It's not a secret that Hugh Freeze is a good recruiter. When he was the head coach at Ole Miss from 2012 to 2016 he racked up four straight Top 15 recruiting classes, including one Top 5 in his final season with the Rebels. Now he's at it again with Auburn. After signing four different four star recruits this past weekend it looks like the Auburn Tigers are racing towards a Top 10 class next spring and have actually taken the number one overall spot in the 2026 team recruiting rankings as well!
When Hugh Freeze arrived at Auburn the program was in absolute shambles from a recruiting perspective thanks to Bryan Harsin's complete negligence and failure across the board. Auburn had been a perennial Top 10 recruiting school for a decade, but the moment Harsin stepped in they could barely finish Top 20, losing important in-state and national recruiting battles consistently. Freeze is apparently not going to have any similar troubles. Let's dive into the four big recruiting wins from the weekend.
Blake Woodby, 4 Star 2025 Cornerback
Blake Woodby isn't just any four star defensive back. He's a Top 100 overall player in the nation who has logged sub-4.4-second forty times in high school. Auburn beat out Alabama, Maryland (his home state), Clemson, Georgia, and more for Woodby's services, making his addition a huge win for the Tigers.
Woodby fits the compact athletic mold with great recovery speed to make consistent plays in a variety of coverages that we just saw out of DJ James at Auburn. Woodby plays with physicality, great instincts, and should be a potential early starter.
Hezekiah Harris, 4 Star 2026 Edge Defender
Score yet another win for Hugh Freeze over Alabama and other SEC company. Hezekiah Harris is a fringe five star Top 30 player in the nation and a top five edge rusher recruit in the 2026 class. Harris already boasts NFL measurables at 6'5", 230 pounds, incredible speed, and plenty of burst off the edge.
On top of being an amazing recruit, he's a Huntsville, Alabama native. Huge win for Hugh Freeze and Auburn keeping the best in-state talent on their team.
Shadarius Toodle, 4 Star 2026 Linebacker
He might not have an intimidating name, but his play style shuts any doubters up quickly. Toodle moves at max intensity on most every single play, smashing running backs and quarterbacks in the backfield. On top of that he's actually got some impressive moves as a running back too. His hand usage and play strength make him look more like a defensive lineman at times than a linebacker making him an easy projection to match up well against top SEC competition early.
JaMichael Garrett, 4 Star 2026 Linebacker
At first glance JaMichael Garrett is obviously a little undersized as of today, but his play speed makes up for it. Despite barely being 200 pounds he actually logged nearly double digit sacks as a sophomore and almost 30 tackles for loss. His ability to shed and avoid contact to make plays is a sight to behold. If he continues to add weight he'll likely be ranked even higher (and is already a Top 120 player).
If this recruiting momentum continues the Auburn Tigers are going to have one of the best rosters in the nation sooner than later. Be looking for more Auburn Tigers and College Football coverage here at A to Z Sports all year long! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!
And if you want to check out some Hezekiah Harris highlights to see what he'll bring to Auburn just check out the video below!
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