National CFB recruiting writer calls Auburn a 'winner' after Early Signing Day

Auburn's coaching staff, led by head coach Hugh Freeze, continue to get national recognition for the hard work required to bring in a Top 20 class on Early Signing Day.

Ari Wasserman, a senior college football and recruiting writer for The Athletic, just recently released his "College football signing day winners and losers" article ($) and Auburn received plenty of credit, getting grouped in with Alabama, Georgia, Oregon, and Texas as schools that maximized their opportunities on Early Signing Day.

Wasserman discusses the notable flips, including 4-star CB Kayin Lee from Ohio State and 4-star DL Keldric Faulk from Florida State and points out that Auburn is now positioned to compete on the recruiting trail in a way they weren't under the previous staff.

With the caveat that the overall class won't stand out to anyone without the proper context (he notes that Auburn's only Top 100 player is Faulk, although RB Jeremiah Cobb is a Top 100 player and is expected to send in his LOI in the spring signing day), Wasserman writes that Auburn finally "has a head coach that is interested in recruiting" and has strong positive vibes for the direction of the program as coaches prepare to dive into the 2024 recruiting cycle, another strong class for the state of Alabama.

Writes Wasserman:

The upside for Auburn goes without saying. It didn’t get a jolt from a recruiting-minded head coach until less than a month before the early signing period and still signed the No. 19 class in the 247Sports Composite. Imagine what Auburn may be able to do with an entire year.

The common sentiment has been that Auburn can recruit itself, to an extent, but that was definitely tested over the last two seasons. After the ouster of Bryan Harsin, Auburn's 2023 class was projected in the 50s or 60s, depending on the specific scouting service used. Now the class stands as a Top 20 class, after only 21 days on the job by Hugh Freeze and with some hires (like linebacker coach Josh Aldridge, who was announced yesterday by Freeze) having been here for even less time than that.

Losers from the Wasserman piece include Notre Dame (falling from #1 to #9), Ohio State (finishing at #3, but losing several 5-star options to lesser programs, the aforementioned Auburn flip, and a concentration of top recruits at one position, wide receiver), Miami (who came in at #4, but that's counting #2 overall recruit CB Cormani McClain, who didn't sign on ESD and is rumored to be visiting Deion Sanders and Colorado soon), and Baylor, who did not sign a QB in their class after the loss of four-star QB Austin Novosad, who had been committed for over a year, to Oregon at the last minute.

Auburn was a winner on ESD, and the future is bright.

It was a good day 🥶🧊 pic.twitter.com/U5Oj4RmLkW
— Auburn Football (@AuburnFootball) December 22, 2022

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