Final commitment: 5 star wr ⭐ flip his commitment to Auburn tigers over Alabama, gators and dolphins welcome to Auburn tigers football today…

Final commitment: 5 star wr ⭐ flip his commitment to Auburn tigers over Alabama, gators and dolphins welcome to Auburn tigers football today…

AUBURN, Ala. – When it came time for the state of Alabama’s top prospects to decide where to play college football, the stars of the Class of ’25 decided they look good in orange and blue.

Most of the state’s highest-rated players signed with Auburn Wednesday at the start of the early signing period, giving Auburn coach Hugh Freeze’s second full recruiting class a home-state boost.

“It’s priority No. 1,” Freeze said. “We have to win our share of battles in the state. This year was a success for sure. I think it will matter. It still matters that you represent your home state at a school that you’ve dreamed of coming to.

“We’re going to continue to push and try to build the foundation from inside our state outwards. Relationships still do matter when it comes to trusting. That was big for us to win our share of battles in the state.”

One of those in-state signees, running back Alvin Henderson from Elba, brings an impressive resume to the Plains. With more than 10,000 rushing yards, he’s the state’s all-time leading rusher.

“Any time you sign a guy that nationally is one of the top ever in production, that’s a pretty good sign,” Freeze said. “Alvin has been a joy to recruit. We’re really excited about Alvin and his future here. His balance, he catches the ball well, he finishes runs, he runs behind his pads. He’s a really complete back.”

Freeze and the Tigers went out of state – just barely – to land five-star quarterback Deuce Knight from Lucedale, Mississippi, 45 miles northwest of Mobile.

“Deuce was my first choice when I first got here,” Freeze noted. “I loved his length. I thought his upside was huge. We kept hammering away. He sees the vision. He knows he fits the system. It didn’t hurt that his favorite player was Cam Newton. It’s probably one of the higher quarterback signees that Auburn’s had in a while.

“He has a demeanor about himself like Malik (Willis) did, that people gravitate to and they want to follow. He makes people around him better. His ceiling is probably the highest of anybody I’ve initially worked with. He’s got all of those skillsets.”

Auburn’s class ranks in the top 10 for the second straight season for the first time in nearly a decade, a goal Freeze established two years ago when he was introduced as the Tigers’ head coach.

“It’s impossible to do what we want to do and not have these classes,” Freeze said. “To get where we want to get, you have to have similar recruiting classes to the elite.

“To be consistent in winning nine and 10 games in this league, you have to have a roster that’s made up of some top 10 recruiting classes. We’re two for two in that after today. It was a necessary step for us to get where we want to go.”

The majority of signees intend to enroll in January and participate in spring practice, increasing their chances of contributing next season.

With the high school class signed, Freeze and his staff turn their attention to the transfer portal window which opens Monday.

“We’re going to enjoy and celebrate today,” Freeze said. “We can’t stop evaluating. We’ll be ready to roll next week.”