re: 2018 Football Recruiting Thread -- Final OP Update Edition

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4. Anthony Schwartz spent the last week catching passes from Auburn QB signee Joey Gatewood.

Prior to announcing his commitment to Auburn, Schwartz was able to gain familiarity with a key Auburn signee.

Auburn quarterback signee Joey Gatewood and Schwartz played for Team Spotlight at the Under Armour All-America Game. That meant a week’s worth of connection between a future Auburn quarterback and future Auburn wide receiver. There’s no question Gatewood — one of the more vocal, active recruiters — made his feelings known to Schwartz this week regarding his decision.

Schwartz also had a few other Auburn commits or targets on that team. Auburn wide receiver commit Matthew Hill lined up at wide receiver for Team Spotlight, as did key receiver target Justyn Ross.

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Another four-star wide receiver has committed to Auburn.

Anthony Schwartz, a Rivals250 speedster from American Heritage in Plantation, Fla., announced Thursday night his intentions to sign with Auburn in February.

Schwartz committed to the Tigers during the Under Armour All-America Game, which was televised on ESPN2. He chose Auburn over his other two finalists, Florida and Georgia.

Schwartz is the fourth receiver to commit to Auburn, joining four-star Matthew Hill, four-star Seth Williams and three-star early enrollee Shedrick Jackson.

Schwartz, who is the Tigers’ 21st commitment in the 2018 class, also will run track at Auburn. He met with Auburn track coach Ralph Spry during a visit in the summer.

“Coach Spry has a good history with sprinters and has a lot of people from South Florida coming up here," Schwartz said in August. "He told me the day after the bowl game, I’m track until fall camp. That’s important.”

Schwartz will take an official visit to Auburn Jan. 12-14. He also plans to visit Florida before Signing Day on Feb. 7.

As a senior, Schwartz had 25 receptions for 507 yards (20.3 avg.) and seven touchdowns.

Rivals ranks Schwartz, who stands six feet tall and weighs 175 pounds, the No. 29 player in Florida, the No. 31 wide receiver in the class and No. 163 in the Rivals250.

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LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE

This award goes to the most dynamic and exciting player during the week, the guy who gets everyone's attention when he has the ball. It was Ricky Slade who was a dynamo in the run and passing game. He’s not very big and durability as a feature back is a question mark, but the Penn State signee is as elusive as they come and can turn on the jets in just a couple of strides.

Honorable Mention: Justin Watkins and Alabama signee Xavier Williams had their moments. Auburn commitment Matthew Hill had some nice moves after the catch. Jacob Copeland also showed off some nice moves including reversing direction in the game itself. Ole Miss signee Elijiah Moore also made some big plays during the week.

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BEAR MARKET

This award is not one that you want; it's for the player whose stock dropped the most and that’s defensive end Jordan Davis. Davis, an Alabama signee, entered the week pushing for a fifth star but after a strong start he regressed each day after the first practice. He won’t plummet, but he’ll be further from that fifth star.

Honorable Mention: Florida signee Emory Jones had a rough week overall and should drop some. Stanford quarterback signee Jack West also struggled. Tennessee signee Alontae Taylor got open often but dropped many passes during the week.

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POISE UNDER PRESSURE

This is essentially for the best quarterback who performs when the lights come on and there is actually a live pass-rush coming at him. Joey Gatewood had a strong game not only running the ball but passing accurately. He was very poised in the pocket, handled the rush well and when he ran he finished with a bang. His ceiling is very high.

Honorable Mention: UCLA commit Dorian Thompson-Robinson had a rough first couple of days of practice but he was smooth as can be in the game itself. Adrian Martinez also made some nice throws.

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ROCKET ARM

This award goes to the quarterback with the best arm who showed the ability to make all the passes with zip on the football. Washington signee Jacob Sirmon missed two days of practice and the game but to me showed off the best arm of the group. Accuracy was an issue as it was with many of the quarterbacks, but he can get the ball where it needs to be.

