaching style fits me because he said that he's very hands on the board, teaching guys and putting them into perspective with like the defenses. So that's something that really stuck out to me."
The 5-star OT is set to announce a decision on Dec. 15 after visiting Florida State and potentially Florida in the next week.
He said he still has the same Top Four of Florida State, Florida, LSU and Alabama, but that Auburn was "in there" as well.
"Jjust the tradition and the family that they've got over here," Armella said stood out about Auburn. "You can definitely feel that type of vibe that everybody's really genuine and cares. Stuff like that, people opening doors, a lot of first-class people over here."
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