It’s a recurring theme in Auburn’s recruiting.
Tuesday, highly sought wide receiver Jamal Patterson expressed his high regard for Auburn to Scott Cameron of AuburnUndercover.com. Wednesday, it was Ricco Sanders, another hotshot receiver, saying Auburn is among his finalists. Quarterback Ryan Mossakowski has made no secret of his interest.
Skill players are fascinated by offensive coordinator Tony Franklin and his spread scheme. It is a system he has helped high school coaches across the country implement.
Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville said from the time he hired Franklin last December that he expected him to have a major impact on recruiting skill players. And he has.
Sanders, 5-foot-11 and 175 pounds from James Byrnes High School in Duncan, S.C., told ESPN affiliate TheBigSpur.com that Auburn is in his top four.
Sanders, on the ESPN 150 Watch List, said is he is strongly considering Auburn, Florida, Florida State and South Carolina.
"I like Auburn because they switched to the spread offense,” said Byrnes, who plays in a spread scheme. "South Carolina, I have a lot of interest in and it's just an all-around good school. Florida, I like the way they get the ball into their receivers, and Florida State, they've got the momentum and they like to compete like we do at Byrnes."
Mossakowski narrows his choices
After camping at Auburn last Saturday and Louisville last Sunday, Mossakowski told CrimsonConfidential.com that he has narrowed his choices to Auburn, Texas A&M, Kentucky and Alabama.
“Each of those schools has its own set of positives, and each has some negatives,” Mossakowski said Tuesday night. “But those are the four schools that fit me the best in regards to what I’m looking for.”
Mossakowski said he will take no more unofficial visits this summer.
“I’m going to take a two-day break and just let everything soak in, and then I’m going to make a list of questions for each school, and I’m going to ask those questions to each of the four coaches,” said Mossakowski, on the ESPN 150 Watch List. “Then I’m going to write down what I’m looking for in a college, and I’m going to compare that with each of the coaches’ responses.”
Pryor has "a blast," but he's not interested
Scratch Lonnie Pryor off the list of potential Auburn Tigers.
Pryor, a highly regarded running back from Okeechobee (Fla.) High School who participated in Auburn’s camp last Saturday, told AuburnUndercover.com Wednesday that Auburn will not be among his finalists.
Pryor, who was being recruited by Auburn as an athlete, said he did not get a written offer after the camp.
Pryor said he visited Clemson, Georgia and Auburn last week. After the trips, he cut his list down to four schools – Florida State, LSU, Clemson and Georgia.
“I had a blast up there,” Pryor said. “It was real fun. I enjoyed hanging out with Coach (Eddie) Gran and seeing the campus and everything it had to offer. I liked it a lot. It’s a great place, but I don’t see myself playing there.”
Last season, Pryor rushed 216 times for 1,724 yards and 20 touchdowns. He caught 13 passes for 161 yards.
Oxford receiver having second thoughts
Wide receiver Montez Phillips of Lafayette High School in Oxford, Miss., didn’t stay committed to Mississippi State for long.
A day after saying he was committed to the Bulldogs, Phillips is now also considering Ole Miss and Southern Mississippi.
