AUBURN, Ala.- After a rough few days of decommits for Auburn Tigers football, they have landed a new kind of commitment and one that comes from the international stage. Big offensive tackle Nikau Hepi from New Zealand on Tuesday announced his decision to call Auburn home.
Hepi is listed at 6-foot-7 and 353 pounds and is rated as a three star prospect according to 247 Sports. What makes this commit so special, despite his giant frame, is that he becomes the first ever student-athlete from the NFL Academy Asia-Pacific campus to commit to a U.S. college.
IM COMING HOME
— Nikau Hepi (@nikaunflacademy) June 24, 2025
WAR DAMN EAGLE!! #BLESSED #auburntigers pic.twitter.com/qsbKgRFZi2
Auburn was the first school to offer Hepi, and he did not forget that.
“Being my first offer and the first to recognize me, the first to reach out, yes, it means a lot,” Hepi said, according to On3's Jeffrey Lee.
Final Rep at @AuburnFootball elite camp!@CoachThornton61 @AaronPittardAU @CoachHughFreeze @G_miller11 @RyanSmith_AU pic.twitter.com/GXnxlxFwJZ
— Nikau Hepi (@nikaunflacademy) June 2, 2025
Hepi also held offers from Florida State, who recently flipped a 2026 Auburn commit in four-star receiver Devin Carter, as well as Ottawa University, Sacramento State and UAB.
Hepi attended a camp in June that Auburn hosted, and it was hard for coach Hugh Freeze to not pursue such a massive presence on the field, despite Hep never playing a snap of American football. A rugby player, Hepi has held the Auburn offer since February/
His commitment the dent caused by the last week of decommits for the Tigers. Auburn recently lost commitments from the previously-mentioned Carter as well as a pair of four-star linebackers in JaMichael Garrett and Shadarius Toodle, who flipped to rival Georgia.
Auburn's 2026 recruiting class now ranks No. 81 in the country with six commits, according to 247 Sports.
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