AUBURN | Coming off a fourth consecutive season, Auburn signed a top 10 recruiting class for consecutive years for the first time in nearly a decade.
The credit for that goes directly to Hugh Freeze and his staff, which had to fight off a number of other programs to sign 25 high school players Wednesday.
“We were able to hold on to some really, really dang good players,” said Freeze. “To get to where we want to get, you have to have similar recruiting classes to the elite. I have never said that you can’t win a game here or there, but to be consistent and running off the table and winning nine and 10 games in this league, you have to have a roster that is made up of some Top 10 recruiting classes.
“We’re two for two in that after today. That was a necessary step for us to get to where we want to go.”
By late on the afternoon of Signing Day, the Tigers’ class was ranked eighth nationally and fifth in the SEC. AU also signed the No. 8 class in 2024.
The day was not lacking in drama as AU lost one commitment and gained another after cornerback Shamar Arnoux flipped to Florida State and Auburn flipped Tennessee defensive line commitment Darrion Smith.
In the days leading up to Signing Day, AU lost 4-star offensive lineman Tavaris Dice to Florida and 5-star defensive lineman Nate Marshall to Michigan.
But considering the Gators lost eight high-profile commitments from its 2024 class down the stretch a year ago, hanging onto the majority of this class was a huge accomplishment for the Tigers.
For the Tigers, they had to fight hard to hold off one or multiple Power 4 schools for many of their top commitments including quarterback Deuce Knight, edge Jared Smith, safeties Eric Winters and Anquon Fegans, linebacker Elijah Melendez and cornerback Donovan Starr.
“Man, today is one of those days where the first emotion you probably feel is relief, and excitement is the next one,” said Freeze. “There’s so many people that played such a critical role in us, looks like we’ll finish with another top-10 class, and one of the tops in the SEC.”
Overall, AU signed a very balanced class with one quarterback, one running back, two tight ends, three wide receivers, four offensive linemen, four defensive lineman, one edge, three linebacker, five defensive backs and one punter.
The Tigers signed six of the state's top 10 prospects with the other four choosing out-of-state programs.
Freeze had a long list of people to thank during his Signing Day press conference Wednesday including an Auburn fanbase that continues to sellout Jordan-Hare Stadium despite the struggles on the field.
“So many people to thank that really go unnoticed,” said Freeze. “You know, our recruiting staff and our personnel staff that does the evaluations, and obviously our coaches that go on the road and are the boots on the ground, and our administration. And one of the things that I think was most critical was the excitement of our fans even going through a difficult season. Them continuing to support our team and show these recruits and their families that Auburn love, and Auburn Family is real.
“Our vision here is very clear, and I think today is a sign that people see it, good players see it, their families see it. It’s validation in a way that we’re on the right track even though we had a disappointing season. And so we’re just thrilled to kind of finish this off and let’s get these guys here and continue to change our roster.”
There won’t be a lot of rest for Freeze and his staff, however. The transfer portal opens Dec. 9 with AU needing to fill even more needs, especially at quarterback and offensive tackle.
