Auburn leads for Georgia athlete

AUBURN | Clinch County (Ga.) athlete Charles McClelland has Auburn atop his early list of favorites.

McClelland named Auburn No. 1 after visiting for Big Cat last Saturday.

“Auburn is at the top,” McClelland said. “Auburn is my leader. They play in the best conference and I want to play at the highest level that I can.”

McClelland was one of 33 recruits in Auburn for its annual event, which included a barbecue, games, contests and a scavenger hunt. McClelland attended Big Cat days after receiving an offer from Auburn.

“It felt great (to get the offer),” McClelland said. “I wasn’t really expecting it. I didn’t expect any SEC school to offer because I thought I was too small to play in the SEC.”

McClelland, at 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds, isn’t too small for the SEC. LSU on Wednesday became the second school in the conference to offer. McClelland now is up to 15 offers, including Washington State, Army, Navy, Troy, UCF and Cincinnati, among others.

But Auburn, for now, is the team to beat.

“I like it (at Auburn),” McClelland said. “it’s real nice. And they like me because I’m versatile. I got the ability to play a lot of positions.”

McClelland was named region player of the year as a junior after rushing for more than 1,500 yards and scoring 27 touchdowns. He’ll play defensive back as a senior, which is where Auburn is recruiting him to play.

McClelland plans to return to Auburn for a camp this summer and wait until after the season to make his college choice. Auburn also offered McClelland’s teammate, defensive lineman John Mincey.