Just Another Day of Sunshine Pumping From The Auburn Folks
By Chris Hale
Oh, Phillip Marshall. In case you missed it, he is back on the sunshine pumping wagon once again and is coming out with the pumps in high gear. Just check out his latest piece on Auburn Undercover.
Let’s take a look at some of the talking points, shall we? This is an article where he discusses how the “football recruiting landscape in the state Alabama has changed dramatically”.
"Alabama high schools produced four 5-star prospects for the recruiting class of 2014. Auburn .got two of them – running back Roc Thomas from Oxford High School and linebacker Tre Williams from St. Paul’s High School in Mobile."
Phillip, you really should have given a complete run down of at least the top 10. Did you forget that Alabama signed 3 of the top 5? I would think if the “recruiting landscape was changing” as you said in your fluff piece, Auburn should be able to lock up an Auburn legacy and one that attends high school IN Auburn. But that wasn’t the case. Rashaan Evans was one of those in the top 5 as well as Ronnie Clark and Marlon Humphrey. Marlon’s dad is a former Bama great. It seems not all teams have trouble locking up a legacy. Auburn did do pretty well for the top 10 in the state. They got 4 but we ended up with 5. Score one for the good guys.
Let’s look at this year thus far. If you look at the top 5 for the class of 2015, Alabama and Auburn both have 2 commits. Daron Payne is the odd man out right now since he hasn’t committed to a school. If his crystal ball predictions hold true, he will end up at Bama which would give Alabama the top player in the state as well as the 3 out of the top 5 again.
"Somehow, flips from Alabama to Auburn never seem to get the same attention as flips from Auburn to Alabama. Go figure."
Sad Phillip Marshall is sad. Perhaps you whiny folks could organize a boycott of the media outlets that don’t publicize these flips like you all think they should. This statement right here is another reason you will never lose the little brother title. Everything doesn’t have to be compared to Alabama but oh how we love it when you do it.
If you look at the last few classes, there is no question that Alabama is still ok within the state despite what an Auburn mouthpiece tries to say. Take a look at the class of 2013 as well if you want. The Top 5 in Alabama all signed with Alabama. Clean sweep. There is one big difference now. Alabama’s footprint in recruiting is not only the state but the nation. Hat tip to @kyle2lamb for the below graphic.
Keep bragging about your recruiting prowess in state and Coach Saban and crew will continue to go out and get the best players where ever they are located while still recruiting the state of Alabama. If you want to read the latest fluff piece in its entirety, you can do so here. Be prepared for some giggles though. You can’t say I didn’t warn you. And to add a side note, look at which team sits atop the rankings on all the major recruiting services. Roll Tide.