Auburn football: Does landing Omari Kelly mean losing Darrius Clemons?

Auburn football’s recruiting class of 2022 is finally taking a little more shape with a total of 11 commits so far. Eight of those 11 prospects hail from Alabama or Georgia, with the other three from Nebraska, Florida, and Texas.

Most recently, the Tigers added 4-star dual-sport athlete Tre Donaldson, who also committed to Auburn basketball and Bruce Pearl, followed by 4-star wide receiver Omari Kelly. The pair bumped Auburn football’s class of 2022 up over 10 spots in the rankings and surpassed Ole Miss for the #13 spot in the SEC.

Kelly was a major get for first-year head coach Bryan Harsin, who landed the WR over in-state rival Alabama and Kentucky. But does that mean that the Tigers will miss out on 4-star WR Darrius Clemons?

According to Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gurney and Bryan Matthews from Auburn Rivals, the answer is no. Clemons released an official top 3 schools of Auburn, Oregon, and Penn State, but has not announced an official decision date.

The 4-star receiver out of Oregon officially visited the Plains in June, and Matthews reports that he’s expected to return for the Tigers’ opening game versus Akron on September 4. The other bit of good news is that both of Clemons’ other finalists have loaded up at the receiver position.

The Ducks already have 18 commits and five receivers on their 2022 roster, and the Nittany Lions currently hold the #1 ranked recruiting class of 2022 with 24 commits and five receivers. If Clemons wants an opportunity to play early and shine, Auburn football may be the program for him.

Per Adam Gorney, it’s likely that Clemons wants to see Harsin’s offense first-hand before making a decision, and the way the Tigers play in their opening matchup could really impact the receiver’s decision. As of right now, it seems that Clemons is trending towards Auburn football, but he’s going to make them earn his commitment.