In today’s edition of Auburn Tigers News, offensive line coach Jake Thornton talks about high school recruiting and a former tight end commit is expected to rejoin Auburn football

One of the biggest problems head coach Hugh Freeze inherited when he took on Auburn football was the state of the offensive line position group. For several years the Tigers struggled to recruit o-linemen, and there was a lot of work to be done.

Offensive line coach Jake Thornton and Freeze heavily utilized the transfer portal in year one to shore up the holes on the Tigers’ o-line but knew that the best way to build up the position group was to recruit out of high school.

“That’s why I came to Auburn because I believe in coach Freeze,” Thornton said, per Auburn Undercover. “We were talking about the job and he said ‘I want to build this thing off high school players.’ That’s why I jumped at the opportunity. That’s why I got into college coaching was to help high school players develop and give them an opportunity to achieve their goals.

“Allowing us to go out and recruit high school players is the best thing in the world. It gives us a chance to find the guys we really want and fit what we want to do here at Auburn from an offensive standpoint, from an o-line standpoint and from a culture standpoint.”

With several key returners like Connor Lew and Jeremiah Wright alongside new additions and the younger guys, the offensive line is in good shape with plenty of room to improve in the 2024 season.

Former tight end commit is expected to rejoin Auburn football

There has been a lot of back and forth in the recruitment of 3-star tight end Hollis Davidson. The Peachtree City, Georgia, product committed to Auburn football back in February after attending the Tigers’ Junior Day. However, he walked back his decision in May, claiming he decided too early.

Auburn football has stayed in touch with the #31 tight end in the recruiting class of 2025, but the Florida State Seminoles have also made a big push in his recruitment. Davidson is set to commit on July 4 and will choose between finalists Auburn and FSU.

Though the Seminoles picked up some momentum after Davidson’s decommitment, all signs point to the TE rejoining the Tigers’ class of 2025, including a recent prediction from On3’s Jeffrey Lee. Should he choose Auburn, Davidson will be the second tight end commit in this year’s group alongside Ryan Ghea.