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Auburn Included in Top 8 for European College Football Prospect

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Grant Bricker | Last updated May 14, 2025 4:20 PM ET

The Auburn Tigers enter 2025 without a winning season under head coach Hugh Freeze.

Freeze is trying to produce results on the field through recruiting. His 2026 recruiting class ranked 13th overall via On3 Sports.

On3's Hayes Fawcett reported that Auburn made the top eight for four-star defensive lineman Valdin Sone. Sone is unique in the fact that he is not from the United States of America.

Sone's other top schools were the Nebraska Cornhuskers, USC Trojans, South Carolina Gamecocks, Florida Gators, Texas Longhorns, Georgia Bulldogs and Oklahoma Sooners.

Sone is a product of PPI Recruits in Malmö, Sweden. They have placed talent from Germany, Sweden, Finland, Belgium, and others with various college programs.

Sone is a four-star prospect in the 2026 class and the No. 14 defensive lineman in the On3 Industry Rankings.

Auburn's 2026 class features four-star edge rusher Hezekiah Harris, four-star receiver Devin Carter, four-star linebacker Shadarius Toodle, four-star linebacker JaMichael Garrett, four-star receiver Denarius Gray, three-star inside offensive lineman Parker Pritchett and three-star safety Wayne Henry.

The Tigers' chances of landing Sone are low according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine. The favorite is currently Florida at 93.5%, with Nebraska (1.6%), Oklahoma (1.4%) and Auburn (<1%) following.

Auburn is pursuing another top prospect from the 2026 class. The Tigers were named a finalist for four-star running back Jae Lamar.

Despite not making a bowl game in 2024, there are college football insiders like Joel Klatt who are high on Auburn. Klatt put the Tigers at No. 22 in his post-spring top 25 rankings recently.

Thanks to the transfer portal, Auburn's team will look very different in 2025. The Tigers' transfer class is highlighted by former Oklahoma quarterback Jackson Arnold, former Georgia Tech Yellowjackets receiver Eric Singleton Jr. and former Virginia Tech Hokies offensive lineman Xavier Chaplin.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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