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Auburn keeping eye on Troy OL commit

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Entering his junior season at Trinity in Montgomery, David Gross never thought he would play offensive line in college. Understandable considering he had never played the position in high school.
Four games into the 2011 season, the standout defensive end accepted the challenge of playing both ways. Almost a year later, Gross has accepted something else, a scholarship offer to play offensive line at Troy.
"I like the atmosphere at Troy and they offer a chance for early playing time," he said.
Gross, who has added 40 pounds during the offseason and is up to 295 pounds on his 6-foot-6 frame, committed to the Trojans in June. And Troy wasn't the only college showing him interest. Gross was hearing from several schools including Auburn, Georgia Tech, N.C. State and Clemson.
"It's been a lot slower since I committed to Troy," Gross said of his recruitment. "There are still some schools staying in contact with me, but it has slowed down."
One school continuing to pursue Gross is Auburn. The Tigers, he said, send letters on a weekly basis. Gross attended Auburn's Senior Mini-Camp over the summer and the attention from the Tigers has been steady since.
"(Auburn OL) Coach (Jeff ) Grimes told me they had a lot of tackles and only one would be graduating so I worked at guard while I was at the camp," said Gross. "I talked to him after it was over and he said he really liked me at guard. He said that's what they needed in this class, that they would probably just take one guard.
According to Gross, Grimes was upfront about the possibility of the Tigers offering him a scholarship.
"He told me if I would get an offer, it would be later," said Gross. "They want to see me on film, watch me play a little more before they made that commitment to me, and I understand that. I understand that completely."
Gross said he hasn't thought much about the possibility of the Tigers offering, but it would be something to consider if they were to.
"If Auburn were to offer, it would be a plus for me. I would certainly appreciate it and think about it," he said. "My dad and uncle both played at Auburn, and my cousin, Gabe Gross, played football and baseball there.
"I grew up around Auburn. I have a lot of family that went there and played there so I would definitely think hard about it, but I'm good right now with Troy. I'm solid to (Troy) Coach (Larry) Blakeney."
In addition to Auburn, Gross continues to receive interest from Middle Tennessee State, Louisiana-Lafayette and N.C. State, among others.
At 6-6, 295 pounds, Gross claims a 4.68-second 20-yard shuttle, a 5.1-second 40-yard dash and a 28.5-inch vertical leap.
Trinity opens the 2012 season at Clay County on Aug. 31.
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