Auburn Tigers Going All Out For Four-Star Defensive Lineman

The Auburn Tigers hosted potential recruits on the Plains a week ago for their official visits. One of these recruiting targets was defensive lineman Vodney Cleveland. Cleveland hails from Parker High in Birmingham, Ala. and was teammates with defensive tackle Jourdin Crawford, who signed with the Tigers in the 2025 recruiting class.

Cleveland will be part of the class of 2026. However, he has several different programs that are vying for his commitment. Currently, he has 37 offers from all over the country. His top five are the Auburn Tigers, the Florida Gators, the Texas Longhorns, the Miami (FL) Hurricanes and the Georgia Bulldogs.

All five programs have been classified as ‘warm’ and have had official visits

scheduled with Cleveland. The Tigers were the first of the five. Miami will be the latest on June 20. He is currently the 52nd-best recruit in the nation, the fifth-best defensive lineman in the nation and the fourth-best recruit coming out of the state of Alabama for the class of 2026. 

According to Auburn Rivals, the Tigers had to do a lot of work to get themselves back into consideration with Cleveland. 

"This weekend has helped Auburn a lot," Cleveland said. "I would say Auburn is back in my top tier of teams. They're gunning for that one spot now."

The defensive lineman spent the weekend with defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin and defensive line coach Vontrell King-Williams on his official visit. 

"He's a great coach, I love Coach Durkin," Cleveland said. "I feel like I fit great in his scheme with how he uses different fronts to help his guys succeed and make plays. He's definitely a big part of that."

It continues to show how important the extension of Durkin has been for head coach Hugh Freeze and company. In the coming month and a half, we will hear more about where Cleveland stands as he continues to visit other schools he has planned to visit. For Auburn, it is a waiting game. 

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