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Auburn's Latest Commit Made College Football History

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Grant Bricker | Last updated Jun 24, 2025 8:03 PM ET

The Auburn Tigers have six commits from the 2026 class, but their most recent was a monumental one.

The Tigers earned a commitment from offensive tackle Nikau Hepi on Tuesday, who is the first player from the NFL Academy Asia-Pacific campus to pledge to a US college.

Hepi comes to Auburn all the way from New Zealand. He comes in at a whopping 6-foot-7, 370 pounds.

Auburn now has two offensive linemen commits from the 2026 class, as Hepi joins three-star inside offensive lineman Parker Pritchett.

Hepi's commitment is a rare win for Auburn in the last few days. The Tigers saw Devin Carter and Shadarius Toodle flip to different programs on Monday.

Hepi is a three-star prospect in 2026 class and the No. 72 offensive tackle in the 247Sports Composite. He is also the top prospect from New Zealand for his class.

With Toodle flipping to the Georgia Bulldogs and Carter pledging to the Florida State Seminoles, it did not seem like things could get worse for Auburn.

However, Florida State handed the Tigers another recruiting loss with the commitment of tight end Xavier Tiller. Linebacker JaMichael Garrett was committed to the Tigers until he reopened his recruitment on June 13.

Auburn's 2026 class features four-star edge rusher Hezekiah Harris, four-star receiver Denairius Gray, Hepi, Pritchett, three-star safety Wayne Henry and three-star running back Eric Perry.

The Tigers finished the 2024 season at 5-7 under head coach Hugh Freeze. Since taking the job in 2023, he has yet to a winning season with the program.

Freeze took the team to a bowl game in 2023 after a 6-6 regular season but lost to the Maryland Terrapins 31-13.

Year three of Freeze's tenure begins with the Baylor Bears on August 30.

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

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