The Auburn football program wasn't exactly known for its wide receivers before last season. With the additions of "The Freeze Four"— especially Cam Coleman and Malcolm Simmons— and KeAndre Lambert-Smith from Penn State, the position group leveled up on the Plains.
That, along with the persistence of head coach Hugh Freeze and wide receivers coach Marcus Davis, was enough to convince wide receiver Sam Turner to flip his commitment from Georgia Tech to Auburn. He was ranked as the No. 63 wide receiver in the recruiting class of 2025 and the No. 58 recruit out of his home state of Georgia.
Since arriving on the Plains, Turner has already made his mark as a true freshman in a competitive group of wide receivers. He credits a lot of that to his relationship with the other pass catchers, especially his childhood friend Eric Singleton, the No. 1 receiver in the transfer portal who transferred to the Plains from Georgia Tech during the offseason.
"I'd say probably three years because I knew him from track to youth football, everything," Turner said of his bond with Singleton, per Auburn Undercover. "But he's been a good mentor to me. I go to his house all the time. He's just like, that's my guy.
"Eric, he's played a lot of ball so he knows coverages, releases and I have kind of been a sponge and I saw what Cam did last year as a freshman. I'm just taking that mindset and trying to make that me."
Even as a true freshman, Turner expects to play and make a difference for the Tigers this season. He expects to prove himself more during the Tigers' fall camp ahead of the beginning of the season on August 29.