AUBURN, Ala. — Gene Chizik made himself at home in Jerraud Powers’ living room during his recruiting visit as Auburn’s defensive coordinator four years ago.
“He came to my house, ate all the food,” recalled Powers, now a cornerback for the Tigers. “My mom was just ecstatic that he was eating all the food, because a lot of the other coaches just got bits and pieces. He ate all the food and just kicked his shoes off and put his feet up and just sat back.”
The approach worked with Powers. That comfort level with the process of recruiting and winning over both prospects and their parents will be pivotal for the Tigers’ new head coach. Chizik has had to hit the ground running trying to hold onto current commitments and seek out some new ones, and said he will spearhead Auburn’s recruiting efforts during his tenure.
Athletic director Jay Jacobs called Chizik “a tireless recruiter,” and that was surely one of his big selling points in landing the job.
“Not only are we going to recruit, we are going to recruit what will be the best thing for Auburn: Both the best player and the best mark of a man,” Chizik said. “We are going to recruit tirelessly, 24/7 and we are going to work. Recruiting is the life blood of any program and we know that.”
Tommy Tuberville had left behind 26 nonbinding verbal commitments when he resigned on Dec. 4. At least seven of those have since withdrawn their pledges, giving Chizik a challenge to sway some of those defections back, keep the remaining recruits and evaluate both the prospects who have committed and others who might still be available.
“There are so many angles of recruiting right now,” Chizik said. “This is why it’s a little bit different. It’d be one thing if you walked into a place and there’s five commitments or there’s 10 commitments or 12. You’ve got 20-plus. Not only do you have to evaluate and talk to and get in touch with those guys, there are some other ones out there that you want to look at, too.
“There are so many great ones in this state. I think that creates a little bit of a whirlwind.”
An NCAA-mandated dead period when no in-person contact is allowed between coaches and recruits runs next Monday through Jan. 1, giving Chizik some time to settle down and devote more time to evaluations and assembling a staff.
“But right now, it’s go, go, go, and we’ll do it 24/7,” he said.
He would not say whether he would retain any of Tuberville’s assistant coaches. Auburn has enlisted the help of former Auburn assistant Joe Whitt and director of NFL Relations Phillip Lolley and director of Football Operations Jimmy Perry to hit the road visiting recruits.
Lolley and Perry were both longtime high school coaches in the state.
The latest Auburn commitment to pull his name out is Fort Myers, Fla., quarterback Raymond Cotton, according to AuburnSports.com.
Rivals.com currently ranks Auburn’s group 21st in the country.
The recruiting already faced challenges with Tuberville’s midseason firing of offensive coordinator Tony Franklin and Tuberville’s own departure. Chizik’s 5-19 record as a head coach at Iowa State likely raises questions for some prospects.
“He’s certainly got a daunting task in front of him on a lot of levels,” said Barton Simmons, Rivals.com’s Southeast recruiting analyst. “A lot of these Auburn recruits that he’s going to have to try to retain have been dealing with a lot of uncertainty for a while now.
“He’s got a lot of reassuring he needs to do. Obviously he struggled both years at Iowa State so he really needs to be able to sell himself to those recruits. There’s been a lot of negativity coming out of the Auburn nation about the hire. So he has to overcome all those things.”
Chizik cited the importance of establishing or maintaining relationships with the state’s high school coaches. He had a foundation from three seasons as Auburn’s defensive coordinator ending in 2004.
Chizik also recruited Powers and fellow starting corner Walt McFadden, giving him a connection to a couple of established Auburn players.
Powers praised Chizik’s knack for putting both he and his mother at ease in the living room. He also knows the other side since he was being recruited by Mississippi when the Rebels fired David Cutcliffe and thinks Chizik can overcome that.
“It’s fine for the recruits to have second thoughts, because it’s a new guy and this is a guy that wasn’t recruiting them,” Powers said. “I can understand that feeling, but once they get to meet him and get to talk to him and get to know him and hear from a couple of players that have played under him, we can certainly get some of the guys that we lost back.”
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Comments » 24
VOLorado writes:
Ask Lane. it's not as easy as it looks.
Though time will tell (for both)
PreventUT writes:
“He came to my house, ate all the food” - Somebody will say it, but it won't be me!!
givehim6 writes:
Wonder how many recruit Auburn will lose?
NoogaVol55 writes:
And we thought Kiffin was getting a late start...this is definitly not an easy task. That being said, I hope we can steal some recruits!
HonoluluVol writes:
I like to see UT grab a couple of these recruits before Chizik gets on his feet down there.
