When Bryan Harsin was at the helm of the Auburn football program, local high school football coaches never felt like a priority in terms of recruiting. Auburn-area prospects were often overlooked by their hometown team.

Now, with Hugh Freeze piloting the Tigers, that’s changed.

Given his previous experience in the SEC, Freeze understands the importance of winning the recruiting battles in his backyard before venturing out around the country. As such, earning the commitment of Alexander City athlete Malcolm Simmons was a priority for Auburn during its Big Cat Weekend.

Fortunately for Freeze and the Tigers, the time and effort into Simmons’ recruitment paid off as the Benjamin Russell School standout took to Instagram to announce his commitment to Auburn on Saturday afternoon.

Auburn fended off the likes of Arkansas, Troy, West Virginia and Georgia Tech to secure the commitment of Simmons, who had really started trending towards the Tigers earlier this week.

Simmons, who also competes in track and field ad Benjamin Russell, was the Wildcats leading rusher last fall with 753 yards and 11 touchdowns. Simmons also tallied more than 500 receiving yards and seven touchdowns during his junior campaign.

With 18 total touchdowns in 2022, Simmons was his team’s top scoring threat while also notching an interception on defense.

Simmons, who comes in at 6-foot and 165-pounds, ranks as the No. 365 overall player in the 247Sports composite rankings.