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 signed 25 high school players Wednesday, with Brentwood, Tennessee defensive back Donovan Starr announcing his signing during Freeze’s afternoon press conference.
“That’s a big get right there,” the head coach said.