Auburn bringing in players from across the nation for Big Cat III recruiting weekend

By Charles Goldberg/Auburn Bureau, The Birmingham News, Press-Register, and The Huntsville Times al.com

Daphne running back T.J. Yeldon: Scheduled for Auburn's Big Cat (Jon Hauge / Press-Register)

AUBURN, Alabama -- Curtis Luper said Big Cat Weekend was invented during a brainstorming session with his fellow Auburn coaches.  

"We asked, 'What can we do to be different?'" he recalled.  

Coining a catchy phrase, inviting big-time football recruits to campus for a special weekend and staging an event where bonding is more important than running the 40 has paid off for the Tigers.  

Auburn has 26 Big Cat alums on its roster after two years, and hopes to add more from Big Cat III, an event for which some players will begin arriving tonight.  

The last two Big Cats have helped Auburn finish in the Top 3 in recruiting nationally, at least according to some recruiting websites, the last two years.

Luper, Auburn's running backs coach and recruiting coordinator, said Big Cat is different than most recruiting weekends.  

"The recruits get an opportunity to bond like none other because at most places they're running, they're jumping, they're doing some type of agility and physical activity. There is none of that here," Luper said. "There is essentially no football. We use it as an opportunity for recruits to get to know one another, our players, our coaches. For us, it's just a big family reunion."  

 

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