Coach Caddy came to talk to the Marshall County Auburn Club tonight. He started by talking about his upbringing. Grew up in a single parent home (didn't know who his father was until he was 16). Had a lot of good father figures in his life, he named his little league, middle school, and high school coaches as great mentors. However, all of his coaches, along with everyone else in his community, were big bama fans. So growing up, he always thought he'd go to bama. In high school, his top 5 was UT and bama at the top, along with LSU, Fla St, and Notre dame. He visited (unofficially) auburn only bc of his assistant principal in high school and his wife who was the counselor were big auburn fans. He loved the atmosphere on his visit so he called the coaches at ND to tell them he was going to officially visit auburn instead of ND. He then committed to UT after his visit there (he was going to visit bama last bc thats where he thought he'd end up) and called Auburns coaches to cancel his OV. But Tuberville convinced him to take an in-home visit with them. He said Tuberville brought every assistant coach as well as academic advisors. He decided to go on his OV to Auburn and the rest is history.
On QBs: need a guy to step up. Got to have a good QB to compete in this league.
Finley - "knows the offense"
Calzada - participated in 7v7 during the spring, "accurate"
Robby Ashford - "athletic"
OL:
The young guys got a ton of reps this spring due to injuries. Caddy believes it was great for them to get live reps and will help build quality depth
WRs:
Improved in the spring but still looking for a playmaker in the portal to take the top off of a defense
TEs:
Best position group on the team
RBs: Want to be a power run team
Tank is going to have a big year - Caddy told a story where after a win this year, Coach Harsin came up to him and told him that he just heard an opposing coach recruiting Tank on the field. Caddy said Tank is an Auburn man and wanted to be at auburn after being pulled in all directions after (during) the season
Jarquez - one of the hardest workers on the team. Recently squatted 670 lbs and could have done more but the strength coaches cut him off
Sean Jackson - always been consistent, earned his scholarship
Jordan Ingram - Still has a way to go as a RB, but thinks things are starting to click for him. Will contribute on special teams
Alston - super excited about him, his work ethic, and his potential. Thinks he will be a great SEC RB
-Mentioned multiple times how he believes they are in such a better place this year than they were at the same time last year. Said the team has really rallied behind Harsin and that all the stuff that happened after the season may have been a blessing in disguise.
-Staffs main focus in recruiting is getting guys on campus. That is what sets Auburn apart from all other schools
-June is when camps start, and Auburn will host official and unofficial visitors
-Football only facility will be HUGE for recruiting. He said it will be the largest football only facility in the country - told a story that when he was with IMG in 17-18, he would be "inside recruiting for Auburn", every time a player went to Auburn they came back and said they loved the atmosphere, but the facilities were nothing like the other schools
-They were supposed to be in the FOF in July, but that has now been pushed back. He said they'll definitely be in by December at the latest, but hoping for mid-season
-When asked about NIL, he kind of rambled/danced around the question. Said its starting to get an NFL free agency feel. He said there are absolutely no rules/regulations other than coaches are not allowed to offer money. He did take a little shot at bama - said now they can all legally do what other teams have already been doing
-Talked about the 2004 team. By the way he talked, you could tell it still bothers him that they didn't get to play for the national championship. He said that as he gets older, he wishes the 04 team got the same recognition as the 57 and 10 national champ teams.
-Was asked about the transfer portal - said that "most" of the guys that transferred out brought a negative attitude and needed to go. He said coaches are technically not allowed to contact any player before they enter, but that its very very difficult for someone to enforce that rule. He said since the players still maintain their scholarship when they enter the portal, the players can hop in the portal and see if they have any better opportunities and if not then come back. He is not a fan of that at all! He also said that the coaches get an email when a current player jumps into the portal, and that most of the time that is the first time they know about it.
Overall, it was a great night and thankful Coach Williams is at Auburn! He seems to be very excited about this team.
On QBs: need a guy to step up. Got to have a good QB to compete in this league.
Finley - "knows the offense"
Calzada - participated in 7v7 during the spring, "accurate"
Robby Ashford - "athletic"
OL:
The young guys got a ton of reps this spring due to injuries. Caddy believes it was great for them to get live reps and will help build quality depth
WRs:
Improved in the spring but still looking for a playmaker in the portal to take the top off of a defense
TEs:
Best position group on the team
RBs: Want to be a power run team
Tank is going to have a big year - Caddy told a story where after a win this year, Coach Harsin came up to him and told him that he just heard an opposing coach recruiting Tank on the field. Caddy said Tank is an Auburn man and wanted to be at auburn after being pulled in all directions after (during) the season
Jarquez - one of the hardest workers on the team. Recently squatted 670 lbs and could have done more but the strength coaches cut him off
Sean Jackson - always been consistent, earned his scholarship
Jordan Ingram - Still has a way to go as a RB, but thinks things are starting to click for him. Will contribute on special teams
Alston - super excited about him, his work ethic, and his potential. Thinks he will be a great SEC RB
-Mentioned multiple times how he believes they are in such a better place this year than they were at the same time last year. Said the team has really rallied behind Harsin and that all the stuff that happened after the season may have been a blessing in disguise.
-Staffs main focus in recruiting is getting guys on campus. That is what sets Auburn apart from all other schools
-June is when camps start, and Auburn will host official and unofficial visitors
-Football only facility will be HUGE for recruiting. He said it will be the largest football only facility in the country - told a story that when he was with IMG in 17-18, he would be "inside recruiting for Auburn", every time a player went to Auburn they came back and said they loved the atmosphere, but the facilities were nothing like the other schools
-They were supposed to be in the FOF in July, but that has now been pushed back. He said they'll definitely be in by December at the latest, but hoping for mid-season
-When asked about NIL, he kind of rambled/danced around the question. Said its starting to get an NFL free agency feel. He said there are absolutely no rules/regulations other than coaches are not allowed to offer money. He did take a little shot at bama - said now they can all legally do what other teams have already been doing
-Talked about the 2004 team. By the way he talked, you could tell it still bothers him that they didn't get to play for the national championship. He said that as he gets older, he wishes the 04 team got the same recognition as the 57 and 10 national champ teams.
-Was asked about the transfer portal - said that "most" of the guys that transferred out brought a negative attitude and needed to go. He said coaches are technically not allowed to contact any player before they enter, but that its very very difficult for someone to enforce that rule. He said since the players still maintain their scholarship when they enter the portal, the players can hop in the portal and see if they have any better opportunities and if not then come back. He is not a fan of that at all! He also said that the coaches get an email when a current player jumps into the portal, and that most of the time that is the first time they know about it.
Overall, it was a great night and thankful Coach Williams is at Auburn! He seems to be very excited about this team.
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