What’s next for Auburn after the de-commitment of Jalewis Solomon; plus new CB targets, optimism at DL and with a 5-star WR

Four-star athlete/defensive back Jalewis Solomon on Tuesday reopened his recruitment. The versatile athlete from Schley County in Ellaville, Ga. de-committed from Auburn after a two-month stay in the Tigers’ 2024 class.

His decision came as a surprise to Auburn, much like his commitment to the Tigers came as a surprise to South Carolina. As I’ve written before, Solomon awoke on Aug. 4 planning to commit to the Gamecocks. Graphics were made and ready to run. Auburn, however, changed his mind in the first few hours of the day only for Solomon to switch back to the Gamecocks before again flipping back to the Tigers and announcing his commitment. It went back and forth twice before ultimately announcing to Auburn.

It’s the main reason we believed Solomon was at the top of the de-commitment watch list when looking at Auburn’s commitment list. He never was fully committed.

Where Auburn goes from here

Auburn will not stop recruiting Solomon now that he’s reopened his recruitment. The Tigers, led by cornerbacks coach Wesley McGriff and safeties coach Zac Etheridge, will continue to recruit him and recruit him heavily. He has been and continues to be a high priority for Auburn.

Auburn likes Solomon at cornerback, but he also could play wide receiver. The Tigers never put limits on what position Solomon could and/or would play in college. They still won’t.

A similar athlete in that he could project at cornerback or wide receiver is Parkview’s Antonio White. The Rutgers commitment received an offer from Auburn in the summer, but the Tigers never pushed hard for him. It’s why he’s committed to Rutgers and not Auburn.

White absolutely would be in the Tigers’ class, but the push has yet to be made. Even now, since the de-commitment of Solomon, Auburn remains idle in its recruitment of White. There has been no contact with White from Auburn since Solomon’s de-commitment.

That, however, could change.

Could the Tigers make the push for White?

Auburn will attend one of Parkview’s games soon. And judging from White’s stats, the Tigers could like what they see. Through five games, White has 45 tackles (9/game), 31 solos, and 14 tackles for loss. He also has two sacks, a pass breakup and blocked a punt.

Should AU ultimately make a push, it would be hard for White to say “no.” He is very close friends with teammate Jalyn Crawford, who is committed to AU. He also is friends with Auburn freshmen Kayin Lee and Terrance Love. The four played 7-on-7 together for three years.

White also is close with 2025 four-star offensive lineman Cortez Smith and 2026 potential future five-star defensive back Zelus Hicks. Crawford, White, Smith and Hicks all visited for the Georgia game. They all are expected back for the Ole Miss game.

But again, as for now, the interest from Auburn is low.

New CBs to track

While White appears to be down the board at this time, there are others moving up. A couple of new names to track include Landyn Cleveland and Cai Bates.

Cleveland is a three-star cornerback from Mansfield (Texas) Legacy. He’s committed to Oklahoma State, but several SEC schools, including Auburn, are working to change that (Alabama offered on Wednesday). Cleveland is listed and ranked as a safety, but is now playing corner. It’s where Auburn is recruiting him to play.

Bates is a four-star corner from Edgewater in Orlando, Fla. He’s committed to LSU, but again, Auburn is working to change that. The Tigers hope to get both Bates and Cleveland on campus this fall. Bates could be on campus as soon as next weekend.

Auburn also will hit the transfer portal for at least one cornerback, if not more.

Potential commitments coming at safety

Auburn could be on the brink of adding a couple commitments at safety.

Laquan Robinson, who is ranked the No. 1 junior college safety in the country, visited for the Georgia game. He’s scheduled to be back on campus next weekend (Ole Miss) game for an official visit. The Tigers are hopeful and a bit optimistic Robinson could commit.

Auburn Live’s Cole Pinkston and I both have logged an On3 recruiting prediction for Robinson to sign with the Tigers.

