re: 2013 Auburn Recruiting Thread: Commits, Visits, Hot Prospects, etc...

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Anybody have a list for BCW?

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When Trey Johnson committed to Auburn last summer the move figured to settle a recruitment going national even before the four-star linebacker’s junior season.

That early decision may have calmed the pursuit of the 6-foot-1, 220-pound athlete, but it hasn’t stopped a handful of elite programs from working their way back into the mix. Notre Dame visited Central Gwinnett High School twice this spring. USC, Miami, Alabama and Penn State have checked on the standout from Lawrenceville, Ga., too.

Since taking himself off the market, Johnson has learned enough about college football to realize it’s worth putting himself back in play for at least some of those schools. A defensive coordinator change at Auburn following the circuitous departure of Ted Roof for Penn State played a part.

“He learned a lot with coach Roof getting another job,” said Central Gwinnett head coach Todd Wofford. “He was his lead recruiter. Roof had gone to this high school too. They had a bond right there. From that he saw the whole business side of it.

“Now he’s taking a step back to look at the schools that have offered him.”

That doesn’t mean every program, but it does include the Irish.

“He’s just looking at a couple of teams, not going out of his way to do anything crazy,” Wofford said. “He’s looking predominantly at power schools that are known for good defensive tradition.”

Johnson plans to visit South Bend next month with Central Gwinnett assistant Duvall Braxton. The defensive coach played at Kent State, overlapping with Irish assistant Scott Booker’s career at the Mid-American Conference program.

Booker has visited Central Gwinnett twice this spring, including a stop with defensive coordinator Bob Diaco. What the Irish coaches saw was a junior who posted 164 tackles and six sacks last season.

“His instincts make him a student of the game and put him a step ahead of a lot of linebackers,” Wofford said. “He’s very explosive, watches a lot of film, helps himself out. He’s relentless and tries to unload every ounce that he has into every single tackle.”

It appears Notre Dame won’t be the only program under consideration even with Johnson still in Auburn’s commitment column.

“USC, he’s looking at USC a little bit,” Wofford said. “With Roof at Penn State, there’s a bond there. He’s possibility seeing what issues are going on at Miami with their linebacker tradition. And possibly, and this is a long shot just because of how many guys they signed last year, possibly looking at Alabama.”

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