2017 National Signing Day Wrap-Up: Auburn Tigers

As National Signing Day comes to an end, let’s take a look at how the Auburn Tigers made out.

As has always been the case under Gus Malzahn, recruiting wasn’t an issue for Auburn this year. Their class of 2017 was ranked fourth in the SEC per 247Sports, and ninth-best in the nation.

The Tigers had 23 recruits committed coming into Wednesday, and all 23 are now either signed or signed and enrolled.

Key Players

5* OT Calvin Ashley

Ashley, a five-star offensive tackle from Washington, DC (and a couple of the Florida prep powerhouses) is the Tigers’ lone five-star player in this class. He is also one of three signees that should be able to make an impact on Auburn’s offensive line.

As a tackle, Ashley should be able to slide in and replace the graduating RT Robert Leff.

Offensive linemen are often the hardest recruits to judge, but as you can see in Ashley’s Hudl, found below, he is a mauler. It will be interesting to see what sort of learning curve there is for him as he goes from high school to blocking top SEC pass rushers.

4* RB Devan Barrett

Just like their in-state neighbors to the northwest, Auburn has a long pedigree of quality running backs, dating back to Bo Jackson. While Kamryn Pettway and Kerryon Johnson will probably get the bulk of the work this season, Barrett will be able to work his way in and get some touches. The pipeline of great Auburn backs looks to be set to continue.

The Tampa product chose Auburn over a slew of other schools, both in the SEC and outside the conference. His senior season at Tampa Catholic saw him rush for 1271 yards on 162 carries (7.8 yards per carry), and 13 touchdowns.

In today’s college football, you can never have enough running backs in your backfield to split carries. Barrett has been told he’ll have a chance to contribute right away, per 247Sports, so it looks like he may avoid a redshirt.

4* DE Markaviest Bryant

We should probably start talking about some of Auburn’s commits from today, eh? Since it was Signing Day and all. The Tigers had three commits today, and Bryant is the highest-ranked of the three.

Bryant choosing Auburn was a bit of a surprise, as none of 247Sports’ Crystal Ball predictions had him choosing the Tigers. However, as SB Nation’s Richard Johnson notes, Auburn had two distinct advantages.

“Auburn has shown that they have a need for him, and he’s cousins with former AU star Montravius Adams. Georgia has the best individual relationship with him throughout the recruiting process, though. LSU got a visit from Bryant on Jan. 20, and Alabama got a visit in mid-December. But Auburn got his final official visit on the 27th.

The adage goes “follow the visits,” and Auburn got the last one in the race for Bryant’s services. It’s not a massive surprise that that’s where he ended up, especially thanks to the family connection.”

Those schools’ loss certainly will be Auburn’s gain. While Auburn’s defensive end and outside linebacker situations are kind of crowded, Bryant is the type of player who should be able to force his way into the rotation.

Auburn’s two other commits today were 3* DT Tyrone Truesdell (Read more about him right here, from our friends at College & Magnolia), and 3* ATH JaTarvious Whitlow.

Auburn Class of 2017 by State

Alabama (10): 4* ILB Tadarian Moultry, 4* OT Austin Troxell, 4* ATH Alaric Williams, 4* ATH Malcolm Askew, 4* WR Noah Igbinoghene, 4* ILB Kenney Britt, 3* JaTarvious Whitlow, 3* Alec Jackson, 3* S Jordyn Peters, 3* LS Bill Taylor

Colorado (1): 3* K Anders Carlson

District of Columbia (1): 5* OT Calvin Ashley

Florida (3): 4* OG Nick Brahms, 4* RB Devan Barrett, 3* CB Traivon Leonard

Georgia (6): 4* DE Markaviest Bryant, 3* OLB Chandler Wooten, 3* ATH Malik Willis, 3* S Carlito Gonzalez, 3* DT Tyrone Truesdell, 3* TE John Shenker

Illinois (1): 3* TE Salvatore Cannella

Texas (1): 4* QB Jarrett Stidham