Why Auburn Is ‘At the Top’ of This Defensive Lineman’s Board

If there is one position group in which the Auburn Tigers have consistently been able to develop pro-level talent, it is the defensive line. Names like Derrick Brown, Dontavious Russell and now Keldric Faulk have either already been successful in the NFL or are projected to be, and that quality is standing out to many key recruits.

One such recruit, 2028 De La Salle (La.) defensive lineman Ronald Crawford, received an offer from Auburn on Monday. Crawford is a 6-foot-3, 340-pound behemoth of a sophomore in high school, and has received offers from a litany of top programs, including Ole Miss, SMU and Syracuse.

Auburn Tigers on SI caught up with Crawford after he received his offer to chat about all things Auburn and his recruitment.

“I would say Auburn is definitely at the top of my board right now,” Crawford said, “with them being an SEC school and consistently putting DL in the NFL… I plan to get up there either this spring, or this summer for sure.”

Unlike some prospects in this recruiting cycle, Crawford has no prior experience with Auburn’s staff and was not offered by USF when Alex Golesh was still at the helm. As such, his offer from Auburn was his first exposure to the Tigers’ coaching staff, but they seem to have made a good first impression.

“I’m fairly new to the Auburn staff & I’ve spoken with Coach Vontrell,” he said. “Someone from the staff got in touch with my representative & told him the DL coach [Coach Vontrell] would be calling me, he called & pulled the trigger, telling me how much he loves my game.”

Speaking of Crawford’s game, his size and physicality have made him a force to be reckoned with throughout his early years in high school. Crawford does not have a star classification at this time, but with his measurables and offers, it will likely only be a matter of time.

“If there’s one thing I want people to know about my game,” he said, “is that it’s nasty, physical, fast, and dominating… I’ll approach [recruitment] by just putting my head down, continuing to work & strive to get better each and every day. Also keeping a good weight to play at… I try to model my game after Aaron Donald and just being a beast.”

As mentioned, Crawford does not have an official visit date set for the Plains, but he is quite excited to come to Auburn whenever the opportunity arises. For now, he said he will continue to work, grind and do everything he can to improve.

“I just want people to know,” he said, “that whatever school gets Ronald Crawford is getting an athletic freak and force to be reckoned with!”

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