Auburn Tigers News: TE Rico Walker on his Plains visit, Bruce Pearl says Arkansas will be toughest challenge

In today's edition of Auburn Tigers News, Maryland tight end transfer Rico Walker talks about his recent Auburn visit, and Bruce Pearl discusses opening SEC play agains Arkansas

Earlier this week, Maryland tight end transfer Rico Walker took an official visit to the Plains and spent time with head coach Hugh Freeze and tight ends coach Ben Aigamaua. The Tigers recruited Walker, whose father was an Auburn football player, out of high school, but he ultimately signed with Maryland.

According to Auburn Rivals, Walker said the visit went "very well" and that the facilities and his relationships with Freeze and Aigamaua were what stood out about his visit. He can see himself excelling on the Plains:

"That’s one thing they love about me so much, is my versatility," Walker said. "If I do come here I’ll be able to display what I can do passing wise."

After finishing his visits this weekend, Walker plans to announce his transfer destination. Auburn football's main competitors for the tight end are Pittsburgh and South Florida.

Bruce Pearl discusses opening SEC play agains Arkansas

Bruce Pearl and the Auburn basketball team will kick off SEC play this weekend after tearing through non-conference play with an 11-2 record. Adding a win will be no easy feat as the Tigers are set to face Arkansas in Bud Walton Arena.

The Hogs have given the Tigers significant trouble over the past few years, and according to Auburn Undercover, Bruce Pearl called Arkansas the most talented group his team will have faced all season in an extremely tough environment:

"Probably not a tougher place to open (SEC play)," Pearl said Thursday. “... I'd say this will be the toughest challenge of the year. This is the most talented team we've played. This team is more talented than Baylor. They've got more depth and they were preseason picked third in our league. Not everybody will be able to go to Arkansas and have a chance. We hope to be able to be a team that can go on the road and compete with some of the best teams in our league. This is certainly one of them.”

Arkansas and Auburn basketball will tip off this Saturday at 1:00 p.m. from Bud Walton Arena.