Year in and year out, the State of Georgia is one of the nation’s most fertile recruiting grounds. And that fact is certainly no secret, especially to the nearby Auburn Tigers, who consistently work to take advantage of their talented neighbors. That’s why Auburn’s recent run of commitments from Georgia athletes really comes as no surprise, rather simply as confirmation of the program’s current relevance.
In the last few weeks, the nearby Tigers have landed verbal commitments from two Peach State studs. First, Lee County offensive tackle Tyler Knight ended his recruitment, electing to attend Auburn over an offer from Troy University. The 6-foot-4, 245-pound lineman recently spoke to Auburnsports.com about his declaration and pointed to his visit to Auburn for a recent Senior Camp as a major force in his commitment.
“Once I went to that Senior Camp, I just loved the coaching staff and the facilities and everything they had,” Knight said. “It was just perfect for me. The atmosphere was just great. The coaches, they are down-to-earth guys. They are going to crawl all over you but they mean well. I just love that about the coaching staff.”
Auburn fans can also thank their offensive line coach Hugh Nall for his effective recruitment of Knight. And while the senior from Leesburg will play offensive line at Auburn, it is his versatility and overall athleticism that attracted the Tigers in the first place. On the high-school level, in addition to his role on the offensive line, Knight also plays defensive tackle and linebacker on defense. And his 4.72 40-yard dash and 325-pound bench press didn’t dissuade Auburn coaches either.
As mentioned above, however, Knight was hardly the only prize Auburn received on the recruiting front. That’s because when everyone thought that highly recruited Douglass linebacker Jonathan Atchison was wavering on his August commitment to the Tigers, the 6-foot-3, 216-pound outside linebacker spent the last week reassuring folks of his Auburn declaration. On Saturday, Atchison could be seen at Jordan-Hare Stadium cheering Auburn along as they took on SEC West power LSU.
“I went to see the fans, what it’s like on gameday and how that defense plays,” Atchison said. “I’ve heard about the Tiger Walk and the eagle flying around the stadium.”
In the initial stages of his recruitment, Atchison chose the Tigers over offers from Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville, Alabama, and West Virginia, among others. When the three-star recruit (according to Rivals.com) chose Auburn, with good reason, most suitors simply gave up. One school to keep an eye on moving forward, however, is the Crimson Tide from Alabama, as they have remained in hot pursuit of the linebacker.
“[The Alabama] coaches call me and I talk to them and I basically listen to what they have to say,” Atchison said. “My mom wants me to take a visit down there so I’m going to do it for her.”
‘BAMA ANSWERS TIGERS
Not to be outdone by their in-state rivals, the University of Alabama has also recruited Georgia with impressive vigor, which recently paid off in the way of a commitment from Ridgeland wide receiver Michael Bowman. The 6-foot-4, 206-pound prospect chose the Tide over offers from Arkansas, Kentucky, N.C. State, and Oregon.
On the field, Bowman displays adequate speed and a good ability to make the first tackler miss. In addition, Bowman has great height and impressive leaping ability, making him a big-time threat on jump balls, especially deep downfield. Bowman does, however, currently play in an extremely simple passing attack and will need to develop some of the more basic techniques before becoming a truly effective wideout on the college level.
In addition to Alabama and Auburn, another SEC competitor has taken advantage of the Georgia talent of late, as the University of South Carolina earned a pledge from Tony Straughter, who is currently attending Georgia Military College. The 6-foot-1, 215-pound recruit chose the Gamecocks after receiving heavy interest from Tennessee, TCU, UAB, Kansas State, and Mississippi.
It’s no secret the 2008 Gamecocks sport a top defense and the presence of some of their top players played a big part in Straughter’s decision.
“I got a good feeling from all the players I talked to like Jap (Jasper Brinkley), Tre (Travian Robertson) and Gerrod Sinclair,” Straughter told GamecockCentral.com. “All of those guys welcomed me in and made me feel comfortable. The coaches showed me how there is going to be a good opportunity for playing time because of the guys they lose after this season.”
Finally, it comes as no surprise that South Carolina lead man Steve Spurrier enjoyed receiving the good news.
“I wanted to wait until I got the chance to sit down and talk with him,” Straughter said. “I told him I was committing, and he jumped up and hugged me and shook my hand about 1,000 times. It was great.”
Janovitz can be reached at sjanovitz@scoreatl.com.
Loading ...
