Auburn flips out over Georgia football recruiting: George Pickens

Auburn 2019 football signee Owen Pappoe promised to flip a prize Georgia football commit to Auburn. Pappoe got a flip, but not the one he expected.

Auburn 2019 recruit Owen Pappoe  promised to flip Georgia football’s prize wide receiver commitment to the Tigers.

“We’re going to flip [Jaden] Haselwood,” Pappoe told AL.com.

Pappoe got his flip, but it was Auburn football’s prize wide receiver commitment, George Pickens, flipping to Georgia.

Auburn players and fans flipped out, but Auburn football head coach Gus Malzahn kept his cool, addressing the flip to AL.com.

“You know, usually I don’t comment on guys that go to other places, but he was committed to us for two years and decided to go somewhere else.”

Really, you had to see this one coming.

How did Kirby Smart, the reigning college football King of Flip, convince Auburn’s earliest 2019 verbal commitment to join the Dawgs? Was it money? Deceit?

It’s difficult to believe Malzahn was surprised at Pickens’ decision, because flipping him probably came down to a simple question.

“George baby, who’s throwin’ you the ball at Auburn?”

Auburn quarterback tradition

Auburn has some issues at quarterback going into 2019.

First, Malzahn tried to go the traditional Auburn quarterback route, but potential transfers Kelly Bryant preferred Missouri, Austin Kendall went to West Virginia , and Khalil Tate stayed at Arizona. While “take” surely was written next to Jalen Hurts name on the Tiger recruiting board, he had other ideas as well.

With returning backup Malik Willis never showing the ability to play quarterback for Auburn,  that leaves freshman Bo Nix as the presumptive Auburn starting quarterback in 2019.

Quoting Brad Zimanek of the Montgomery Advertiser, “The Tigers don’t have a long track record of success with high school quarterbacks since Gus Malzahn became head coach in 2013.”

A preference for experience

Five quarterbacks started games for Malzahn during the last six season. Three came from junior colleges after leaving other Division I schools — Nick Marshall (Georgia), John Franklin III (Florida State) and Jarrett Stidham (Baylor). Two came from high school to Auburn – Jeremy Johnson  who eventually lost his starting job to the other direct from high school quarterback, Sean White.

If ever there was a flip ripe for the flipping, George Pickens was the flippee. And what about that Haselwood kid? He flipped. He flipped all the way to Norman, Oklahoma.

No need to flip out over it all.