WeLoveTennesseeVols writes:
Right, and when we get up, we're gonna' recruit, and when we eat, we're gonna' recruit, and when we're finished recruiting, we'
re gonna' recruit, that's all we're gonna' recruit, and recruit, and recruti, and recruti,..!!
PreventUT writes:
I have no idea what you just said, but I applaud your effort.
FWBVol writes:
All this coach talk is killing me. First he was the right guy. Now he's going to recruit "tirelessly, 24/7. I can't wait for his next claim of the obvious.
ctownvol writes:
Nor will a GoVolsXtra poster...
richvol writes:
I don't see Chizik outworking or outrecruiting Saban...ever. Tuberville would beat Saban on a few recruits now and then but Auburn has really got an uphill battle on their hands now.
They should have hired Turner Gill. He is not only a fine young coach but probably could compete better with Saban for the athletes in Alabama.
ctownvol writes:
Do they owe me money too? Why would Turner Gill qualify and not me? I don't understand.
ctownvol writes:
His rights were violated? how so? Because he didn't get a job because of his skin color? So, if he gets the job just because he is a certain color, doesn't that violate other's rights who are more qualified? I'm just trying to understand your backwards logic. By your statements, you're not asking for equality. You're demanding preference. BTW_ Barkley is a moron.
RoyaltyVol#280778 writes:
Charles Barkley is a terrible representative of the SEC and to society because of his racist views. How would you feel if a "white racist" was called a representative or Ambassador to the SEC. Mr Barkley is about promoting blacks, not Auburn or the SEC.
Colliervol writes:
And you owe the KNS monetary compensation for them allowing you to spout your nonsense daily.
DennisVols writes:
http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/...
RoyaltyVol#280778 writes:
I agree with what the article says about Auburn making a bad hire. I think Auburn could have done a lot better than this guy or Gill. What I don't agree with is Charles Barkley saying it was race motivated.
GREEKDAWG writes:
No.1 tight end in Ga.,who committed to Aub. has not heard from Chizik,,,,,,,so UGA,TENN,ALA,are knocking onthe door
ctownvol writes:
Affirmative action is the purest form of racism.
naplesflvol writes:
Check this out - HILLARIOUS
http://www.zazzle.com/auburn_athletic...
alwaysorange81 writes:
“You can say it’s not about the race, but you can’t compare the two resumes and say (Chizik) deserved the job. Out of all the coaches they interviewed, Chizik probably had the worst resume.”-Charles Barkley
These are his words. Im sure he said some other things that not many people would agree to but these words must at least be recognized as reasonable. He has essentially said that you can legitimately deny race being an issue in this hire. But you cannot compare the resume's and say that Gene Chizic is the best hire. So can we back off of sir Charles a little please and talk about what a horrible hire Gene Chizic is.
And Robthevol please please please, for the sake of race relations around the world stop talking about race. GoVols
alwaysorange81 writes:
that is hilarious
mattfriedman58#226364 writes:
Absolutely agree!!!
robthevol - Let's take this down to a kindergarten level so you understand. Hiring someone soley because they're black is just as racist as hiring someone soley because they're white. Hence, affirmative action = racism. And to think CB is a great ambassador to the SEC only reinforces your ignorance!
I agree with most... Chizik was a bad hire, but not because the color of his skin.
Slystone writes:
Gill aside, Auburn would pick this guy in replacing Tuberville? Everyone has got to be scratching their heads over this selection. When they mentioned Gill was in the running come on now you know they weren't going to give him that chance.
txsvol#372416 writes:
What Barkley did, unfortunately, is stigmatize Gene Chizek as being racist. There is nothing in his resume to suggest such--he just happens to be white. He was an extremely successful defensive coordinator at both Auburn, and the University of Texas, who took a dead-end job at Iowa State. Because of his prior stint at Auburn, he was wanted by some of the high-rollers. Turner Gill had an 8-5 record at Buffalo this year, losing to schools like Pittsburgh, Missouri, Central and Western Michigan, and Kent State. Barkley's larger point is that there are only four black coaches of the 119 D-1 NCAA schools, and only Tyrone Willingham has coached at major programs (Stanford, Notre Dame, and Washington) where he had a chance to win, and that 3 of 6 resigned or were fired this year. All this has nothing to do with the preference of the Auburn high rollers for someone who obviously impressed them when he was a defensive coordinator at 'the loveliest village on the Plains." But, the resume argument is specious--Charlie Strong probably would have a better one, because he hasn't lost a game as head coach, and he's the long-time DC of a very successful program. He would be an outstanding hire, IMO, just like Brent Venables (OU) and Will Muschamp (Texas).There is little question about Barkley's motive--he prefers a coach who passes his pigment test! SAVol
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