I also have logged an On3 recruiting prediction for Thompson (Alabaster, Ala.) safety Kaleb Harris to Auburn with 80% confidence. Auburn has made a big push for Harris and it appears will pay off. The three-star recruit plans to visit next weekend and likely will commit during or soon after the visit.

Harris has had a huge start to his senior season. Through five games, he’s totaled 54 tackles, 39 solos, six tackles for loss, three interceptions, four pass breakups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Auburn is very high on him and the feeling appears to be mutual.

And I’ll throw this in here: Don’t count out Auburn for five-star safety KJ Bolden. I know he’s committed to FSU and it will be a tough flip, but there is some confidence the Tigers can make it happen.

Also, as with corner, Auburn likely will look to the transfer portal for 1-2 safeties.

Auburn continues to be a threat to Alabama for 5-star WR

Saraland (Ala.) class of 2025 five-star wide receiver Ryan Williams visited Auburn for the Georgia game and is planning to be back on campus at least two more times this season. The Alabama commitment is expected back next weekend for the Ole Miss game and again in November for the Iron Bowl. Hugh Freeze and Marcus Davis are making huge impacts here. After Williams was in Auburn on Sept. 29 and Sept. 30, Freeze made a visit the next day (Oct. 1) to Saraland to visit Williams. The Tigers absolutely are a threat to Bama here.

Williams has not re-classified to the ’24 class, but it remains a possibility. A source close to Willams said there “is a good chance” the reclassification happens. As I have written before, Auburn is hopeful he can do so. The Tigers need and want him as soon as possible. In addition to Auburn and Alabama, Williams also is considering Georgia and Texas.

Williams has a very busy itinerary for the next few weeks. He plans to visit Alabama on Saturday, Auburn next weekend (Oct. 21), Texas on Oct. 28 , Alabama again on Nov. 4 and Auburn on Nov. 25. The draw to Texas is his teammate, quarterback and close friend KJ Lacey. The 2025 four-star QB is committed to the Longhorns and the two (Lacey and Williams) have discussed playing together in college. Auburn also is recruiting Lacey and he could be one to track a little closer moving forward.

Optimism on the defensive line recruiting front

+ Cole Pinkston on The Corner wrote about there being some confidence at Auburn with five-star defensive lineman LJ McCray. McCray is set to announce his commitment on Oct. 21. Not many have given the Tigers much of a chance here, including myself. However, like Cole, I have been told there is some optimism/hope coming out of the Plains.

+ Auburn continues to be in a very good spot to flip four-star defensive lineman Jeremiah Beaman. The standout from Parker in Birmingham, Ala. is committed to Alabama, but is heavily considering a flip to Auburn. There absolutely is some confidence at Auburn it can/will happen. And on that note, if the flip does happen, keep an eye on his 2025 teammate and close friend, five-star DB Na’eem Offord. Auburn is making a big move with him.

+ Another defensive line target to keep a close eye on is Brien Taylor. The junior college standout (he’s ranked the No. 13 overall JUCO) will be in Auburn next weekend on an official visit. Auburn has nade Taylor a huge priority. He’s in constant communication with Freeze, Jeremy Garrett and even AK Mogulla, director of player personnel. Taylor went to high school with Auburn starting offensive tackle Dillon Wade and the two remain very close. Taylor doesn’t seem to be in a rush to make a decision. In addition to Auburn, he’s set to take official visits to Georgia (Oct. 28-30), Tennessee (Nov. 18-20) and Florida (Nov. 24-26).

Still, with Wade, Auburn is in a very good spot here.

+ Auburn defensive line commitment TJ Lindsey is locked in with the Tigers, but don’t be surprised if he takes a visit or two elsewhere. Lindsey hasn’t set any visits, but it wouldn’t be a huge shocker if he were to visit Miami. The Hurricanes are trying to get in with him and he’s at least listening enough to consider a visit.

The post What’s next for Auburn after the de-commitment of Jalewis Solomon; plus new CB targets, optimism at DL and with a 5-star WR appeared first on On3.