Honorable Mention: Florida signee Emory Jones has a great arm thought we didn’t see it as much as we usually do. Joey Gatewood can sling the rock with his big arm as well.

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THE SNUGGIE

This is for the player who provided the best coverage on defense during the week. To me it was UCLA commitment Olaijah Griffin in a close battle over many others as there were many defensive backs that had good weeks. Griffin has great length and feet and he closes on the ball at the right time rarely being late to track the ball.

Honorable Mention: D’Shawn Jamison was solid. Asante Samuel was excellent and fellow Florida State signee AJ Lytton had a good week, too. DeMarvion Overshown was good as well. Quindarious Monday had a good week of practice. UCLA signee Bryan Addison had some good moments also.

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Needs to buddy up with Ryan Davis & work on his footwork

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ORLANDO, Fla. — Quarterbacks always draw a lot of attention in football regardless of the setting, and six of the best in the country competed over the last week at the Under Armour All-America Game. Rivals.com had eyes on them from the first practice through the last snap of the game Thursday night, and after watching every rep, the quarterback rankings looked this:

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When Auburn coach Gus Malzahn hired former Tigers receiver Kodi Burns to be his receiving coach in 2016, many wondered how the young assistant would fare on the recruting trail.

In his first cycle, he signed one 4-star.

But in Year 2, Burns, who turned 29 on Christmas eve, is having great success.

Anthony Schwartz of Plantation (Fla.) American Heritage became his latest commitment when he gave his pledge to the Tigers on Thursday night during the Under Armour All-America Game in Florida.

For Auburn, he is the fourth receiver commit in the class. Two of them, Shedrick Jackson and Seth Williams, signed Letters of Intent in December.

Of the four, Schwartz, Jackson and Matthew Hill (who shined in the Under Armour All-America Game on offense and special teams), have 4-star rankings. The group is considered one of the best receiver classes in the country.

Here are their national rankings in the industry generated 247Sports Composite …

-Hill, No. 99 overall recruit, No. 20 receiver.

-Schwartz, No. 153 overall, No. 28 receiver.

-Williams, No. 173 overall, No. 33 receiver.

-Jackson, No. 452 overall, No. 75 receiver.

While Burns had help from other Auburn assistants with each of their recruitments, he no doubt had a significant role with them all -- as often noted by the players themselves.

Jackson, the lowest-rated of the group, is coming off a season for state champ Hoover (Ala.) in which he had 900-plus receiving yards. Some of our sources, in fact, think he might be the most ready to play in 2018.

Worth nothing, Burns already has a talented receiver committed for 2019. That would be Jackson’s teammate at Hoover, George Pickens. He’s a 6-feet-5, 190-pound 4-star recruit.

With Burns’ crop of 2018 recruits, he’s getting a little bit of everything.

Schwartz arguably is the fastest recruit in the country. Last spring, he clocked a 100-meters time of 10.15 seconds at the prestigious Florida relays. Hill and Jackson also have the ability to take the top off a defense.

While Schwartz and Jackson own great straight-line speed, Hill not only is fast but possesses some wiggle and open-field elusiveness.

Then you have Williams, a 6-feet-3, 212-pound player who not only is big and physical but is one of the best high jump and long jump performers in the state of Alabama.

For Burns, the work isn’t done.

For starters, he most hold onto Hill. Clemson, which is recruiting him at safety, will get him on campus for an official visit this month. Hill grew up an Auburn fan and has said he prefers offense but Clemson’s recent prowess on the recruiting trail means this can’t be taken lightly.

Also, Auburn might still add another receiver to the class — but only if it’s an elite recruit.

Burns is working on two such players.

One is 4-star recruit Justyn Ross of Phenix City (Ala.), Central, the No. 1 prospect in the state of Alabama. The other is 4-star JaMarr Chase of Louisiana. Both plan to officially visit Auburn this month.

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