A powerplay from the Miami Hurricanes program could ultimately be the exact thing Auburn football needed at this moment in time.
The Tigers are competing with Oregon for the services of Westview High School 4-star WR prospect Darrius Clemons, and with less than two months before National Signing Day, the ‘U’ poaching Ducks head coach Mario Cristobal would be beneficial for Bryan Harsin and co.:
As UM makes a run at Mario Cristobal in coming days, there's this perspective today from Dolphins safety Jevon Holland, who played for him: "He's a hell of a coach, one of the best coaches I've had. As a recruiter, he's even better. You see that with the talent we get at Oregon."
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) December 3, 2021
Clemons is currently predicted to choose Oregon, with 247Sports’ having his current chances at over 92%. Auburn has the next best odds, and Penn State rounds out his top three.
While Clemons is a Pacific Northwest native, he has noted that his family is from the south, giving Auburn a secondary edge behind the Ducks:
"“Auburn is great. My family’s from down South, got a lot of family down there,” he said. “It was just great to get down and see what they have going down there. They have a new coaching staff and not a lot of receiver talent so it’s definitely a place I can come and compete for an early spot.”“It’s cool just knowing they’re making me a priority and that they want me to come and be the face of the program.”"
If Cristobal migrates himself and joins a Hurricanes program looking to reload quickly after a 7-5 season, Auburn football may have the edge in reliability.
That’s not something you’d expect to hear from a program that fired the man initially in charge of Clemons’ recruitment (Cornelius Williams) just weeks into his tenure as WR coach, but that’s college football in 2021 for you.