AUBURN | Already short on depth in the interior defensive line, Auburn would like to sign two defensive tackles and two noseguards in the 2023 class.
Below is a look at the Tigers’ top defensive tackle and noseguard targets, ordered by both Auburn’s interest level and chances of landing the prospect.
Auburn has made Horton a priority and it’s paid off. The defensive tackle has visited AU at least three times this year along with many of his Langston Hughes teammates, and plans to return in June for an official. A final decision is expected in July. His teammate, Rivals100 safety Terrance Love, committed to AU in April. Georgia Tech and UCF are two other schools strongly in the mix for Horton.
Auburn looks to have landed in Mitchell’s top five and is expected to bring the talented noseguard in for an official visit this summer. Georgia, Texas A&M, Texas and Miami are also expected to bring Mitchell in for officials and it appears to be a pretty wide open battle for all five schools. He’s likely to commit in August.
McDonald is an interesting noseguard to track. He’s visited Auburn a half dozen times and the Tigers are a strong possibility to receive an official visit. Ohio State and Oklahoma are considered the frontrunners for his signature by some with Wisconsin, Arkansas, Florida, Texas A&M, N.C. State and Louisville also in the mix. He plans to have a decision before the start of his senior season.
Hall, who has family from Columbus, Ga., visited Auburn for the first time a couple of weeks ago. AU didn’t make his top 12, which came out well before his visit, but appears to be in pretty good shape for his next cut down to eight schools. The defensive tackle target is still pretty open in his recruitment with Florida State and Florida strong contenders and a number of other schools including Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, Clemson, Miami, USC, Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State in the mix.
Auburn made the top five for the big noseguard but Georgia is the clear leader at this time. He’s close with AU 2022 defensive line signee Enyce Sledge, which is a plus for the Tigers. He’s expected to visit Auburn for the first time June 3 on an official. His other three finalists are LSU, North Carolina and Clemson. He plans to take his time making a decision and there could be some twists and turns ahead.
Auburn made the top 10 for the hulking noseguard, but it will be a battle to land in his top five and bring him in for an official visit. South Carolina, LSU and Georgia might be the three teams to beat. The other six schools in his final 10 are Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Michigan, Oklahoma and Oregon. He visited Auburn in March.
Smith is definitely a top AU defensive tackle target and a likely contributor as a true freshman, but numerous trips to Alabama have most industry experts expecting him to eventually land in Tuscaloosa. Auburn is certainly in the mix as is Georgia and it’s likely all three SEC rivals will receive official visits. Texas A&M and Miami are two more schools to keep an eye on in his recruitment.
OTHERS TO WATCH
REMINDER: Recruiting priorities, targets and offers can change weekly, especially during the spring evaluation period when Auburn assistants are out on the road talking to high school coaches, teachers and administrators.
MORE TOP TARGETS
