A brief dead period has come to an end.

Friday marked the start of a contact period, allowing coaches to visit and communicate with recruits at any location. Hugh Freeze and some of his new staff, along with those that were retained, have already hit the road.

The contact period lasts slightly longer than two weeks, wrapping up on Dec. 17. Freeze noted in his introductory press conference that they'll have to make "headway in a hurry," so here are 10 recruits that Freeze should make his highest priority, in no particular order.

Auburn's chances with Rueben Bain recently took a slight hit this week. His primary recruiter, Roc Bellantoni won't be retained on the new staff. Bellantoni generated significant interest in Auburn for Bain while he coached on the Plains.

What now? Is Auburn's chances with Bain ruined?

No, not necessarily. There's still genuine interest in Auburn from Bain, but Freeze needs to make the call to Bain and ensure that he's still on top of their list.

The change in leadership may have benefitted Auburn when it comes to recruiting James Smith and Qua Russaw, the destroyers on defense going as a package deal out of Montgomery.

Auburn wasn't making much headway with the two under the previous staff. It certainly wasn't going to make progress without a head coach. Now, the Tigers have their guy, and it's time to get moving.

Freeze is a "living room" guy, as he mentioned in his introductory press conference. It's time for him to make the trip to Montgomery and make his pitch to Smith and Russaw.

This is a great year for in-state talent, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Another local prospect is Keldric Faulk, the edge rusher out of Highland Home, Ala.

He's currently committed to Florida State and it's always difficult to flip a commit without a head coach. Freeze is in place, he's getting his staff together and Auburn has some stability for the first time in a while.

Now is the time to strike up a visit or phone call and work the magic before it's too late for Faulk. With someone of his skillset and talent level so close to the Plains, it's not hard to figure out why Freeze should push hard for Faulk.

One school Freeze has to have as high priority is Langston Hughes. There's no shortage of talent on that roster, on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball.

North Carolina commit Joshua Horton, Ohio State commit Jelani Thurman and Georgia commit Bo Hughley have all been on Auburn's radar this season as the Tigers have pushed hard for them to flip.

Horton's been the most quiet about Auburn's efforts to flip him, as he remains committed to North Carolina. I'd expect the Tigers to at least have a chance, though.

Thurman visited Auburn for most of the Tigers' home games this season, tagging along with Auburn safety commit Terrance Love.

There's still interest in Auburn for Thurman, at least after his last visit. He wasn't able to say exactly the level of interest, but there's enough that he might schedule a second official visit.

Hughley is a popular name among big-time programs. There are several schools seriously pursuing him despite his Georgia commitment. Auburn is one of them, but it appears the Tigers are middle-of-the-pack in terms of programs that have a chance at flipping Hughley.

We'll see if Freeze can do anything to change that, but for now, it seems that Georgia might be able to hang onto the 6-foot-7 lineman.

Auburn already flipped one player from LSU in this recruiting cycle, why not make it two? Especially at a position of need, where someone like DJ Chester can make an immediate impact.

Chester made two game day visits to Auburn this season, one before and one after his commitment to LSU. Which means Chester has seen several sides of Auburn this season.

If the Tigers have any chance, Freeze needs to sell his vision of Auburn as the best version that Chester has ever seen.

Edwin Joseph was on campus for his official visit near the beginning of November and following the hire of Freeze, he's eager to build a relationship.

Auburn's lack of a head coach was the lone thing that was missing from his visit, although he noted that it didn't affect his view on Auburn. Now the Tigers have a coach and what Joseph calls "the best facility I’ve seen yet."

This could be one of the uncommitted prospects to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.

Another Miami native and teammate of Bain and quarterback commit Keyone Jenkins, Lamar Seymore also took his official visit to Auburn in November.

Auburn could have taken a hit with Seymore when it decided to not retain Bellantoni and Ike Hilliard, but retaining Williams was important for Seymore. He didn't want to begin building a relationship with Williams, only for him to depart.

Well, Williams is in Auburn to stay. He still feels good about his commitment to Pittsburgh, but Freeze can certainly try to change that.