Auburn suffered its first decommittment today. Reuben Foster decomitted stating that he didn’t have a relationship with the new staff. According to Foster that is what “recruiting” is all about.
Foster isn’t afraid of the public eye or microphone. He had already had signficant issues surrounding him before ever stepping foot on campus. He stated repeatedly when AU fired Chizik that his continued committement was based upon keeping Trooper Taylor. That bridge was crossed earlier in the week when Malzahn released the staff, including Trooper Taylor. He notified AU he was decommitting this morning.
Foster says he will consider Georgia, Miami-FL, LSU, and Washington are under consideration. He is the nation’s No. 1 ILB and No. 6 overall prospect.
This news is interesting… obviously Malzahn isn’t going to hire back Taylor. And we have previously reported that Malzahn is visiting recruits. I cannot say why Mr. Foster wasn’t visited or called…. but it kind of makes one wonder which message is being sent… there are many to choose from.
WDE
Getting that tattoo removed is gonna hurt
Dude… that is funny!
LOL
WDE
I forgot about that!
WDE
Maybe Mr. Foster will keep the tattoo so that in the future he will be reminded of the great opportunity he passed up, the opportunity to be a member of the Auburn family. I know that may sound mean, but that is one of the main problems which we have experienced on the Plains recently, a self-focus instead of team-focus, mixed with a large dose of non-discipline and lack of respect. I am personally thankful for the change and the message being sent, it is not about you, it is about us!
Or he gets a bigger tattoo over it with a heart and arrow through it with Taylor scribbled over it….
But I agree with you. Pretty short sighted on his part. The sad thing is I had a sneaking suspicion we were going down this path… its probably for the best. For all involved.
WDE
I hate to loose a great recruit but if they are not fully on board with what we are trying to accomplish then it is for the best. We need kids that want to be here and here for the right reasons. I’m not saying they should not come for a personal relationship with the coaches because some of these kids don’t have that at home, however if he is that attached to TT then we have to give them both up to get the clean slate we need to be successful. Best wishes to both in their future endeavers.
Totally agree. I think Chizik was blinded by the stars anyway.
Wish him the best luck.
WDE
It’d be nice if Trey Johnson decided to re-commit. I think he may in light of these developments.
I think folks will find if they want to work hard… and give it everything… I think they will find a home at Auburn University.
WDE
If the only reason Foster had for playing at Auburn was Trooper Taylor, than Auburn does not need him anyways. Trooper Taylor has a bad reputation for blowing up player’s heads; he definitely did not do a good job of teaching team work. Whether or not I was going to be happy with Malzahn had a lot to do with the conditions of TT. If Taylor had staid, I would not have been very happy. If losing Foster is the cost of TT being gone, I can live with it.
Agreed. Add to it the poor judgement he has already shown… we probably didn’t need any more grief.
WDE
If you’ve followed on twitter Foster, and for that matter Dee Liner then you know these are probably not the kinda men you want at Auburn. Discipline issues were almost a certainty and they scream Trooper Taylor recruits. That is to say they seem entitled with overblown egos to go along with it.
This hurts. Of all the recruits we couldn’t afford to lose it was a game changing LB
Where is the bag man when you need him?
Don’t know… but you can always ask Danny Sheridan!
WDE
Good posting. This guy is the #1 Linebacker, but an obvious idiot. I know we are talking about 18yo guys, but who gets a huge AU tattoo then transfers to a different school? Who gets a tattoo like that before signing day?
Either he wants to play for Auburn, or he does not. One coach is just that, one man. We need players that want to play at Auburn.
Yes it does hurt to lose him, but we cannot continue to have NCAA allegations that always seem to center on a certain towel swinging guy. We have recruited a lot of talent that ended up off the team. Something tells me that losing this guy was inevitable either now or then.
When the staff is developed and on board… he might find a way back. I won’t shut that door yet simply because it is an 18 year old.
But for every action… there is a reaction.
And I suspect the way back will come at some sort of condition and understanding.
I believe Malzahn learned from Mike Dyer…
WDE
The only things we will miss about TT is his sideline antics and his recruiting ability..As a receivers coach he was mediocre….
I think you are being kind. I think this season when the receivers were not producing and Chizik was vocal about it… we saw the cracks in the concrete then… between Chizik and Taylor.
I thought he did what he could to support but his contributions were limited.
WDE
Auburn’s receivers, other than Blake and Lutz, were horrible. Sammie Coates had some flashes, but given the supposed talent level from them I think Troop was running a clinic on how to party in a college town instead of how to catch a ball.
Agreed. When you have mediocre QBs, you have to teach the WRs to catch less-than-perfect passes. Wow – looking back, we just sucked all around this year. Glad we are cleaning house!!! And yes, we don’t need any more prima donna 18 year olds thinking they run the show. Get on the Gus Bus to Glorytown now, before it’s too late, fellas.