Recruiting insider: Intel from Auburn A-Day spring game

3-star center Jakai Clark, Loganville, Ga.

• Jakai Clark picked up an offer from Auburn on Saturday. In fact, it was coach Gus Malzahn who gave the offer in his office. Clark said the extra attention was all he needed to see from the Tigers to make it his top school.
• There was some chatter that Clark might commit. That wasn’t from sources, though. That was from Clark himself. But he said Auburn coaches told him to be patient with a decision, just to ensure he wasn’t making an in-the-moment decision he’d regret. To answer the likely follow-up question: Yes, Clark is a take for the Tigers. In fact, there could be a decision made within the next week.
• Naturally the conversation came up about Clark’s high school teammates Owen Pappoe and Wanya Morris. Pappoe and Morris visited earlier in the week and had been in contact with Clark during their visit. The message from Pappoe to Morris was that Auburn coaches were singing Clark’s praises on the visit. That quickly turned into an offer.
• Best quote from Clark: “Me, Owen and Wanya, we all talk. I’m not going to spill anything. But, yeah, obviously Auburn is one of Wanya’s top 2. Auburn is one of Owen’s top 3 or 5. We’re all very interested in Auburn. I’ll just say that.”

4-star cornerback Marcus Banks, Houston

• This was Marcus Banks’ first visit to Auburn, but it won’t be his last. After his first trip to the Plains, Banks decided he’s going to take a spring official visit. He will set up the date with defensive backs coach Marcus Woodson shortly after he returns to Texas.
• That official visit schedule will take place this spring. Banks expects he’ll take all five this spring — those will be his top 5 — before making a spring-summer decision. He has official visits set for Texas A&M on April 27 and Texas on May 5. Baylor and LSU are the most likely official visits he’ll take outside of the aforementioned three.
• Banks’ relationship with Woodson will be the Tigers’ best selling point. Those two FaceTime on a regular basis. This is the new defensive backs coach’s recruiting prowess hard at work.
• Best quote from Clark: “I love the defense. That’s what drew my attention from the Texas A&M game. I was actually there on an A&M visit. I was watching Carlton Davis from Auburn. He really drew my attention and just the defensive style. They play aggressive. I love that defense. Before you know it, they had offered me. I made a point to come down here and take a look at it myself.”

3-star tight end Tyler Fromm, Warner Robins, Ga.

• Tyler Fromm, the younger brother of Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm, has been on campus three times in the last month. He came first for a junior day in March with his parents, returned for a solo visit last week and returned for A-Day on Saturday with his mother. Fromm’s regular presence on campus is a clear sign of the mutual interest between him and Auburn.
• He isn’t naming any leaders at this time, but Fromm calls the Tigers a “top contender.”
• Fromm said this visit was different from the others because he got to see the full scrimmage. He wanted to see if the Tigers opened up the passing game, which he said they did. Auburn has sold him on the idea that it needs better pass-catching personnel to spread the ball to the tight ends. He’s not worried about what Auburn has done with tight ends the last few cycles.
• Best quote from Fromm: “They obviously want me to get in as quickly as I can just to get the recruiting class up.”

Other key Auburn recruiting notes from A-Day

• The big overnight visitors staying at Auburn will be 2019 defensive end Colby Wooden and Texas A&M grad transfer Nick Harvey. SEC Country will try to get as many updates as possible from both.
• Florida linebacker commit Jammal Abrams returned for a visit to Auburn. He still hasn’t been offered, but it’s something to watch depending on how the Tigers’ linebacker recruitment takes off.
• Defensive end target Curtis Fann didn’t make the trip as initially expected. For that reason, my confidence level is higher than ever he’ll go to South Carolina, which he publicly recruits for on Twitter.
• Jo’Quavious Marks, a 2020 running back, was on campus this week. He’ll be one of the most highly coveted backs in the nation. He’s already been offered by Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee, Miami and others. Marks plays for the same high school that safety Smoke Monday attended. Many of the coaches who accompanied Monday on recruiting visits were at Auburn with Marks.
• This has nothing to do with A-Day, but I’ll mention it anyway because it’s the buzz of the Auburn recruiting world right now. There are some serious legs to the Owen Pappoe-to-Auburn narrative. I’ve been told by a handful of sources that the Tigers are now the main threat to land him — yes, over Georgia. Now, there’s still a month to go before Pappoe commits, and even then, the schools that he doesn’t choose will still recruit him hard. But this is a major development.