Auburn Football Recruiting: Tigers Lose A Commit

https://twitter.com/GoochJmarion/status/1283978547351126016

Ah, offensive tackle recruiting

In a world seemingly filled with more uncertainty every single day it’s important that we can still count on some things to always be true. Like the fact Nick Saban can’t beat a 9 win Auburn team or that Ty Jerome double dribbled or that Auburn’s offensive tackle recruiting under Gus Malzahn is frustrating as hell to follow...

Last night, Auburn’s first OL commit of the 2021 class, 3-star OT J’Marion Gooch, announced on social media he is flipping to Tennessee.

Thank you to the Auburn Community, and coaching staff for all of the support during this process. After much thought and consideration, I have decided....@CoachTBarr @TKACoachSellers @CoachJPruitt @JimChaneyUT @CoachWillFriend @aspicer19 pic.twitter.com/gGT3EsRVcF

— G_soshiesty (@GoochJmarion) August 31, 2020

This one stings. Yes, Gooch’s rating is far from impressive but this is a kid whose stock has been trending up all summer. A massive human being, Gooch is very athletic with all the tools to develop into a starting tackle in the SEC. Georgia, Tennessee and Ole MIss have all been hard after the big man in recent months. That persistence paid off for the Vols as they were finally able to convince Gooch to stay instate.

Auburn still has three very good offensive lineman committed in Caleb Johnson, Jaeden Roberts and Garner Langlo. But many of Auburn’s top remaining OL targets are either committed or trending elsewhere so Jack Bicknell has some work left to do to fill out this class.

Instate Close To Landing Offer?

Gooch’s decision could mean good news for an instate prospect who has long coveted an Auburn offer. For much of this cycle, it was believed 4-star OT Rod Orr would be the next man up if Auburn were to miss on some top targets or lose a commit. That might not actually be the case. Instead, it could be another instate prospect in 3-star OL Rayvon Crum that gets the nod.

Crum is another massive human being at 6’5” 325 lbs capable of playing either guard or tackle at the next level. He was set to announce a decision yesterday but then decided to postpone not too long after buzz came out that Gooch was expected to flip.

After carefully thinking things over I’ve decided to take some more time to make the right decision for me becuase this is a forty year decision not a four year decision.

— BIG CRUM 6️⃣0️⃣ (@rayvon_crum) August 31, 2020

Could Auburn be close to offering? Maybe... The Tigers are still in hot pursuit of 5-star Amarius Mims though I remain skeptical Auburn is actually truly being considered. There’s also 4-star OT Diego Pounds out of North Carolina that Bicknell is reportedly very high on but he’s trending Penn State. Given the strangeness of this year and the lack of spring practice for evaluations don’t be surprised to see some new names jump on the board after the staff reviews these first few weeks of high school football.

Still, Crum is a name to pay close attention to moving forward. Doesn’t hurt he’s teammates with major Auburn target and a possible Tiger lean 5-star CB Ga’Quincy McKinstry.

War Eagle!

from College and Magnolia - All Posts https://www.collegeandmagnolia.com/2020/9/1/21407902/auburn-football-recruiting-tigers-lose-a-commit-jmarion-gooch-decommits-rayvon-crum