Auburn picks up 20th commitment

By Collin Mickle

Published: July 15, 2008

National Signing Day 2009 is still seven months in the future.

But Auburn’s ’09 recruiting efforts have hardly slowed down since this year’s signing day.

Monday, the Tigers picked up their 20th verbal commitment for 2009. It’s by far the highest July total in memory.

The latest commitment is Meadville, Miss., athlete Jamie Collins, who participated in Auburn’s final senior camp of the summer last Saturday.

“I feel real good about it and don’t have second thoughts,” Collins told Auburnsports.com. “I really like the Auburn coaches. They seem really into me and showed a lot of interest.”

Collins, who plays quarterback and safety for Meadville’s Franklin County High School, projects as a linebacker in Auburn’s system. The 6-foot-3, 215-pounder practiced at linebacker at last weekend’s camp.

As a quarterback, Collins rushed for 1,096 yards, threw for 987 and scored 22 total touchdowns.

He chose Auburn over scholarship offers from Ole Miss and Southern Miss, among others.

Collins is the fifth linebacker to commit to Auburn in this year’s recruiting class. He joins junior-college star Eltoro Freeman, Lilburn, Ga.’s Brandon Jacobs and in-state prospects Jonathan Evans of Blount and Harris Gaston of Bessemer Academy.

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