Auburn makes move for No. 1 tight end

AUBURN | Luke Ford has seen many college football games in many college football stadiums.

None measured up to the one he saw Saturday inside Jordan-Hare as No. 6 Auburn beat No. 1 Alabama, 26-14.

“That was the best game atmosphere I’ve ever been to,” Ford said. “I have been to bigger schools with 100,000 fans and stuff and this was louder than 100,000 and it’s only 87,000. It was the best game environment I’ve ever been in.”

Ford, who is ranked the No. 1 tight end in the 2018 class, was in Auburn on an official visit. He made the trip from his hometown of Carterville, Ill., arriving Friday and staying until Sunday afternoon.

“It was an amazing visit,” Ford said. “I had a great time. Auburn definitely moved up after this visit.”

Ford spent time with player host John Samuel Shenker, a redshirt tight end at Auburn. He also met with tight ends coach Larry Porter and coach Gus Malzahn.

“Coach Gus Malzahn is probably the coolest head coach I’ve talked to,” Ford said. “He spends a lot of time with me and it means a lot to me, especially coming from such a prestigious school like Auburn.”

Following the visit, Ford listed a top three, all of which are in the SEC.

“I don’t really have an official leader,” Ford said. “I pretty much have a top three right now and they’re all right beside each other: Auburn, Alabama and Georgia. It’s just going to have to be me looking at tight ends and where I feel like I fit in best. It’s just going to come down to my personal decision.”

Auburn hasn’t used the tight end often in the offense this season, but Ford believes that would change in the future should he sign with the Tigers.

“I have seen a little bit of the tight end used, but they don’t really have much because on their depth chart they don’t really have a true tight end,” Ford said. “They have blockers and then they have a developmental guy right now in John, who is a redshirt. They think he can be pretty good next year. They just don’t have the depth.”

Auburn’s coaches will visit with Ford in Illinois before the tight end makes his commitment, which he plans to do Jan. 6 at the U.S. Army All-America Bowl. Ford hopes to take more visits before his announcement, including a possible trip to Georgia this weekend.