The Auburn football program had a pretty successful early signing day, especially considering it took place just three days after the Tigers hired new head coach Alex Golesh.
The early signing period lasts from December 3-5, but most of the action takes place on the first day. After day one, the Auburn football program signed 15 players to its recruiting class of 2026, and Golesh's first recruiting class on the Plains has begun to take shape. Of course, there will still be work to do in the transfer portal, but with the new rules the portal window doesn't open until early January.
Early into the second day of the signing period, Auburn's recruiting class is ranked No. 36 overall and No. 14 in the Southeastern Conference, ahead of only Kentucky and Arkansas. The Tigers have two remaining commitments who plan to sign with the team before the end of the day on Friday.
One of those commits is an important piece of the roster for the Tigers next year in 5-star wide receiver Jase Mathews. The Leakesville, Mississippi, product is scheduled to sign at 2:00 p.m. Central Time this Friday. Auburn is competing with LSU and Ole Miss to earn Mathews' commitment, as Lane Kiffin has been pushing hard for the receiver, but it would have a big impact on the class if the Tigers could secure his commitment.
The other remaining commit, 3-star defensive lineman Tavian Branch, made his pledge to Golesh's Tigers on early signing day, but has not been announced as a signee just yet.
So far, Auburn's highest-ranked signee is 4-star linebacker Jaquez Wilkes, followed by 4-star defensive lineman Corey Wells and 4-star linebacker Shadarius Toodle.