Auburn football returns to top-5 recruiting class after signing 4-star S Anquon Fegans

AUBURN – Football recruiting at Auburn is officially in full swing.

After landing five commits at Big Cat Weekend on Saturday — two in the class of 2025 and three in the class of 2026 — and trading four-star receiver Derick Smith from Alabama two days later, the Tigers added a pledge on Monday night. from four-star safety Anquon Fegans.

Fegans, who attends Thompson High School in Alabaster, is ranked by the 247Sports Composite as the No. 44 overall player and No. 3 safety in 2025. Fegans totaled 59 tackles, 11 pass deflections and seven interceptions as a junior last season in helping the Warriors for an appearance in the Class 7A state championship. He had two interceptions in the title game.

Antwon Fegans Jr., who is Anquon Fegans’ older brother, is currently on Auburn’s roster. He transferred to the Tigers after stints at Arkansas State (2020-21) and Northwestern State (2022-23).

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Auburn is now back to having a 2025 class that ranks in the top five in the country. The Tigers were once ranked No. 4 in the country, but a lull has dropped them outside the top 10. Coach Hugh Freeze said on July 18 that he expected recruiting to return to the Big Cat.

The Tigers also currently hold the No. 1 2026 class.

With Fegans on board, Auburn has three of Alabama’s top five players committed, according to the 247Sports Composite. The Tigers also have five top-10s and eight top-15s. They could also soon land another, like four-star quarterback Jared Smith, who is considering Auburn and is considered the No. 4 player in the state. , is expected to announce his commitment on Saturday.

A few other notable in-state recruits — five-star cornerback Na’eem Offord (No. 1) and four-star defensive back Zion Grady (No. 6), both committed to Ohio State — were on campus for the Big Cat.

Fegans was once a USC commitment, committing to the school in May 2023. He backed out of his commitment nearly three months later, though, and is now part of an Auburn class that is No. 5 in the country, behind in order, from Ohio State, Alabama, Georgia and LSU.

The Tigers have finished in the top five just once in the modern recruiting era. Former coach Gene Chizik accomplished that in 2011 with a unit led by six top-100 prospects. The 2025 class currently has four players ranked in the top 100 between Fegans (44), Smith (51), four-star safety Eric Winters (67) and four-star cornerback Blake Woodby (100).

Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached by email at rsilva@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rich_silva18.

This article originally appeared in the Montgomery Advertiser: Anquon Fegans commits to Auburn football shortly after Big Cat