Decision Close as Auburn Battles FSU, Ohio State for 4-Star Florida OL

Activity on the recruiting trail is starting to trend upwards for the Auburn Tigers, and they have another opportunity to secure an elite 2026 commitment in the near future.

Four-star interior offensive lineman Da’Ron Parks is set to announce his decision on July 26, according to Rivals, and will choose between Auburn, Florida State, Ohio State, and Kentucky.

Standing at 6-foot-5, 325 pounds from Sarasota, Fla., Parks is ranked as the No. 10 IOL and No. 213 overall player in the class, per Rivals. The same metric lists him as the No. 27 prospect from the state of Florida.

The Tigers were a bit late to the party, as they were actually the last of his four finalists to offer the four-star. Auburn offered him on January 13, 2025, almost two years after Ohio State (Aug. 8, 2023) and Florida State (Aug. 13, 2023), according to 247Sports’ recruiting timeline.

However, Auburn was the first of the four to host Parks for an official visit on May 16, per Rivals. Parks took his official visit to Kentucky on June 6 before heading to Florida State on June 13 and Ohio State on June 20.

The Tigers and Buckeyes appear to hold a slight edge in the race to land Parks, depending on the recruiting platform, as On3 reports that Ohio State has a 40.4% chance to secure Parks compared to Auburn’s 20.4%. On the other hand, Rivals national recruiting analyst John Garcia Jr. predicts Parks will be a Tiger, which was logged back in February.

The blue-chipper would become Auburn’s highest-rated interior offensive lineman in the class if he were to commit to the Tigers, per On3, surpassing three-star IOL Parker Pritchett. Parks would mark the fourth overall offensive line pledge, joining three-star tackle Nikau Hepi and four-star Wilson Zierer.

The Tigers are slowly inching their way up the 247Sports’ team recruiting rankings, now sitting at No. 65 after the recent commitments of four-star edge rusher Jaquez Wilkes and Zierer. Parks could provide another boost for this class as Freeze and company try to make up ground on the recruiting trail.