5-Star Safety with Auburn Ties Sets Official Visit with Tigers

The Auburn Tigers have had back-to-back top-10 recruiting classes under Hugh Freeze with a lot of help from St. Frances Academy in Maryland.

Auburn Tigers head coach Hugh Freeze has built quite the pipeline to St. Frances Academy in Maryland. | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

It was well publicized that for the Class of 2025, Hugh Freeze and the Auburn Tigers had one of their best in-state recruiting hauls in the program's history. Nine out of 14 of the state's top recruits inked with the Tigers including five of the top seven.

What maybe flew under the radar a bit is the pipeline that Auburn built to St. Frances Academy in Maryland. Auburn signed four-star defenders on each level of the defense from St. Frances including cornerback Blake Woodby, defensive lineman Darrion Smith, and linebacker Bryce Deas.

The Tigers also added a commitment for the 2026 class from St. Frances in safety Wayne Henry who made his pledge in August.

Freeze and the Tigers are hoping the relationships forged in Maryland continue to pay off as they target their biggest fish yet. Safety Jireh Edwards announced on social media that he has set an official visit to Auburn on May 16th.

WDE @TJRushing20 @CoachDurkin @CoachHughFreeze @biancajamese pic.twitter.com/ch7I9D0ePv

— Jireh Edwards ✟ (@jaygolive1k) February 19, 2025

Edwards is listed as a five-star prospect and the No. 2 safety in the country by Rivals.

247 Sports lists him as 6'2 and 205 pounds, a ready made weapon on defense.

"Punishing defender that should offer some alignment flexibility at his next stop as he can spin down into the box or patrol from the border," wrote 247 Sports director of scouting Andrew Givins. "Owns a college-ready build with some promising features and tested off the charts spring before junior year."

Edwards has also set official visits to Maryland (May 29), Georgia (June 6), Texas A&M (June 13), and Oregon (June 19). Getting the first crack at Edwards with several of his former teammates already on the roster should help give Auburn the inside track in his recruitment.