re: 2019 Football Recruiting Thread - Auburn Goes 4/7 & Land Brothers

quote:

---

4-star Donte Starks, Marrero, La.

Stealing a top linebacker from Louisiana normally would come as a surprise.

That wouldn’t necessarily be the case with Donte Starks.

LSU is a likely landing spot for Starks. Some still might call the home-state team the favorite, but Auburn is a serious threat. His relationship with Williams is closer than it is with any other coach in the country.

Starks has been to Auburn twice this spring. His interest is sky-high.

He declines to name a leader. It is that close.

“T-Will played the linebacker position at Auburn, so he can relate to things that we go through with our body and things like that. He’s a great father, coach, husband and person, so it’s always good to be around a person like that,” Starks told SEC Country last month. “Our relationship is as close as if I’ve been knowing him all my life.”

---

quote:

---

4-star Vonta Bentley, Birmingham, Ala.

Last time I spoke with Vonta Bentley, he referenced more than once his wish to hear more from Auburn. At the time, he had been hearing much more from Clemson and quite a bit more from Alabama. Two days after that, Bentley was back on the Plains to meet with Auburn coaches.

Auburn’s lack of involvement so far has nothing to do with a lack of interest in Bentley. The Tigers want him. Now they just have to prove it.

Bentley has developed a strong relationship with the Clemson staff, and there are a few strong connections at Alabama. The connection to Auburn has to do with his two high school teammates — TD Moultry and Coynis Miller — who have signed with the Tigers in the last two recruiting classes.

This likely shapes up to be an Alabama vs. Clemson vs. Auburn battle.

---

quote:

---

5-star linebacker gives latest on his recruitment

Owen Pappoe’s name has been a headline driver the last month.

Since he set his May 5 decision date — which has been changed to May 1 for television purposes — Pappoe has been the center of recruiting attention for Auburn, Georgia, LSU and others. Auburn and Georgia have been at the forefront of the conversation since he called the Bulldogs his No. 1 and the Tigers his No. 2 last month.

Several predictions have come in from reporters in the industry (including in these Auburn recruiting notebooks), but little has come directly from Pappoe since his three-day visit to the Plains last week.

Pappoe has seen and heard most of it and wanted to set the record straight. He spoke with my DawgNation colleague Jeff Sentell over the weekend to give the latest.

“If you don’t hear it from the man, don’t believe it. It’s just rumors,” Pappoe said.

Pappoe directs that at the many fans who have reached out to him in recent days under the impression the media trend toward Auburn was absolute truth. He sends the same message to all the local people who have operated under the assumption for many years that Pappoe (Grayson/Loganville, Ga.) would wind up playing for the home-state team.

He clarified that to Georgia coaches who reached out to him in the wake of the Auburn buzz.

“They’re like, ‘What’s all this talk about Auburn?’ I was like, ‘Coach, just let the media be the media.’ If they don’t hear it coming from me, just don’t listen to it. That’s what I told them,” Pappoe said. “Everybody [in his area] thinks I’m going to Georgia, so I let them think what they want to think.”

What has become abundantly clear — and Pappoe readily admits — is this has become close.

He told Barton Simmons of 247Sports that he has a strong feeling about the school he wants to commit to. In his conversation with SEC Country, Pappoe revealed for the first time that he has no leaders heading into the May 1 decision. That’s a major move from calling Georgia his top school for a majority of the process.

“It’s close,” Pappoe said. “How did Auburn catch up? Every time I went to Auburn was for a game or a camp. Everything was moving fast. I didn’t really spend time with the coaches like that. Getting to sit down with coaches and my family and just watch film with them, it really caught my eye.”

Pappoe’s regular visits to Auburn likely aren’t finished before his announcement.

The nation’s No. 1 linebacker has official visits set up the next two weekends to Penn State and Texas. He still plans to make it back to Auburn or Georgia for unofficial visits, but he won’t take officials there — at least this spring. Pappoe wants to save two official visit dates for the fall.

That brings up an obvious question: Will his recruitment be shut down on May 1?

The easy answer to that is no, but it needs a little more context than that. Pappoe will take those last two official visits this fall regardless of which school he chooses. That could be Auburn and Georgia. It could be two schools much more out of the norm from what he’s visited so far, much like the Penn State and Texas visits.

But Pappoe said he’ll be “pretty locked in” to the school he picks next month.

If that choice is Auburn, Pappoe said one factor will be key to maintaining that commitment.

“I just want to make sure I play with some dogs, so I want to see how this recruiting class goes,” Pappoe said. “I’ve been getting offers since eighth grade. I’ve put a lot of thought into it. I believe whatever decision I make will be the right one for me.”

---

quote:

---

Nice. Hopefully he can put on weight well.

---

quote:

---

I just want to make sure I play with some dogs

---

quote:

---

Auburn has picked up a commitment from an in-state cornerback.

Saraland's Cordale Flott announced his decision Tuesday morning on Twitter.

Flott chose Auburn over offers from Florida, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Missouri, Oregon and Arkansas, among others.

Flott, who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 160 pounds, has been high on Auburn since visiting in March.

“They showed me that not everything revolves around football,” Flott said after the visit. “They would take care of me. They’re like family. Coach (Kevin) Steele is a caring person. I can tell that already. He feels I would be a good fit in their defense, and that I could make an impact if I go there and earn it.”

Flott also met with Gus Malzahn during the visit.

“He’s a great person,” Flott said. “He’s really strict with the way he handles his program and the football players.”

Flott is the fourth player in the 2019 class to commit to Auburn. He joins four-star quarterback Bo Nix, four-star receiver George Pickens and three-star center Jakai Clark.

---