Now that Alex Kozan has turned in his letter of intent and become the 21st member of Auburn’s 2012 recruiting class — Auburn counts Illinois transfer Jay Prosch among the recruiting class, but for the purposes of this blog, we’re only looking at incoming freshmen — it’s time to take a look back at a class that has been built over the course of the last month.
First of all, the recruiting sites have updated their rankings for the 2012 class to reflect Kozan’s signing. Except for ESPN. ESPN’s rankings people apparently spent Monday night watching Juan Pablo Montoya crash into a jet dryer, which, admittedly, made for good TV. Like the blog, the recruiting sites base their rankings only on incoming freshmen.
A quick examination of the position breakdown for Auburn’s 2012 signees shows a couple of areas that the Tigers obviously felt they had a need. Offensive line, to be sure, where the Tigers signed seven players and put together the nation’s second-ranked offensive line class. On national signing day, Gene Chizik highlighted the offensive line as the one position the coaching staff felt they needed to add some numbers to shore up a lack of depth.
The other spot is quarterback, and the numbers crunch was made necessary by Barrett Trotter’s decision to forego his final year of eligibility at Auburn. When Trotter made that decision, he left only two scholarship quarterbacks on Auburn’s roster — Clint Moseley and Kiehl Frazier — and Auburn felt like it needed four quarterbacks in the program. To fill the extra spot, the Tigers offered a spot to Central-Phenix City quarterback Jonathan Wallace along with the already-committed Zeke Pike.
Four players have already arrived on campus and enrolled. Pike, offensive linemen Shane Callahan and Patrick Miller and linebacker Javiere Mitchell all enrolled early and plan to go through spring practice, although Mitchell is recovering from shoulder surgery for an injury suffered last season. An official update on his status likely will not be available until spring practice.
And for those who count Prosch among the class, that’s a pretty significant addition. Prosch is already a proven player, and he’s the kind of guy who’s built to block SEC linebackers in the hole and open creases for the running backs. How he will be used is still a work in progress; new offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler is still putting together his playbook.
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Auburn’s 2012 Recruiting Class
Quarterback
- Zeke Pike, Dixie Heights High, Fort Mitchell, Ky., 6-6, 225
- Jonathan Wallace, Central-Phenix City (Ala.) High, 6-1, 204
Running back
Wide receiver
- Ricardo Louis, Miami Beach (Fla.) High, WR, 6-2, 200
- JaQuay Williams, Sandy Creek High, Tyrone, Ga., 6-4, 191
Tight end
- Darrion Hutcherson, Dadeville (Ala.) High, 6-7, 247
- Ricky Parks, Callaway High, Hogansville, Ga., 6-4, 231
Offensive linemen
- Will Adams, Sandy Creek High, Tyrone, Ga., 6-7, 275
- Shane Callahan, Chaparral High, Parker, Colo., 6-6, 285
- Jordan Diamond, Simeon High, Chicago, Ill., 6-6, 289
- Alex Kozan, Valor Christian High, Castle Rock, Colo., 6-4, 295
- Robert Leff, Fairhope (Ala.) High, 6-6, 270
- Patrick Miller, Dwyer High, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., OT, 6-7, 265
- Avery Young, Palm Beach Gardens (Fla.) High, OT, 6-5, 292