Friday Night Notes: Auburn’s ‘phat’ new RB, Georgia…

Friday Night Notes: Auburn’s ‘phat’ new RB, Georgia hosts No. 1 recruit and more

USA TODAY High School Sports‘ Friday Night Notes is a weekly high school recruiting recap that looks at the latest news from around the country—from the Class of 2024 to ’25 and beyond.

We begin this week with the latest high school football recruiting news, hot off the presses.

This morning Andalusia (Ala.) four-star running back J’Marion “Phat” Burnette announced his commitment to Auburn.

WAR DAMN EAGLE🦅… pic.twitter.com/JMig2Q3dXJ

— J'Marion ‘‘Phat’’ Burnette (@JMarionBurnette) March 24, 2023

According to On3, Burnette had offers from 27 different programs. Alabama, Florida State, Georgia, Tennessee were also among his finalists.

As his nickname suggests, Burnette comes with plus size at his position, checking in at 6-foot-1 and 230 pounds. He’s put that huge frame to work, posting 3,724 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns on 513 attempts (7.3 yards per carry) over the last two seasons.

ESPN currently has him ranked No. 8 among running backs, while On3 has him as low as No. 28. Going by the composite rankings, he is No. 10 at the position in his class and No. 8 overall in the state of Alabama.

Burnette joins an already-loaded RB room at Auburn. He makes four hard commits for their recruiting class of 2024. They also have two four-star cornerbacks as well as Arkansas four-star quarterback Walker White. The group ranks No. 18 in the nation.

Top '25 recruit in Athens this weekend

This weekend the top recruit of the 2024 class – Chandler (Ariz.) quarterback Dylan Raiola – will be returning to Nebraska for another visit. Raiola’s recruitment has been described as “wide open” by his father, with several elite programs competing for his commitment, including Nebraska, USC, Oregon and Georgia.

Speaking of the big-spending Bulldogs, they also have their eyes on another No. 1 ranked recruit. This weekend Providence Day (N.C.) offensive tackle David Sanders will be visiting Athens for an official recruiting visit. Sanders (6-foot-6, 255 pounds) is the top-ranked tackle and No. 1 overall recruit in the class of 2025. This isn’t Sanders’ first visit to Georgia’s campus, and he came out of his last one saying he “can’t wait” to come back.

According to 247Sports, Sanders has offers from 30 schools all together, including other top contenders Alabama, Ohio State and South Carolina.

College commitment roundup: Wolverines and Hokies at the top

Michigan and Virginia Tech were the two busiest programs in the recruiting game this week. While the Wolverines added three prospects to their class of 2024, the Hokies finally got their first couple of ’24 commits in Florida four-star quarterback Davi Belfort and North Carolina Edge Deric Dandy. Several other Power 5 schools picked up notable recruits, as well.